Housing Market
News covering issues affecting the UK residential property market, house prices, interest rates and buying and selling trends.
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Sales agreed, prices and time to sell increasing despite election, says Rightmove
This summer’s election campaign is having a less corrosive effect on sales levels than two years ago when David Cameron made his bid for power, Rightmove has claimed. Its monthly house price index reveals that the number of sales agreed so far this year is 2% higher than during the lead up to the 2015 general election. Rightmove also reckons that the number of days it takes to sell a property is reducing too, down from 79 days in January 2017 to 60 days in April 2017. The reduction is even sharper in London, where in January it took 71 days to sell a home, compared to 53 days in April. Stock levels are rising too, Rightmove says. The number of properties for sale per agent has risen from 52 in January to 57 in April. House prices are also rising, the portal’s index reveals, increasing during April by 1.2% or £3,626 on average, the fifth consecutive rise. All-time high “Whilst all-time high asking prices or economic and political uncertainty could be deterrents to would-be home-buyers, this month shows another strong set of figures,” says Rightmove’s spokesman and director Miles Shipside (pictured, left). “Demand is exceeding supply in many parts of the country…
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Gazumping is back as market grows more competitive, says Sarah Beeny
The lack of stock within the market is leading to an outbreak of bidding wars among buyer for the properties that do come on the market, research has revealed, and that gazumping is on the rise. Online agent Tepilo surveyed 2,000 home buyers and discovered that 23% had been involved in bidding wars, and that 19% had paid over the asking price to secure their preferred home. The-dog-eat dog nature of the market is also evident in the research – which reveals that 86% of those surveyed believe the housing market is competitive and that 16% had been gazumped and 14% lost out to a rival during a bidding war. Buying costs And perhaps predictably given the research is from Tepilo, the results show that 26% of respondents thought the significant costs of buying and selling a home were also “factors that make it competitive”. “This survey reveals the competitive nature of the UK housing market and how it’s affecting buyers, and things will only get more competitive in the more popular places to live until the Government really focuses on this as a priority,” says Tepilo founder and TV presenter Sarah Beeny (pictured). “The lack of new affordable houses…
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Do you know your local average house price? Amber Rudd doesn’t either
Home Secretary Amber Rudd has been caught out by a TV news reporter who asked her what the average house price was in her Hastings & Rye constituency. During an interview with an ITV Meridian news team yesterday afternoon on Southampton docks Rudd was asked if he she knew what the average house price was in her constituency, to which she answered “yes, I do, do you know what it is?” back. The reporter answered that she did and, turning the question back on Rudd asked her to reveal what the local average house price was. Amber Rudd, rather than admit she had no idea, appeared to bluff her way out said it was “certainly a little over £100,000, that’s true” before being told by the reporter that it is £217,983. To which Rudd replied “wow”. Trip-ups Amber Rudd’s is the latest in a series of trip-ups on TV during the general election campaign, including two days ago when Theresa May controversially suggested last year’s problems with the sterling exchange rate had nothing to do with the EU referendum vote, and Labour MP Dianne Abbott’s car crash interview with Nick Ferrari during which she forgot her figures on the cost…
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Conservative Party Manifesto: Theresa’s 12-point plan for property
If the expected Conservative victory on June 8th materialises then what should the property industry look forward to (or not) from a renewed Tory administration? The question was answered comprehensively today after Theresa May launched the Conservative Party manifesto, several pages of which are dedicated to the housing market. In summary, the Tories today promised a 12-point property plan, some details of which was specific, others which were not: 12-point plan Reform and modernise the home buying process so it is more efficient and less costly. Crackdown on unfair practices in leasehold, such as escalating ground rents. Improve protections for those who rent, and look at how to increase security for good tenants and how to encourage landlords to offer longer tenancies as standard. Fix the dysfunctional housing market so that homes are more affordable, and that there are enough homes built to meet demand. Bring the cost of renting of down by securing more homes available to rent – a veiled reference to Build to Rent. Support specifically the building of mansion blocks, mews houses and terraced streets – i.e. high quality but high density housing. Build 160,000 homes on government land. Introduce a £23bn National Productivity Fund which…
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Agents face double whammy of fees ban and belt-tightening landlords, research shows
As the government’s letting fees ban looms, agents face a second squeeze as landlords rein in spending on their properties as their tax bills rise, research has revealed. Landlords spend £3,632 on each of the properties on average every year or a third of the average rental income, according to Kent Reliance Building Society. Of this, £1,025 is spent on maintenance, repairs and servicing, with £870 spent on letting agent fees. But this spending is likely to reduce by nearly 7% this year as ever-rising tax burden on landlords force 36% of them to consider cutting costs, the building society’s research reveals. Letting agent fees It also pinpoints letting agent fees, property maintenance and mortgage costs as the targets for cost cutting by landlords. Kent Reliance reckons landlords currently contribute £15.9bn to the UK economy, a figure that has doubled since 2007. But the lender says that £500m less will be spent each year as landlord rein in their property budgets. Landlords currently spend £5.5bn on property maintenance and upkeep, £2bn on service charges and ground rent, £963m on insurance, £904m on utilities and £1.1bn on miscellaneous costs. Spending on letting fees totals £4.7bn a year and £644m on legal and accountancy…
