Escape the dizzying heights of Dubai May 22, 2014 Discover wild side of the UAE’s lowest new development THE ENDURING mental image conjured by Dubai is one of sparkling steel towers reaching so far into the sky they’re in danger of bothering a deity. The city’s reputation as a paean to Middle Eastern wealth and excess, a hub of consumerism and hotel franchises, means [...]
London pulls up average rent rise September 25, 2013 Figures published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) have shown that private rents have gone up over the past year. In the 12 months to August 2013 private rental prices paid by tenants rose by 1.2 per cent. Excluding London, private rents in Great Britain rose by 0.8 per cent. Prices increased the most [...]
City Moves for 24 March 2014 | Who’s switching jobs March 24, 2014 Herbert Smith Freehills The law firm has announced the appointment of Justin D’Agostino as global head of dispute resolution. He is currently a partner, and has spent his entire legal career at the firm. Legal & General Property James Lidgate has joined Legal & General property as head of residential. He has over 14 years’ [...]
Grainger sells £58.4m Tilt portfolio August 7, 2013 Grainger yesterday sold some 300 homes in East Dulwich known as the Tilt portfolio to the GRIP Unit Trust, a privately rented residential property fund it formed with APG, Europe’s largest pension fund manager this year. In an interim statement yesterday Grainger said the sale for £58.4m will help to repay debt, which currently stands [...]
Mortgage deals strike a four year high in August September 24, 2013 THE SURGING housing market has pushed mortgage lending to a four-year peak, according to the British Bankers’ Association (BBA), while lending to businesses remains anaemic. The BBA said that last month its members approved 38,228 mortgages, an increase of just over 25 per cent from the same month last year, highlighting the recent boost to activity [...]
Caribbean dream August 29, 2013 Get a tan while you invest: now is the ideal time to snap up that dream property, says Steve Irish SUN, SEA, sand and a sound investment. Too good to be true? Not for business-minded buyers with capital behind them: there has never been a better time to snap up that beach-front idyll. While traditional [...]
Rangers on track to relocate to £10bn site of proposed HS2 link August 21, 2013 QUEENS Park Rangers chiefs have confirmed that they are in talks to swap Loftus Road for a new 40,000-seater stadium at nearby Old Oak Common. The arena would be part of a £10bn plan to transform 100 acres of industrial land into office and residential property, as well as incorporating the proposed HS2 rail link [...]
Warehouses to be converted into residences in planning reforms March 19, 2014 BRITAIN’S property industry welcomed news yesterday that planning rules may be relaxed to allow more commercial buildings to be turned into homes, in an effort to tackle the housing shortage. New rules were already introduced last year allowing offices to be converted into homes without going through a lengthy planning application process. However in his [...]
Investment Comment: Investing in a low interest climate August 13, 2013 THE BANK of England’s decision to link interest rates to unemployment was widely expected. Accordingly, interest rates could remain at all-time lows until at least the middle of 2016. So what does this mean for investors? WINNERS AND LOSERS Savers will be the worst hit by the pledge of three more years of low interest [...]
City Moves for 27 August 2013 | Who’s switching jobs August 26, 2013 Lloyds Bank The bank’s commercial banking arm has announced the appointment of Jacqueline Keogh as director of global trade. Keogh has over 25 years’ experience in the banking industry. She was most recently at Standard Chartered, where she was managing director, and regional head of banks for Europe in its transaction banking division. B Capital [...]