Brexit
-
Latest property news
Zoopla founder Alex Chesterman calls for UK to stay in EU Customs Union
Zoopla founder Alex Chesterman has joined 100 other high profile entrepreneurs to call for the UK to stay in the EU customs union.
Read More » -
Latest property news
‘Don’t blame the parlous state of the property industry on Brexit’
Even intelligent observers of the residential property market, particularly in London, are being fooled into believing that Brexit and its uncertainty is responsible for the slump in activity to date, when the cognoscenti know full well, that it is all down to the ‘fall out’ from Stamp Duty. When Mr Osborne imposed these draconian hikes in this tax in 2014, he thought, somewhat stupidly, that it was the Tory’s version of a Mansion Tax. Like all myopic politicians, he had no idea of the devastating effect it would have on other parts of the economy, such as retail spending and the UK growth rate. Grabbing the Election victory in 2015 from the clutches of Labour was all that mattered at the time and he naturally thought that his strategy of ‘Project Fear’ would win the Referendum vote that would take care of any downfall. How wrong could he be? With, effectively, 15% SDLT rates at the middle to top end of the market, mainly in London, six out of ten potential buyers have been dissuaded from purchasing altogether, leaving just three to four ‘needs driven’ buyers who are prepared to ‘weather the storm’ and commit themselves. Although it’s good news…
Read More » -
Latest property news
Slow-moving prime London property market drives £1 billion January ‘sale’
The pain in the prime London property market continues as research reveals that nearly £1 billion has been knocked off the original asking prices of properties for sale within its upmarket streets. Analysis of portal data by Garrington Property Finders shows that the average reductions is 9% or, by the crazy metrics of the capital’s property market, £223,000. Such dramatic reductions (shown in a heat-map form, above) have been created by a slow market, Garrington says, and in six of the seven areas featuring the greatest reductions more than half of properties currently for sale have been on the market for over six months. The most dramatic reductions in prime London property are in the more expensive enclaves including St James and Victoria, where the average reduction is 14.1% or £765,919 and Knightsbridge, where asking prices have been slashed by 12.1% or £927,188 on average. Well-to-do homes in the City, South Kensington, Soho, Covent Garden and Marylebone areas of London have all seen an average reduction of approximately 10%, the research shows. “2017 was not a year for the faint-hearted in London’s prime property market,” Garrington’s Managing Director Jonothan Hopper (pictured, left). “Acute price sensitivity among buyers continues to force…
Read More » -
Latest property news
Commons committee measures up property industry for Brexit risk
The effect Brexit is likely to have on the property industry has been revealed by a House of Commons committee. Its research, published today, shows that 3% of the UK’s 43,000-strong sales, lettings and property management related workforce are EU nationals and 1.5% are non-EU nationals – or nearly five percent of the workforce in total. Based on ONS figures, the committee therefore concludes that if many of these people were to leave the UK and return to their home countries, it would not pose a threat. “The work of UK-based estate agents is primarily domestic and is generally not highly dependent on EU labour,” the report by the House of Commons Committee on Exiting the European Union says. Brexit: EU renters More problematical is the high number of ‘other nationalities’ who rent properties in the UK, the Brexit report suggests. It quotes the most recent English Housing Survey, which points to nearly a quarter of all privately rented accommodation being inhabited by EU nationals or those from outside Europe. The ‘other nationalities’ highlighted in the report also own 3.4% of all owner-occupied properties, although this is much higher in central London’s prime districts, and 8.4% of local authority –…
Read More » -
Guest Blogs
Brexit bores
Yes, it’s a total bore, this Brexit business, says Jerry Lyons at Property PR, but you can’t blame Brexit for everything! These issues may sound familiar...
Read More » -
Features
How Brexit is affecting – and going to affect – your business
How far should Brexit influence our business decisions? Many people said “batten down the hatches”, but, says SDL’s Rob Clifford, we’re now one year on and the storm is still brewing.
Read More » -
Resources
A good time to buy or sell a business
An offer’s on the table. The price is right… or is it? Even the late, great Brucie, may be pushed to know whether you should sell right now, says Adam Walker.
Read More » -
Features
Read Kate Faulkner’s comprehensive property market snapshot
Designs on Property tracks and summarises the monthly property indices. Kate Faulkner says, “As we know, politics is very fickle. Housing is in danger of falling off the policy agenda as Brexit issues take over.”
Read More » -
Resources
Brexit + Election = slowing market
Designs on Property tracks and summarises the monthly property indices. Kate Faulkner says, “The issue is stock; NAEA Propertymark reports the lowest number of properties for sale since their records began in 2002. As a result, price growth may slow, but not ‘collapse’.
Read More » -
Latest property news
Belvoir confident 3.3m EU nationals will stay after Brexit
Property franchise giant Belvoir says the EU referendum vote last year failed to impact its business, unlike many of its rivals. It also believes that the 3.3m EU nationals living in the UK will continue to have the same right to live and rent in the UK after Brexit as they do now, so there will be “no foreseeable reduction in the current level of demand for housing”. The comments came in Belvoir’s 2016 annual report published today, which also reveals that it is now the largest UK property franchise firm following its purchase of rival Northwood GB in June. “The Belvoir Group has not suffered any negative effects as a result of the EU referendum result,” the annual reports says. Started in 1995 and floated on AIM in 2012, Belvoir now has 302 branches within its network, 110 ahead of its nearest rival, Martin & Co. This includes a handful of corporate offices, 150-plus Belvoir franchisees plus the branches within its recent acquisitions. These have been Newton Fallowell in the East Midlands with 30 branches and Goodchilds in the West Midlands with 14 branches, both in 2015. Then last year Belvoir acquired Nortwhood GB with 87 outlets. This buying…
Read More »