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Market is feeling cold winds of the general election, research reveals
The looming general election is beginning to affect confidence among home buyers and sellers, research has revealed. The number of people planning to sell their home within the next six months has dropped to 17%, says Zoopla, down from 23% in October last year. Its figures also reveal that a similar drop in the number of people planning to buy a property, down from 25% in October to 17% today. The portal says these drops in confidence are directly attributable to the looming general election called by Theresa May for the 8th June. Homeowners may be reluctant to move home in the current political and tax environment, but 87% of them across the UK are confident about the value of their home and expect house prices to increase over the next six months. According to Zoopla’s Housing Market Sentiment Survey, this is an increase of 4% since its last survey six months ago. General election “Despite a continued period of political uncertainty, it’s encouraging to see a rise in confidence for property price growth,” says Zoopla spokesman Lawrence Hall (pictured, left) “[But] we can’t ignore that there’s been a rise in reluctance to buy and sell properties. With the upcoming general…
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Rents rise and stock shrinks as landlords sell up
ARLA Propertymark (Association of Residential Letting Agents) has just published its March Private Rented Sector (PRS) Report and with rising rents and increasing sales, it’s not all good news. In March, agents reported a rise in the number of landlords selling their buy-to-let (BTL) properties, with an average of four selling up per branch, compared to three in February. The last time the number of landlords selling their BTL rose above three per branch was in November last year, when the letting agent fees ban was announced. Rising rents are also a concern. The number of tenants negotiating rent reductions rose month on month in March – in February, 2.2 per cent of agents witnessed successful rent reductions, whereas in March, 3.6 per cent reported this happening. On the other hand, a quarter (25 per cent) of letting agents saw landlords increasing rents in March – a figure which has not changed since January. Year on year, this is down by seven percentage points. In March 2016 almost a third (32 per cent) of agents were seeing rent increases. Rental stock levels steady but demand rises The number of properties managed per member branch remained the same as the previous month, with…
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Millennials on the move as housing market shifts
Millennials, (that’s anyone aged between 25 and 34, born between the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s, according to the Government), make up 13.9 per cent of the total of the UK population and we hear a great deal about the challenges they face in terms of housing. Now, a new briefing paper from the House of Commons measures the demographic components of the ‘Millennials’ group, providing some interesting statistics around their wealth, work and housing, compared to that of older generations. Twenty years ago, households led by people aged 25-35 were more likely to own than rent. In 1996 the trend was almost the reverse as it is today, with 55 per cent of households led by a 25-29 year old person and 68 per cent of those led by 30-34 year olds were owner occupiers. Now 55 per cent of millennials are renting. City living Millennials like city living – 20 per cent of this age group live in London, compared to 14 per cent of the UK as a whole. Their favourite haunts are Battersea (32%), Vauxhall (31%) and Bethnal Green and Bow (30%). Clearly Millennials aren’t too keen on the South West, Wales and the South East, with each area…
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Spring bounce for the housing market says Rightmove
Positive noises coming from Rightmove’s latest report: a 1.1% (+£3,547) rise has pushed the national average to £313,655, exceeding the previous high of £310,471 set in June 2016. This has been driven by strong buyer demand, with the highest number of sales agreed at this time of year since 2007, before the credit crunch. While the run-up to an election creates a degree of uncertainty and often a pause in activity, this strong set of figures should help mitigate pre-election jitters. Miles Shipside, Rightmove Director, said, “High buyer demand in most parts of the country has helped to propel the price of newly marketed property to record highs. There are signs of a strong spring market with the number of sales agreed achieved at this time of year being the highest since 2007. It remains to be seen what effect the run-up to the snap election will have, though any slowdown in activity will be counter-balanced by the market’s current fast pace. Indeed, in locations where choice of suitable property is limited, hesitation could mean losing out to others who still decide to act.” “Increasingly stretched buyer affordability will continue to be a price moderator for sellers who are over-ambitious with their…
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New world prefabs could solve our housing crisis
New world prefabs could solve our housing crisis, say the experts – and we’re not talking about the future – we’re ahead of the game in the UK. Europe’s tallest modular (formerly known as prefabs) tower is now complete – and it’s in north London. The 29-storey structure is a student accommodation scheme developed by Tide Construction and Vision Modular Systems with 679 modules that will be ready for students to move into in September. The development will also include communal facilities, such as a cinema and a courtyard. The total build time was just 12 months, with the modules stacked up in just 13 weeks to the height of 90 metres. Designed by architects HTA Design LLP, the building has a BREAAM rating of Excellent. Apex House will be the fourth modular scheme that Tide Construction and Vision Modular Systems have completed in Wembley. Christy Hayes, CEO at Tide Construction, said, “We are delighted that both the Housing Minister Gavin Barwell and London Mayor Sadiq Khan have made off-site construction a priority in the capital to help ease the strain on London’s housing supply. Modular construction provides a much faster alternative to traditional construction without compromising on the quality of the building, or…
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