UK house prices: More than three quarters of homes are selling below asking price June 27, 2017 More than three quarters of homes sold for less than asking price in May, new figures have shown – as the number of homes for sale rises. Some three per cent of properties sold for more than asking price in May, a report by the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) showed, down from seven [...]
Bank of England interest rate rise threat sends first-time buyer sales to a pre-recession high August 28, 2015 The threat of a rise in borrowing costs led first-time buyers to look through increased deposit costs and indulge in a "summer of white-hot activity" with completed transactions hitting a pre-recession high. Monthly first-time buyer sales rose 4.9 per cent to 29,700 in the month to July, according to an index by estate agents Your Move and [...]
One in three homeowners disappointed with their progress up the housing ladder September 3, 2016 A third of homeowners are disappointed with their progress up the housing ladder, new research has found. Some 33 per cent expected to have advanced further than they currently have, according to a Lloyds Bank survey of around 1,000 homeowners. The figure increases among first-time buyers, 43 per cent of whom said they are lagging [...]
UK house prices were flat in October November 2, 2016 House prices were flat in October, as the housing market struggled to regain the momentum it lost following the EU referendum. According to data from Nationwide, there was no house price growth month-on-month in October. House prices increased 4.6 per cent year-on-year, down from an annual growth of 5.3 per cent in September. Read more: [...]
All I want for Christmas is… an ultra-hard Brexit (and nine other pro-growth policy wishes) December 22, 2016 Here is my Christmas wish list for Santa. Ten policy measures which, if implemented, would make future growth prospects truly joyous, with Christmas every day of the week. But these are also economic policy measures Santa won’t be too familiar with, as he boards his sleigh somewhere north of the Nordic economies. I don’t pretend [...]
Nationwide pulls out of commercial real estate lending as it reports falling profits November 18, 2016 Nationwide announced plans to pull out of commercial property lending as it reported falling profits today. The figures Statutory profit for the six months to September came in at £696m, down from £802m. And underlying profit was reported at £615m, down from £801m. Nationwide said gross mortgage lending was up 17 per cent to £17.5bn [...]
New £2.3bn housing infrastructure fund announced in Autumn Statement November 23, 2016 A new £2.3bn housing infrastructure fund has been announced in the Autumn Statement to unlock new land for house building in high demand areas. The chancellor Philip Hammond also said there would be a £1.4bn fund to be spent on building 40,000 new homes. He announced a £3bn homebuilders' fund for 200,000 new homes and £2bn to build [...]
House sales forecast to stay flat as buyer interest drops for first time in over a year – RICS May 12, 2016 Interest from UK house buyers has dropped for the first time since March 2015, as uncertainty plagues the market, according to the latest Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Residential Market Survey. Following the buy-to-let rush that preceded the 1 April tax rise deadline, and with continued uncertainty caused by the EU Referendum, interest from [...]
London house prices up nearly 10pc in August as first-time buyers hit hardest August 16, 2015 London house prices have had their most buoyant August for eight years, new figures show. Homes in Greater London are 9.7 per cent more expensive than they were in August 2014, property website Rightmove said today. House prices normally face a drop in August when compared with July, as the holiday period distracts buyers and [...]
Property of the Week: This four-storey penthouse next door to Tower Bridge is on sale for the first time in 35 years July 27, 2017 There are penthouses with views and then there’s the High Command. This highly unusual Grade II Listed property in Shad Thames is so close to Tower Bridge that it’s practically within touching distance when you’re having a cup of tea on one of its many terraces. High Command, Shad Thames, £9.5m This is the first [...]