UK housing: Remove the mavericks and stabilise the property market October 13, 2015 The wave of financial services regulations introduced over the last five years has caused deep changes in the way we invest in various asset classes, from equities and fixed interest securities to cash – yet the property market seems to have escaped the regulation firing line. According to the Investment Property Databank (IPD), residential property has been [...]
Warren Buffett has been linked with a group that is looking to bid for Yahoo May 15, 2016 Warren Buffett, the legendary investor, is backing a consortium that is bidding for the core internet assets of Yahoo, according to reports. The head of Berkshire Hathaway, also known as the Sage of Omaha, is reportedly among a group that includes Dan Gilbert, the billionaire founder of Quicken Loans. US news reports and the Financial [...]
Interest-only loans are going out of fashion, as number of current loans drop 16 per cent September 22, 2015 Repeated warnings that interest-only mortgages are a "ticking time bomb" appear to be filtering through to the market, with figures out this morning showing a 16 per cent drop in the number of such loans outstanding. A quarter of the reduction is the result of loans reaching maturity and being redeemed while a further 40 [...]
Scheme is full steam ahead: Battersea boss hits back at fears that investors are fleeing March 16, 2016 The developer behind the £8bn regeneration of Battersea Power Station has sought to quash fears of investors fleeing the site after warning signs that a glut in new build homes, tougher tax rules, and currency turmoil in foreign markets is weighing on London's prime property market. Speaking to City A.M. in Cannes, Rob Tincknell, chief executive [...]
Sadiq Khan slams Boris Johnson’s “toothless” Concordat housing scheme at Mayor’s Question Time June 22, 2016 Sadiq Khan has slammed former mayor Boris Johnson's flagship housing scheme for failing to stop new London homes being sold as "golden bricks" to overseas investors. Johnson's Concordat scheme, which was launched in 2014, was pitched as the solution to stopping major developers advertising London homes abroad first for overseas buyers, who had months more [...]
Post-recession peak for home buyer deposits June 25, 2015 PROSPECTIVE homebuyers face having to pay the highest level of deposit since 2009. The average deposit reached £72,302 last month, according to figures released today by the Mortgage Advice Bureau (MAB). It marks the highest deposit since the MAB first started publishing the data six years ago. The size of the average loan also ticked [...]
UK housing marktet: Record low rates spur mortgage lending climb September 9, 2015 Record low borrowing costs and competition between banks led to a rise in mortgage lending from April to June, figures released by the Bank of England and Financial Conduct Authority showed yesterday. The total value of mortgages advanced was £52.5bn over the period, a 15.1 per cent jump on the same time last year. The [...]
Steel unions to hand Javid Port Talbot demands at key meeting tomorrow April 4, 2016 Community, the union which represents British steelworkers, will meet with business secretary Sajid Javid tomorrow to discuss the steel crisis and present Javid with a list of demands for the industry. The demands, which include the government preventing Tata and potential buyers from cherry-picking assets, were formulated at a meeting in London today. “There needs to [...]
Shell could sell some North Sea assets April 12, 2016 Royal Dutch Shell could sell some of its older, lower grade North Sea assets as part of a two-year programme to help pay for its £35bn purchase of BG. It confirms previous reports that the oil major would use its assets there to help hit a $30bn sales target between 2016 and 2018, a goal which will go towards financing the [...]
In praise of hedge funds: Why short-term activists create long-term value August 16, 2016 Activist hedge funds are often seen as the epitome of all that’s wrong with capitalism. They cut investment, fire employees, and break contracts to boost the short-term stock price, and cash out before the long-term value destruction comes to light. It’s certainly possible to find examples of this. And such stories make for good journalism [...]