HSBC and RBS move into the pre-fab, build to rent housing market with support for Greenwich Creekside Wharf scheme December 8, 2016 HSBC and RBS have backed the UK’s first pre-fab build to rent scheme with a £60m loan facility. The banks will equally finance Essential Living’s 249-home Creekside Wharf scheme, based in Greenwich, with a four-year club deal. “Long-term demand for private rented housing is only going to increase in London and Essential Living’s position as [...]
UK house prices were flat in October November 2, 2016 House prices were flat in October, as the housing market struggled to regain the momentum it lost following the EU referendum. According to data from Nationwide, there was no house price growth month-on-month in October. House prices increased 4.6 per cent year-on-year, down from an annual growth of 5.3 per cent in September. Read more: [...]
UK house prices: There are now 10 buyers for each property on the market – with first-time buyers hit hardest January 4, 2016 Thinking of putting your house on the market this year? Now's the time to do it, after new figures suggested there are now 10 prospective buyers for each property on the market. The National Association of Estate Agents' (NAEA) November Housing Market Report showed the number of house-hunters grew 20 per cent in during the [...]
The most gripping private equity tale of 2017? Japanese tyre firm agrees £215m takeover deal for British counterpart January 5, 2017 A Japanese tyre company has agreed a £215m takeover deal for a UK counterpart. Private equity firm Graphite Capital today announced the sale of Micheldever Tyre Services (MTS) to Sumitomo Rubber Industries (SRI), Japan’s sixth largest tyre manufacturer. Graphite said the sale represents a 3.7 times return on its individual investment. The private equity house originally backed [...]
Bovis Homes on track to deliver record revenues despite Brexit blip November 10, 2016 Housebuilder Bovis Homes said today that it's on track to meet expectations of revenue and profit growth for the year, despite uncertainty in the market following the EU referendum. The group said that aside from the weeks immediately after the UK's vote to leave the EU, sales during the year to date have followed a normal [...]
Time to move: Prime rents fell in the Home Counties last year as property owners get spooked from selling and turn to rental market January 16, 2017 Prime rents in the Home Counties fell 0.8 per cent last year, as a higher amount of housing available at the top end of the market drove down prices, according to the latest Knight Frank rental index. The increase in stock levels in higher price brackets has been fuelled by greater uncertainty in the sales [...]
It’s now easier to buy a home in New York than it is in London November 5, 2016 London's housing market was once the poor relation of New York's, but rapid house price growth in the UK capital has made it more unaffordable than its American rival. In July this year, the average house price in London was £484,176 as compared to £411,018 in New York, making the Big Apple a more accessible market. [...]
Interiors: Laura Ivill tours Beau House, the St James’s scheme promoting British art and design January 13, 2017 As London Fashion Week Men’s drew to a close last week, with its global celebration of Savile Row and Jermyn Street style, all eyes were on St James’s. This historic quarter, based around St James’s Square and bordering Green Park and St James’s Park, is undergoing a £500m redevelopment by The Crown Estate, joined by [...]
Bovis Homes takes £7m customer service hit as shares slump on falling profits February 20, 2017 Shares in Bovis Homes slumped around eight per cent this morning after the house builder counted the cost of customer service problems. Shares were down 7.86 per cent to 774.89p at the time of writing, after opening around 10 per cent lower, following the housebuilder saying this will be the year "when we reset the business" after a "difficult" [...]
UK private equity activity dropped to financial crisis levels this year December 16, 2016 UK private equity activity fell to its lowest level since 2009 this year, a new study out today shows. Across Europe, deal activity is down 38 per cent from €89.7bn (£75bn) in 2015 to €55.7bn. Read more: Vroom vroom: Private equity house announces second acquisition in two days And the decline is even more extreme [...]