| I echo Dickie's comments - it's all about risk v reward
A common misconception is that property is a low-risk investment ("safe as houses). Unless the £35k buys the property outright, your friend will have to leverage up. ie higher risk with potentially higher reward. The risk is somewhat defrayed if you have rental income that help to meet mortgage payments.
If £35k is a hard limit without wanting to have to put in money at a later date, I would recommend a basket of low-risk corporate bonds. You'll get semi-annual (or possibly even quarterly) coupon payments. The return is will be higher than on risk-free investments (gilts or premium bonds) but are still very safe bets if you plan to hold to maturity.
If in doubt, speak to a financial advisor (a real one, not someone who justs want to sell you a pension). | 
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