Housing Market
News covering issues affecting the UK residential property market, house prices, interest rates and buying and selling trends.
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Is Channel 4 TV show Location, Location, Location ‘out of touch’?
Twitter reacts aggressively to episode showing two couples buying their first houses with budgets of £500,000 and £750,000 but who reject many of the properties.
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Prime London property sales drop by 27% as Brexit bites
Research by estate agency Benham & Reeves shows faltering confidence overall but brisk demand for London's 'super streets'.
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Corbyn defends rent caps and property MOTs after savaging by landlords
Jeremy Corbyn has made the unusual step of personally defending two of his party’s most radical housing policies – rent caps and an annual ‘MOT’ for rented properties backed up by a fine of up to £100,000 for non-compliance. The policies are contained within Labour’s election manifesto launched late last week. They were immediately savaged by landlords including the Residential Landlords Association, which said both policies would ‘close down the private rented market’. An RLA statement said that Labour’s plans for rent controls linked to inflation are ‘nonsense’. “The Office for National Statistics has shown that rents are increasing by less than inflation,” the statement said. “The Party has failed to heed the warning of the Labour Chair of Parliament’s Housing Committee who has previously warned that rising rents will only be addressed when more homes are built. “The party’s former Housing Minister in Wales has also warned that rent controls serve only to reduce the quality of accommodation, choke off supply, and make it more difficult for tenants to find the homes to rent they need.” Faced by such criticism, Corbyn has defended the policies, telling the BBC that: “What we’re doing is ensuring that all tenants have somewhere…
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Industry attacks Conservatives over Stamp Duty ‘foreigner tax’ pledge
Builders and agents point out that foreign investment is key part of many prime markets in the UK and proposed 3% extra Stamp Duty would put many investors off.
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Boris’ latest: lifetime fixed-rate mortgages and discounted ‘locals only’ new-builds
The Conservative leader has launched two new promised policies to help him achieve the million-plus new homes the party claims can be created by 2025.
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Labour launches radical housing policy push including rent controls and ‘locals first’ new homes
Corbyn has launched an assault on the property market including banning Right to Rent checks, greater tenant rights and a huge council building programme.
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Boris confirms end to Section 21 evictions and launches ‘Lifetime Deposits’
Boris Johnson has revealed several major shifts in government policy for the private rented sector and, as predicted, has put evictions at the centre of the General Election housing debate. In an article published by The Sun newspaper early this morning, Johnson has confirmed that the government will proceed with banning Section 21 eviction notices. “At the moment, renting a property can also be an uncertain and unsettling business, and the costs of deposits make it harder to move. We are going to fix that,” says Johnson. “A Conservative majority government will empower renters and give them greater peace of mind.” The policy has been opposed by landlords and many agents because it will push all evictions into the courts, making it harder and more expensive to eject tenants who default on their rent. Hugely welcome But homelessness charities have welcomed the move including Shelter, whose chief executive Polly Neate says: “Reports that Conservatives plan to scrap Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions are hugely welcome. “If enacted, this would transform private renting for millions of people by providing them with stability and security.” Johnson has also said that if elected his government would bring in a system of transferable tenancy…
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General Election: Liberal Democrats reveal their manifesto property promises
The Liberal Democrats are the first major political party to publish its manifesto for the December 12th General Election. And should there be another hung parliament, then the LibDems have a fighting chance of making the ‘blue-sky thinking’ within the document into law. Its online manifesto features three key housing policies which would have far reaching consequences, mainly for the private rental market. These include some ideas poached off the government but also several radical policies that other parties have steered clear of. General Election promises: Helping young people into the rental market by establishing a new Help to Rent scheme to provide government-backed tenancy deposit loans for all first-time renters under 30. Promoting longer, three-year compulsory tenancies and ensuring they feature inflation-linked and built-in annual rent increases to give tenants security and limit rent hikes Introduce a national, mandatory licensing scheme for landlords to weed out rogue operators. One policy not mentioned in the manifesto is a plan promoted on Twitter by its housing spokesperson and former leader, Tim Farron. In November he said the party would increase council tax five-fold for empty properties that went unoccupied for long periods of time. “People are struggling to afford good homes…
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First time buyers and movers keep on borrowing despite Brexit
First time buyer, remortgaging and home mover home loans all increased year-on-year during September but the buy-to-let sector is still reeling from the government's assault, UK Finance figures show.
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Election housing debate turns nasty after Tory candidate suggests ‘work camps’ for nuisance tenants
Wannabe MP Lee Anderson posted a video on Facebook launching his solution to anti-social behaviour, but has been attacked from all sides for his views.
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