78 Carlton Hill: Eric Idle’s old St John’s Wood home where Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher partied with the Rolling Stones November 27, 2014 Eric Idle used to let movie stars stay in his home in St John’s Wood while filming. Now, anyone can stay, for the right price. Tucked away in a quiet corner of north west London, a magnificent townhouse once hosted an unusual evening of frivolity between some of the biggest icons of 1980s pop [...]
Put your house on it …price boom ends October 8, 2014 HOUSE price growth slowed in September, an influential report from Halifax showed yesterday, adding to evidence that activity in the UK’s rampant property market was moderating. Prices rose 0.6 per cent last month and 9.6 per cent in the past year. But this still-substantial growth marks a continued slowdown from the annual growth of 10.2 [...]
This press release sums up everything that’s wrong with the UK’s house price obsession February 18, 2014 If there's a blindspot in the UK's collective understanding of economics – house prices is certainly it. In no other area would we so excitedly greet news of rising prices. That public relations officers feel we should want to applaud news of house prices well above their pre-crisis high is an insult. "Like chinks of sunlight, [...]
London IPOs: Second time round it’s a buyer’s market – Bottom Line August 31, 2014 And so it begins. The window for new listings on the London stock market unofficially opens again today after the summer lull and bankers will hope to rekindle the spirit that gripped the City earlier this year. But omens are not so good this time round. Things were different back then. Pent up demand from [...]
Soaring number of low deposit mortgage deals February 24, 2014 NEW FIGURES released this morning suggest that the number of products for the highest loan-to-value (LTV) mortgages has tripled since the surprise launch of the second phase of Help to Buy in October. The number of products available for buyers with only a five per cent deposit has soared from 43 to 132 in less [...]
From Quindell and Gotham City to Uber and the LDTA – five of the biggest business battles to watch out for in 2015 December 22, 2014 Rival camps have banded together, the lines are drawn, battle armour is on and adrenaline is running high. All that's left for spectators to do is grab some popcorn and watch from the ringside. From rival estate agents, to a business targeted by a Batman styled US fund and an influx of tiny new banks [...]
Carney backs big bonuses for top successful bankers February 17, 2014 SENIOR bankers should get big bonuses as long as the money is spread out over several years and can be clawed back if they make mistakes, Bank of England governor Mark Carney said yesterday. His argument runs counter to much of the criticism of high pay for bankers, as he favours the payouts when they [...]
Carney could scrap Help to Buy next year January 8, 2014 GEORGE Osborne’s flagship Help to Buy mortgage scheme could be shot down by Mark Carney in the coming 18 months, top bank analysts said yesterday, as the booming housing market gathers pace. The chancellor wants the scheme, which supports house buyers with small deposits, to last for three years. But if the housing market overheats [...]
London Report: Building boost helps FTSE snap its losing streak March 17, 2014 BRITAIN’S top share index snapped its longest losing streak in two and a half years yesterday as the building sector surged on a government plan to pump more cash into a scheme to boost construction. Persimmon was among top FTSE gainers, rising 3.7 per cent after chancellor George Osborne said on Sunday he would extend [...]
Booming housing market could see Help to Buy scaled back February 18, 2014 UK house prices continued their forward march at the end of 2013, with the capital pulling even further ahead from the pack and the average house price hitting £250,000. Figures from the Office for National Statistics have shown London house prices rose 0.9 per cent in December, putting them more than a fifth higher than [...]