Tag Archives: asia
More British buyers in the prime London property market, research suggests
Domestic buyers have risen to a new level of prominence in the London property market as overseas purchasers are being put off by current property tax levels, it is claimed. In the third quarter of this year some 79% of property purchases were made by domestic UK buyers, up from 75% a year ago, according to the latest London Property Monitor from March & Parson. The firm says that sales activity from domestic buyers has surged forwards to fill the gap left by overseas buyers and investors, who have been left more cautious by the strong sterling, stricter Government measures on non-domicile status, and heftier Stamp Duty for higher value purchases. As a result of this new hesitation, domestic mortgage buyers and first time buyers have become more prominent in the London market, with the proportion of mortgage buyers in Prime London soaring from 53% in the second quarter to 65% in the third quarter. At the same time, overseas and foreign nationality buyers accounted for 21% of all prime London property purchases during the third quarter which has fallen quarter on quarter, and is also down from 25% of all sales during the third quarter of 2014. This pattern is also being mirrored in the prime central London market traditionally favoured by overseas investors, with the proportion of foreign buyers standing at 32%, down from 34% in the second quarter and 37% a year ago. The investor share of the market has also dipped in the prime central London market over the past three months. Investors accounted for 35% of all prime central London sales during the third quarter, a considerable drop from 42% in the second quarter. Yet with domestic buyers stemming this shortfall, overall demand for Prime London homes has grown in the three months to September 2015, and the number of registered buyers has climbed 4%. Combined with a 5% drop in the supply of properties available on the market, and buyer competition is building as these trends diverge. There are currently 14 buyers for every available property for sale in London, increasing from 12 in Q2, and 10 at the end of 2014. According to Peter Rollings, chief executive officer of Marsh & Parsons the strength of sterling and government encroachments on nom-dom status make investing in the London property market seem daunting for foreign buyers. ‘This has cast some shadows over the capital, but the millions of Londoners who live and work in the city have acclimatised much more quickly to the property taxation changes, and have risen up to fill the void left by overseas purchasers and investors,’ he pointed out. ‘We’re noticing longer purchase chains than ever as domestic buyers really start to dominate the market, and demand is really putting a strain on supply. This should ensure that London houses prices and sales activity continue their ascent into 2016,’ he… Continue reading
NZ prices up year on year but down month on month, latest index shows
Residential property sales in New Zealand increase by 18.6% year on year in October but where down 4.1% compared to the previous month, according to the latest index figures. The national median price was $460,000, up $30,000 or 7% on October 2014 and down 5.1% on September, the data from the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand shows. Excluding the impact of the Auckland region, the national median price rose $28,500 to $370,000 compared to October 2014 to reach a new record high and rose 1.4% on September. There was a new record national median price excluding Auckland of $370,000, up 8.4% compared to October 2014 and up 1.4% on September and new record median prices for Northland, Manawatu/Wanganui, Wellington and Nelson/Marlborough. But the market paused in Auckland with a year on year rise of 16.8% with month on month median prices down by 3%. The data also show that there was a 57% rise nationwide in the number of sales over $1 million year on year and a 47% rise in the number of properties sold by auction. ‘The drop in the number of sales in Auckland in October is the result of a softening of demand over the past few months and the new IRD and bank account rules introduced at the start of October,’ said REINZ chief executive Colleen Milne. ‘However, the fundamental supply and demand drivers of the Auckland market remain in place, and the result for October is indicative of the market adjustment phase as it adapts to these new requirements,’ she explained. ‘Elsewhere across the country we are seeing increasing demand and rising prices as buyers of all types emerge to take advantage of low interest rates. It is further evidence of the halo effect of Auckland based buyers searching for value in regional markets,’ she pointed out. ‘During winter and into early spring, the property markets in a number of regions have been far more active than would normally be expected, thus a slowdown or pause is not surprising following this burst of activity,’ she added. Overall 10 regions recorded increased sales volumes compared to September, with Central Otago Lakes volumes growing 31%, followed by Southland with 21% and Canterbury/Westland, 15%. Compared to October 2014, all regions recorded increases in sales volume, with Waikato/Bay of Plenty recording the largest increase of 54%, followed by Hawke’s Bay with 52% and Central Otago Lakes with 50%. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the national median house price fell 5.5%, indicating that prices fell slightly more in October than would normally be expected at this time of year. Northland, Manawatu/Wanganui, Wellington and Nelson/Marlborough all reached new record median prices in October. Northland recorded the largest percentage increase in median price compared to October 2014, at 18%, followed by Auckland at 17% and Taranaki at 12%. Hawke’s Bay recorded the largest percentage increase in median price compared to September, with a 9% increase, followed by Northland with 7% and Nelson/Marlborough with 5%. Continue reading
Canadian property prices up 2.5% year on year, excluding Vancouver and Toronto
National home sales rose by 1.8% from September to October in Canada while prices were up 6.7% year on year, according to the latest index from the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA). Actual, not seasonally adjusted, activity was little changed with growth of 0.1% compared to October 2014 while the number of newly listed homes was up 0.9% and CREA says that the Canadian housing market remains balanced overall. The data also shows that the national average sale price rose 8.3% year on year but excluding Greater Vancouver and Greater Toronto, it increased by 2.5%. There was an even split between the number of markets where sales posted a monthly increase and those where sales declined. The national increase was driven by monthly sales gains in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia together with the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and surrounding areas, led by the York Region, Central Toronto, and Hamilton-Burlington. ‘The continuation of low interest rates is supporting home sales activity. Even so, the strength of sales activity varies by location and price segment across Canada,’ said CREA president Pauline Aunger. October extended resale housing market trends of recent months, according to Gregory Klump, CREA’s chief economist. He pointed out that single detached homes continue to be in short supply while demand for them remains strong in a number of active and populous housing markets in British Columbia and Ontario. Meanwhile, an ample supply of condo apartments remains. ‘The balance between supply and demand is generally tighter for single detached homes than it is for condo apartments and that’s unlikely to change any time soon. For that reason, price gains for single detached homes should continue to outstrip those for condo apartment units for some time,’ added Klump. Actual sales were up from year ago levels in half of all local markets, led by the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, the GTA and Montreal. Gains there were largely offset by a drop in activity in the Calgary region, where sales were down considerably from the record set last year for transactions during the month of October. Year on year price growth slowed in in October for one and two storey single family homes, but picked up for townhouse/row and apartment units. Two storey single family homes continue to post the biggest year on year price gains with growth of 8.67% followed by one storey single family homes up 6.02%, townhouse/row units up 4.88% and apartment units up 4.39%. Year on year price growth varied among housing markets tracked by the index. Greater Vancouver was up 15.33% and Greater Toronto was up 10.33% and continue to post double digit year on year price increases. Meanwhile, price gains in the Fraser Valley increased by 10.51%. By comparison, Victoria and Vancouver Island prices saw year on year gains that ranged between 5% and 7% in October. Prices in Calgary edged down by 1% year on year and prices in Saskatoon were down 1.5%. Prices… Continue reading
