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Slower development land value growth in UK due to increasingly polarised land market

Development land values across the UK have remained stable or increased only slightly in the last three to six months, according to the latest research report. Greenfield land values increased by 0.5% in the first quarter of 2015 compared to 0.6% in the fourth quarter of 2014, bringing annual growth to 5.8%, the data from international real estate firm Savills shows. Growth in urban land values, replicating their previous quarter performance, increased by 1.6% in the first three months of 2015 with annual growth at 9% exceeding that of greenfield land. Residential development land values in London remained stable over the six months to March 2015 following a period of strong growth, the data also shows. The UK as a whole has experienced increased construction costs and the scarcity of bricklayers and joiners has increasingly become a problem, the report points out. In some parts of the UK there have been fewer bids per site due to the selectivity of house builders. These factors have prevented land values from rising significantly. Download the full PDF report > > However, the picture across the country is varied and is becoming relatively polarised between higher value markets of stronger demand, generally in the South East, and the rest of the country. Residential development land values in London remained stable over the last six months after very strong increases in values in 2013 and 2014 with 25.8% growth in the year to March 2014. Sentiment for London residential land remains strong, the report says, particularly in areas with good transport links or planned infrastructure improvement and sites continue to attract a high number of bids. However, increasing construction costs, the introduction of CIL in some boroughs and election uncertainty have kept residential development land values from increasing. The growth in hotel and office development land values in London has lagged behind residential since the start of the recovery in 2009. However, in the last six months values for hotel and office land continue to grow while land values for residential stand still. Development land values for hotels and offices in the capital increased by 3.8% and 4.4% over the six months to March 2015 compared to 0% for residential development land. Scotland stands out as experiencing strong increases in urban development land values which rose by 6.9% in the quarter. This follows the bounce back in greenfield land values last quarter after the referendum in September 2014. Both urban and greenfield land values had relatively low growth leading up to that point. Urban land values in Edinburgh and Glasgow have been at the forefront of this growth and now stand at double that of their 2008/2009 lows, approximately three quarters of their 2007/2008 peak. The South East and Cambridge has the highest value land market where sites, according to a survey of agents, receive the greatest number of bids. Development land values in this area are the highest in the country, in many cases above their… Continue reading →

Posted on June 3, 2015 by tsiadmin | Posted in Investment, investments, London, News, Property, Real Estate, Shows, Taylor Scott International, TSI, Uk | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Slower development land value growth in UK due to increasingly polarised land market

Few people consider the energy rating of a property when they move in the UK

Just one in 10 people currently consider the energy efficiency rating of a property important when moving house with parking and local amenities considered more important, a new research poll has found. This is despite a poor rating potentially resulting in wasting thousands of pounds worth of energy per year, according to the study from construction and regeneration company, Keepmoat. The energy efficiency rating of a home is found on the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) that is required whenever a property is bought, sold or rented. EPCs not only rate properties between A and G but also include information on how much energy a property uses, typical energy costs and how to reduce energy usage. Among the factors considered more important than a good energy efficiency rating were being close to local amenities for 35.9%, parking for 30%, good transport links for 35.9% and green space for 26%. The only factor on the poll considered less important was investment potential mentioned by 10%. The results suggest that awareness of the importance of energy efficiency is low across all regions of the UK, however, Nottingham was home to the highest percentage of respondents who considered a good rating a priority when moving house at 16%. While people in Edinburgh were least likely to rank energy efficiency as a priority at 4%. ‘For many households, energy bills are one of the biggest expenses and understanding much energy a new house or flat will use, as well as what they can do to reduce these bills, can go a long way to reducing their outgoings,’ said Nigel Banks, sustainability director at Keepmoat. ‘However, the results of our survey clearly show many people are not prioritising the energy efficiency rating of a property when moving home and this could well be a decision they regret when they get their first winter energy bills. People should try and consider the total cost of living in home, including mortgage repayments or rents as well as bills,’ he added out. He also pointed out that buying a new home can also mean a huge reduction in household bills as they are generally six times more energy efficient than older homes. He said that living in a new home can reduce gas and electricity bills by more than £500 per year. Continue reading →

Posted on June 3, 2015 by tsiadmin | Posted in Investment, investments, London, News, Property, Real Estate, Shows, Taylor Scott International, TSI, Uk | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Few people consider the energy rating of a property when they move in the UK

Capital city property prices down, but expected to be short lived blip

After an increase in values of 3.8% over the first four months of the year, prices in key Australian cities fell 0.9% in May, according to the latest residential index. The CoreLogic RP Data Home Value Index recorded its first month on month fall since November last year and it comes at a time when values have been trending higher. According to CoreLogic RP Data head of research, Tim Lawless, the growth has been driven by exceptionally strong housing market conditions in Sydney, and to a lesser extent in Melbourne and he expects May’s dip to be short lived. ‘Other market indicators are also pointing to stronger conditions for the Sydney and Melbourne housing markets with auction clearance rates remaining at or close-to record highs throughout May along with low advertised stock levels across the largest cities, particularly for Sydney,’ he said. ‘The negative May result is likely due to a natural correction from the previously strong month on month results. Added to this is the market stimulus due to lower interest rates, and a well-received federal budget in May, all of which are likely to keep momentum going in the market,’ Lawless explained. The May indices results also marks the three year anniversary for the current growth cycle which commenced at the end of May 2012. Since that time, Lawless noted that capital city dwelling values have increased by 24.2% with Sydney values rising a significant 39.3% since values bottomed out in May 2012. Melbourne dwelling values have seen the second highest rate of growth over the current cycle, increasing by 22.4% while in Darwin, values are 18.3% higher. Perth values are up 13.2% followed by Brisbane at 10.6%, Adelaide at 9.9%, Canberra at 8.3% and Hobart at 7.7%. ‘While every capital city has seen some level of capital gain over the growth cycle to date, the past 12 months’ performance has been more diverse. Dwelling values are down by 2% in Darwin and 1% lower in Hobart, while Perth is narrowly avoiding an annual correction with dwelling values up by just 0.7% over the past year,’ Lawless said. At the same time, he added that lower interest rates and high levels of investor interest have fuelled a rebound in the annual rate of dwelling value growth across Sydney and Melbourne where dwelling values are 15% and 9% higher respectively over the past 12 months,’ he pointed out. Both Sydney and Melbourne are also seeing their strongest economic conditions, coupled with the highest levels of new housing supply, particularly in the new apartment sector and according to Lawless the higher supply levels are likely to be a primary reason why unit values are rising at a much slower pace than house values in Sydney and Melbourne. ‘The pace of growth in unit values across Sydney is about half that being recorded across the detached housing sector, with house values up 16.4% over the year compared with an 8.8% rise in unit values,’ said Lawless. In… Continue reading →

Posted on June 2, 2015 by tsiadmin | Posted in Investment, investments, London, News, Property, Real Estate, Shows, Taylor Scott International, TSI, Uk | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Capital city property prices down, but expected to be short lived blip