Tag Archives: asia
Price growth for central London prime market revised down
Property price growth in the prime market in central London is likely to be less than expected due to a slowdown in the sector, a new analysis suggests. Leading real estate firm Knight Frank has revised its 2016 forecast for annual price growth in prime central London to 2% from 4.5%. The firm pointed out that the prime London property market has faced a number of headwinds in 2015, which reduced annual price growth from 5% at the end of last year to 1.3% in September. ‘These challenges have been led by the increase in stamp duty at the end of 2014, a factor that will continue to weigh on transactions and price growth into 2016 as the market absorbs the new rates,’ the report says. It also explains that global economic uncertainty centred on China has also dampened demand to some degree. ‘However the strength of the UK’s economic recovery, employment growth in London and the likelihood of continued low interest rates mean price growth will remain positive next year,’ it adds. It also points out that activity in September and October has increased following a subdued summer and the appearance of some high quality stock has driven demand. However, buyers have become more circumspect and stringent in their requirements due to the stamp duty increase. ‘It has resulted in a flight to quality, meaning demand is particularly strong for properties in the best condition and on a prime floor, street or square,’ the report adds. ‘While the anticipated gear change materialised as summer moved into autumn, there has been no sense the market is entering full-blown recovery mode after what has been a subdued 2015,’ it concludes. Continue reading
UK residential rent growth slows to match pace of house price growth
Rent price rises in the UK have slowed to match the pace of house price growth in the country after nine months of sustained faster growth, the latest index figures show. It means that rent prices are now 8.5% higher than a year ago for the three months to September 2015 after six months of annual rises over 10%, according to the data from HomeLet. The average rent in the UK for new tenancies in the period was £995 per month but in Greater London it was £1,555 per month although rents dropped here on a month on month basis for the first time since February 2015. The index report suggests that deflation across the economy, and rising real incomes, mean the slowdown in rents could be temporary. A breakdown of the figures shows that nine out of 12 UK regions are still seeing rent prices rise on an annual basis, with the largest increases seen in Scotland at 8.4%, the East Midlands at 7.7% and Greater London at 6.6%. The figures also show three regions in negative annual price movement, with prices in the North West 4.6% lower than a year ago, 2.2% lower in East Anglia and 1.4% lower in Northern Ireland. Comparing September figures to the previous month, the index reveals that only three regions have seen rent prices rise since August. In the three months to September 2015 only Scotland, the East Midlands and West Midlands have seen prices rise by 1.2%, 1.4% and 1.4% respectively. Every other region of the UK has seen rent prices fall modestly in the three months to September 2015, with the largest price reductions seen in the South West, the North East and North West with a fall of 2.4%, 2.3% and 2.2% respectively. ‘The UK economy has dipped into negative inflation which is a boost to consumers' spending power and, ultimately, their real income. Affordability is an important factor in determining rents,’ said Martin Totty, chief executive of Barbon Insurance Group, owners of HomeLet. ‘Depending on what happens with inflation and real incomes over the coming months, could have a bearing on future rental price trends especially where, in certain areas of the country, the supply of rental properties is not keeping pace with demand from those wishing to be private sector renters,’ he added. Continue reading
Less than one in five house sales fell through in UK in third quarter
Less than one in five house sales fell through between July and September in the UK, taking the house sale fall through rate to its lowest level since late 2012, new research shows. The figures from home buyer Quick Move Now indicate a house sale fall through rate of 19.62% in the third quarter of the year, down from 36.34% in the second quarter of 2015. The six month average fall through, which offers a greater overview of how the property market is performing generally, shows that at the end of the second quarter it was 28.44% but this fell to 27.99% in the third quarter. ‘As the property market becomes more competitive, buyers are coming to the market better prepared in order to make themselves more attractive to vendors when competing for property,’ said Danny Luke, business manager at Quick Move Now. ‘Often, buyers will already have sought financial advice, have mortgage offers in place, and taken time to really consider affordability so they know what they can afford and they know what they're looking for, so when they find a good property they want to snap it up as quickly as possible and not risk losing out to another buyer,’ he added. He also believes that due to continued market buoyancy and predicted interest rate rises, buyers are keen to secure properties quickly before they're priced out of the market. Meanwhile, separate research shows that demand for London property at below £2 million is set to remain strong, with the city’s population forecast to grow by more than 100,000 every year for the next decade. As house prices grow across London, it will create new markets where properties cross the £1 million threshold, according to the latest London Residential Review from real estate firm Knight Frank. The analysis is based on postcode districts where at least 20% of sales have been above £1 million in at least one quarter since the start of 2014. The minimum threshold was five sales and no postcode district was allowed to have more than one quarter with 20% of sales above £1 million before 2014. The data shows that Hammersmith (W6) had five such quarters since 2014, making it the area that has undergone the biggest transformation in terms of £1 million plus sales. Other areas include Maida Vale (W9), Queen’s Park (NW6), East Finchley (N2) and Muswell Hill (N10). Further south, Battersea (SW11) and Vauxhall (SW8) have consolidated their positions as £1 million markets. Continue reading
