The housing market could be headed for long-term stability May 21, 2015 London has been holding its breath for 12 months and the force of the exhalation has been strong and euphoric. Unfortunately the inevitable intake is coming again as we have a “Stability/Emergency Budget” – decide afterwards perhaps – which will make (along with the usual Budget next year and the recent Autumn Statement), three different [...]
Budget 2016: George Osborne’s speech in full March 16, 2016 George Osborne has just revealed the Budget for 2016. There was good news for businesses with corporation tax being sliced and business rates being reformed – but bad news for smokers and students who hate maths. Mr Deputy Speaker, Today I report on an economy set to grow faster than any other major advanced economy in [...]
Firms uncertain over tax relief March 18, 2015 SMALL businesses faced further uncertainty after the government said it will review a planned cut in tax relief on capital investments, with a decision not expected until the Autumn Statement in December. Industry groups has urged the chancellor to freeze the annual investment allowance at its current level of £500,000. The allowance for investments in [...]
George Osborne needs a long-term plan for taxation July 6, 2015 “Don’t tinker with taxes” is a consistent cry from business. True, few will bemoan a change that benefits them, but it’s hard to overestimate how much firms value certainty in their tax affairs. It’s difficult to plan ahead if you don’t know what your costs are likely to be. Yet we now effectively have two [...]
Mike Ashley funds purchase of Chelsea development worth £900m April 19, 2015 Mike Ashley has financed a deal for a lucrative development in Chelsea that could be worth around £900m according to reports. The Newcastle United owner and Sports Direct founder is said to have provided the £200m paid by Citygrove and McLaren Properties for a development site from John Lewis. According to The Sunday Times, the money [...]
London house prices: Top-end property sales crushed by stamp duty increase April 13, 2015 Higher taxes have stomped on the prime London property market, forcing the number of sales to dive by one-third, commercial real estate firm DTZ said yesterday. Changes to stamp duty in December’s Autumn Statement mean that homes worth below £1m received a tax cut, but those at the very top end of the price scale have [...]
London house prices: West End buyers shrug off stamp duty rise and mansion tax threat as sales rise April 27, 2015 The West End residential market saw no let up in activity over the first quarter of the year, figures show, despite changes to stamp duty and the threat of Labour’s proposed mansion tax. Property advisory firm CBRE said sales transactions jumped by 33 per cent on last year as it agreed sales on £54.7m worth [...]
London house prices: This nine-bedroom Chelsea mansion just sold for £51m – 300 times the average house price April 10, 2015 A house just outside Chelsea's super-upmarket square The Boltons has sold for just over £51m – that's 300 times the average house price for England and Wales. The Daily Mail reported the nine-bedroom property in Boltons Place had been sold to an offshore company – although the buyer got a deal: it was originally on [...]
Building the next five years in alternative finance: How marketplace lending is becoming part of industry furniture July 15, 2015 When we look back, 2015-16 will be seen as the watershed moment: when peer-to-peer (P2P) lending and crowdfunding made the big time, transitioning from quirky innovation to a respected alternative source of finance and investment opportunities. The government has clearly been persuaded of the potential benefits of so-called alternative finance – especially as a [...]
Wealthy Russians push up rents by paying annual cost upfront March 30, 2015 WEALTHY tenants from Russia, Ukraine, Nigeria and China are pushing up high-end rents in the capital by paying for an entire year of tenancy upfront, a new study has suggested. Upmarket lettings agency EJ Harris said the number of wealthy foreign investors paying annual rents upfront had doubled in the past year, from one in [...]