Buy to let investors are feeling the heat: What are the alternatives for gaining exposure to residential property? May 26, 2016 The buy-to-let boom of recent years has fed the stereotype that Brits are uniquely obsessed with property. Yet statistically this appears to be little more than a myth. The latest data from Eurostat show that 64.8 per cent of the UK adult population lives in a property they own compared to an EU average of [...]
Demand for homes in London is falling as prices keep rocketing – except in these two boroughs April 6, 2016 It looks like rocketing house prices are having a demotivating effect on London home buyers, after new figures suggested demand for homes has fallen across many of the capital's most exclusive boroughs. The figures, by online estate agent Emoov, found demand for homes in Southwark fell 50 per cent between the final quarter of last year [...]
UK house prices: Bexley, Cambridge, Bristol and Bedford among the UK’s hottest property spots, while Aberdeen, Stockton-on-Tees and Bradford are “coldest” January 20, 2016 Cambridge, Bristol and Bedford are among the regional cities vying with Greater London as the top 10 hottest property spots in the country – but Aberdeen, Stockton-on-Tees and Bradford are where demand is weakest. That's according to online estate agent Emoov, which puts the London Borough of Bexley at the top of its index for the last [...]
London house prices: These are the best commuter towns to relocate from the City to, based on house price, travel costs and commuter time February 17, 2016 Thinking about quitting the City in favour of suburban paradise – but not sure which way to head? With London's house prices on a seemingly inexorable rise, commuter towns are gaining in attractiveness for many, but those who are looking to make the move still need to find a way to make the balance of [...]
Budget 2016: A tax on house purchase is a tax on house building too – which will not help the UK’s housing crisis March 16, 2016 A tax on house purchase is a tax on house building too and could perversely worsen the housing crisis in the long term. Raising taxes is a tried and tested way to discourage activity that the government thinks is bad for us and right now it seems the target is buy to let. Unfortunately the [...]
London house prices: Single Chinese investor buys entire £15m Waterloo scheme February 9, 2016 Proof, if proof were needed, that London is still hugely attractive for overseas investors – but increasingly unaffordable to the people who actually live in the capital: a single Chinese investor has bought out an entire development in Waterloo for £15m. Dover House, which recently completed construction, is made up of nine luxury apartments and retail space. [...]
Libor scandal: Judge orders former UBS and Citigroup trader Tom Hayes to pay over £878,806 March 24, 2016 Former UBS and Citigroup trader Tom Hayes was ordered to pay just shy of £900,000 by a court yesterday, or face yet more time in jail. Hayes, who was found guilty last August on eight counts of conspiracy to defraud for his role in manipulating Libor, was hit with an £878,806 confiscation order following a [...]
I lost my job over the Iraq War: Chilcot has restored my faith in democracy July 6, 2016 “In the name of God, go!” – Oliver Cromwell, On The Dissolution of the Long Parliament, 1653 The Iraq war presented me with the most profound moral crisis of my life. I was working in Washington, immersed in two major efforts offering advice on post-war Iraq planning. Yet I could see there was none. The [...]
Knowing me knowing Kew: your guide to buying and living in this greenest of London areas May 5, 2016 For a capital city, London is pretty green – not environmentally, of course – but aesthetically, coming in at number three for green space globally. Kew, however, is pretty green even by London’s standards and its 75 acre botanical gardens are world-renowned. This, coupled with an underground and overground line and good schools, make it [...]
Goldman Sachs agrees to pay $5bn to settle mortgage claims April 11, 2016 Goldman Sachs has agreed to pay $5.06bn (£3.6bn) to settle claims that it mis-sold mortgage backed securities in the run-up to the financial crisis. The settlement with the US Justice Department relates to residential mortgage backed securities (RMBS) sponsored or underwritten by the US investment bank between 2005 and 2007. Goldman Sachs has agreed to [...]