Nick Leeming
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Latest property news
‘Brexit limbo’ continues except in lively Midlands newbuild housing market, official index reveals
Read how stamp duty and brexit limbo are being blamed for a continuing sluggish housing market around the UK, except in Midlands where prices are rising by 6%.
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Latest property news
Will today’s 0.25% base interest rate hike slow the property market even more?
Read property industry reaction to today's Bank of England base rate interest hike from 0.5% to 0.75%, the most recent hike since october last year.
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Latest property news
Senior industry figure Nick Leeming steps down from Belvoir board
Senior industry figure Nick Leeming has stepped down from his position as a non-executive director at franchised lettings giant Belvoir after five years on the company’s board. Nick has helped steer Belvoir through a turbulent five-year period since it floated on the AIM stock market, raising £7 million to fund an aggressive expansion programme and, last year, an attempt to merge with The Property Franchise Group (TPFG), parent company of Martin & Co. He joined the Belvoir board after stepping down from a senior role at portal Zoopla. As well as his work for Belvoir, Nick has been Chairman of Jackson-Stops since 2013 and been a regular judge for The Negotiator’s industry awards. Nick, who says he is retiring from his position at Belvoir, will step down on 10th April and be replaced by another industry stalwart, Michael Stoop (pictured, left). Michael has an equally gold-plated and long-standing career within the industry having helped establish Belvoir’s franchising rivals Winkworth and TPFG, and in July last year returning to Winkworth in an advisory role. “On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank Nick for his considerable contribution since the Group floated on AIM,” says Michael Goddard, Chairman of Belvoir.…
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Latest property news
Interest rate rise – will it turn the dials in the housing market?
The decision by the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) to introduce an interest rate rise of 0.25% a percent to 0.5% in order to keep inflation in check was applauded in most business circles as a prudent first move to ‘sensible’ interest rates after nearly eight years of rock bottom rates. The move is intended to dampen down the economy mildly and rein-in inflation, which currently stands at 3% and is expected to peak higher than that before the MPC’s measures kick in. Bank of England Mark Carney said the inflation increases were due largely to the weakening of Sterling following the Brexit vote. “The decision to leave the European Union is having a noticeable impact on the economic outlook,” he said. “We need to support the economy during this adjustment process.” But what does the property industry think of an interest rate rise? Russell Quirk of eMoov, who was first out of the blocks into the news studios yesterday, said the rise would only add £16 a month the average mortgage holder and would be “water off a duck’s back for those with a fixed rate security blanket”. But what did the rest of the industry think.…
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Property market is over EU referendum shock, claims Rightmove
Rightmove says the property market has recovered from the shock of the EU Referendum with more sellers coming to market and more people buying than a year ago. Its latest house price index reveals that there were 4.6% more sales agreed last month compared to June 2016, and 7.6% more properties coming to the market. “The half way point of 2017 is a useful time to make a comparison with the previous year and the number of sales being agreed by agents is uncannily within fractions of a percent of the number at the same half-way point of last year,” says Miles Shipside of Rightmove (pictured, left). “This year and last year have had their own shocks and distortions, but these statistics show that the distractions have been short-lived and have now evened themselves out. “While the number of existing owners coming to market this month is up in eight out of ten regions compared to a year ago, giving more fresh choice, it has to be kept in mind that the comparison is against a subdued new listing period in 2016 around the time of the referendum.” Despite the upbeat market data, prices are at a “virtual standstill” across…
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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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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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HMRC Stamp Duty take on investment property soars
The tax take on investment property soars again – is it fair? HMRC’s quarterly stamp duty statistics for Q4 2016 have been published, recording £2,379 million from residential property, delivering a super-sized Christmas bonus to the tax man – 20 per cent more than in the same quarter of 2015. This adds to the HMRC pot, giving a year-to-date estimated total of Stamp Duty receipts 17 per cent higher than the same period in 2015. Is the tax take fair? Nick Leeming, Jackson-Stops & Staff Chairman, says the Government is doing extremely well out of property investors, “So far £1,190 million worth of stamp duty receipts are estimated to be attributable to the additional 3 per cent element payable on second homes, a significant windfall for Treasury coffers. Between Q2 and Q3 the number of second homes liable for the 3 per cent surcharge nearly doubled. “This increase is understandable as many buy-to-let investors would likely have rushed to make purchases before April 1st, but the number of liable second home transactions is up again in Q4 to 62,800. “The data suggests that buy-to-let investors are not being deterred by the new tax which is supposed to be dampening demand from this group…
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Autumn Statement: Building industry response
The housing industry’s response to the Autumn statement has been mixed – depending on whether your a housebuilder or in lettings, or whether you believe what he says at all! Some like him… “Philip Hammond is something of a political novelty, he is a Chancellor who listens,” says Jeremy Blackburn, RICS Head of Policy as The Chancellor, Philip Hammond finished his Autumn Statement. “Our ‘listening Chancellor’ consulted widely with industry in the build up to today’s statement, as I’m sure he will as Britain moves closer towards Brexit. We haven’t yet seen him pictured in a hard hat, but he clearly understands the housing sector better than his predecessors. “RICS warned Treasury that the UK is facing a critical rental shortfall of 1.8m homes. Our latest figures show that there has been a 15 per cent decline in house sales to first time buyers over recent months. That tells us that for all the rhetoric, David Cameron and George Osborne’s Starter Homes Strategy failed to get off the ground.” We can only hope that Jeremy is right. Other industry comments were varied in their support and/or cynicism. Martin Skinner, CEO Inspired Homes, said: “I am pleased that the Government is recognising the…
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