We profile five young developers that are shaking up the UK property industry February 25, 2016 The free-thinking “millennial generation” could be our most entrepreneurial age group. Having pushed the boundaries of communications and technology, many are now challenging traditional businesses, including property development, and are making a significant mark. They may be young, but the self confidence and business sense of the five developers profiled here has helped them deliver [...]
Buy to let backlash: rent supply falls year-on-year and renters are set to pay the price May 31, 2016 The supply of rental properties is fell year-on-year in April, down by five per cent, as letting agents predict that the stamp duty hike on buy to let properties will end up hitting renters in the coming months. The average number of properties managed per branch decreased from 193 to 183 year-on-year, according to data from the [...]
London house prices: Luxury apartments in Gatti House on the Strand have broken street’s square footage record October 8, 2015 A new luxury development on the Strand has broken the record for the cost of square footage in the central London district. Grade II listed Gatti House was sold as four separate apartments, with the penthouse going for around £2,260 per sq ft, while the first floor was sold for £2,100 per sq ft. This is thought to be the [...]
Housebuilders are busy in the Home Counties as Londoners flee the capital’s ridiculous house prices June 6, 2016 Housebuilding is on the up in the home counties as Londoners flee outrageous house prices in the capital. There was an 11.3 per cent increase in residential planning approvals over the last year, up to 12,010 in 2015 from 10,793 the year before, according to commercial law firm EMW. The greatest increases in housing applications from [...]
One Savings bank shares are up nine per cent after releasing “another strong set of results” August 24, 2016 Shares in specialist lender One Savings bank jumped over nine per cent this morning after it released half year resilient results that it said were meeting all its targets. The figures Although statutory profit before tax leapt from £46.6m to £100.0m, underlying profits were less dramatic, increasing from £47.6m to £64.6m. New lending increased by 25 per [...]
London house prices: First of many? Foxtons issues profit warning after Brexit vote June 27, 2016 Shares in struggling estate agent Foxtons plummeted as the market opened after it became one of the first property giants to issue a profit warning off the back of the UK's Brexit vote. Shares fell more than 16 per cent to 112.94p after the company put out a statement this morning saying challenging conditions it had previously referred to [...]
Stamp duty was already a bad tax – the buy-to-let surcharge makes it even more stupid November 30, 2015 Petty, shallow and stupid. That pretty much sums up the government’s new 3 per cent stamp duty surcharge on additional properties, announced by the chancellor in the Autumn Statement last week. Beyond the naked appeal to the public’s envy of second home owners and buy-to-let landlords, there is almost nothing to recommend this measure on [...]
First-time buyers secured more mortgages in June than at any other point since August 2007 August 10, 2016 First-time buyers boosted mortgage lending in June as tax changes designed to deter buy to let landlords took effect. June mortgage lending was up by 29 per cent month-on-month, according to lending data from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML). Mortgage lending was up by 12 per cent compared to the same month last year. First-time [...]
It’s time for radical solutions to address London’s housing crisis December 17, 2015 As MP since 2001 for the most central London constituency, I cannot recall a time when housing issues have not dominated my postbag. No surprise, perhaps, when UK buyers compete for a limited supply of homes with a global citizenry seeking its own slice of prime London. But I have also witnessed how the polarisation [...]
City Moves for 29 October 2015 | Who’s switching jobs October 28, 2015 CHESTERTONS The property firm has appointed Archie Sykes as UK sales manager in its international residential development department. He joins from Berkeley Homes, where he was development sales manager for two London schemes. Sykes has also held roles at Hamptons International. HENDERSON GLOBAL INVESTORS The asset management firm has appointed Alex Mander as an associate [...]