General Election 2015: McCarthy & Stone CEO Clive Fenton wants a retirement housing plan April 15, 2015 ELECTION COUNTDOWN: 21 DAYS TO GO Every day until the final week of the election campaign, we ask a business leader to say what policies would entice them to vote for a particular party. CLIVE FENTON: CEO, MCCARTHY & STONE Every political party claims the chronic housing shortage is critical in the UK, [...]
Japanese M&A deals in the UK hit $9.5bn last year, boosted by Nikkei’s purchase of the Financial Times February 16, 2016 Nikkei's purchase of the Financial Times helped Japanese acquisitions in the UK reach $9.5bn (£6.6bn) last year, according to new analysis from Deloitte. The figure is the highest level this century and dwarfs the $0.67bn in Japanese UK deals recorded for 2014, the accountancy firm's research shows. Nikkei, Japan's largest media company, announced last July [...]
Government loan guarantee sees higher average deposit April 13, 2015 THE AVERAGE deposit for a house purchase using Help to Buy rose to its highest number for 10 months in February, according to figures released by the Mortgage Advice Bureau yesterday. Buyers using the mortgage guarantee scheme put down an average deposit of £9,936 in February, up by 9.2 per cent from January’s £9,099. It marks [...]
Budget 2015: George Osborne’s election gift for young and old alike March 18, 2015 Chancellor George Osborne used the final Budget of this government to give sweeteners to both younger and older voters yesterday. In an unexpected move, he introduced a new Help-To-Buy ISA, giving first-time buyers up to £3,000. “For every £200 [first-time buyers] save for their deposit, the government will top it up with £50 more,” Osborne [...]
Piercing the bitcoin veil: Businesses should beware the risks of trading with a sanctioned entity February 3, 2016 In January the EU and the US lifted economic and financial sanctions against Iran in a ground-breaking deal that unfroze billions of pounds of assets and opened up new markets for the first time since 2010. Despite the fanfare surrounding the deal, in the small print a warning remains: some EU and US financial sanctions [...]
London house prices: There’s a bold solution to the housing crisis – if councils get out of the way August 6, 2015 Tessa Jowell is the latest mayoral candidate to pledge to build more homes to tackle London’s housing crisis, promising at least 50,000 new properties would be built each year under her watch. The government has also outlined plans for 200,000 new starter homes to be constructed, many also earmarked for the capital. But history tells [...]
No end in sight for London house price boom: Average asking price soars to more than £600,000 June 15, 2015 House prices in the capital are set to outpace earnings for the foreseeable future, despite government efforts to boost house building and affordability. Average London asking prices have jumped to £613,922 – above £600,000 for the first time ever – according to Rightmove data published today. It marks a rise of 5.8 per cent compared [...]
London house prices: Your home is paying off your annual commute in around a fortnight if you live in Surbiton, Tandridge, Harpenden, Henley and Epsom January 13, 2016 Have you found yourself grumbling about the ever-increasing cost of commuting, even when your train is delayed/cancelled/diverted for no apparent reason? If you're a property owner, it's time to turn that frown upside down. New research suggests that if you travel into London from the commuter belt, your home is actually paying off the cost of your annual [...]
NatWest says government’s new Help to Buy ISAs will help young customers November 27, 2015 NatWest has revealed that it will be one of the country’s first lenders to participate in the government’s new Help to Buy: ISA scheme. Starting next week, NatWest will offer customers accounts on the scheme, which will see the government topping up individuals’ savings when they purchase their first home. For every £200 an individual [...]
Chinese shares rise two per cent after day of volatile trading – but end the week 10 per cent down January 8, 2016 Chinese shares closed mixed today, ending a week of volatile trading, following mounting fears over the pace of the country's economic slowdown. After a day of wild swings, China's Shanghai composite index closed up 1.97 per cent at 3,186.41 points. Meanwhile, the Shenzhen composite index ended the day 1.05 per cent higher at 1,978.721 points. The CSI 300 index, tracking [...]