Letters to the Editor – 09/04 – Student migrants, Stamp duty, Best of Twitter April 8, 2014 Student migrants [Re: It’s a national scandal that Britain is driving away foreign talent, yesterday] Lord Bilimoria hits the nail on the head. The government’s ridiculous net migration target has had the perverse effect of forcing the Home Office to tighten up the rules on international students, who are presumably the very migrants we should be [...]
Thorntons’ share price collapses 25 per cent following profit warning December 23, 2014 Chocolate maker Thorntons has ended the year on a disappointing note, warning falling sales will hit the company's earnings for the full year. The company's share price slumped a whopping 25 per cent when the market opened. Thorntons announced its UK Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) division had faced "challenges" that hit sales performance in [...]
UK house price growth slows, but prices are five times average earnings December 4, 2014 House prices across the UK were up 8.2 per cent in the year to November, another month of slower growth after October's 8.8 per cent rise. The price to earnings ratio is ticking up, however, and has reached a multiplier of 5.02. Halifax’s house price index also showed quarterly prices up 0.7 per cent (slowing [...]
House sales hit six-year high as activity spreads across the UK April 9, 2014 PROPERTY sales have soared to their highest level in six years as the housing boom grips regions across the UK, a new survey by property experts revealed today. The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) said the housing recovery is “well and truly underway” with buyers testing the market right across UK and not just [...]
How one million homeowners have only known ultra low rates March 4, 2014 MORE than one million first time buyers have jumped on the property ladder in the five years since the Bank of England cut interest rates to 0.5 per cent, raising fears that borrowers are unprepared for a rate rise in the years to come. It is five years to the day since the base rate [...]
Surveyors say house shortage is lifting prices February 12, 2014 A SHORTAGE of homes is forcing up house prices across the whole of the UK, according to a leading survey published this morning. The alarming figures follow a separate data release yesterday which showed mortgage-lenders ramping up loans to first-time buyers who are anxious to get on the housing ladder. Demand in the market appears [...]
England to start march towards World Cup with victory over Wallabies November 27, 2014 AFTER months of careful planning, preparation, and fans’ anticipation, England’s Autumn Internationals all comes down to this. The Red Rose will run out at Twickenham tomorrow for the final time of 2014 to take on Australia, knowing that yet another defeat to a Southern Hemisphere side will cast serious doubt on their ability to emerge [...]
Housing boom as deals near pre-crisis high February 13, 2014 HOUSE sale volumes hit their highest level in seven years in January, and are now just four per cent below the average seen in the boom years of 2000 to 2007, according to figures out today from LSL Property Services. Last month 73,000 properties changed hands, rocketing up 67 per cent compared with last January. [...]
Rightmove stays bullish despite cooling down of housing market November 6, 2014 Property website Rightmove yesterday said it had a confident outlook for the full year, as more agents and developers used its service to advertise despite signs of a cooling housing market. In a trading update for the four months to 31 October, Rightmove said its membership had grown two per cent since the first half [...]
London property sellers bag 99pc of the asking price March 31, 2014 House prices have risen for the 14th consecutive month, with a 0.6 per cent rise in March, according to the monthly national housing survey conducted by residential property analysts Hometrack. 50 per cent of postcode districts reported an increase in prices. The survey also showed that those who are selling property in London were able [...]