Tag Archives: british
Demand for prime properties in London hotspots up 6% since February
Demand for properties in prime central London has increased by 6% since February with areas like Islington and Chiswick more popular than Kensington, new research suggests. The biggest increase in demand has been in Chiswick with a rise of 54%, followed by Islington up 30%, Belgravia up 22%, Knightsbridge up 21%, Mayfair up 8% and Chelsea up 1%. However 44% of areas are still in decline with Primrose Hill down 71%, St Johns Wood down 36%, Fitzrovia down 30%, Holland Park down 24% and Kensington down 16%, according to the property hotspots index from online estate agent eMoov. The index looks at demand for property over £2 million in 16 of London's most prestigious neighbourhoods, examining the total number of properties sold in comparison to those on sale. The latest figures show that the property freeze in prime central London has thawed ever so slightly since February, with the demand percentage rising by 6% on average. However, nearly half of the areas in question, 44%, have continued to decline substantially. The index report points out that although these areas would have been hit by a mansion tax, last week's election result will have restored confidence in buyers looking to buy at the top end of the market. Since eMoov's February index there has also been an increase of 5% in the number of properties over £2 million listed for sale, to the two major portals, Rightmove and Zoopla. This increase was driven for the most part by Fulham, Belsize Park, Notting Hill, Primrose Hill, Islington and Chiswick. Russell Quirk, chief executive of eMoov pointed out that uncertainty caused by the general election meant many potential buyers were waiting to see the outcome before committing to a property above £2 million. ‘We are already aware of a significant increase in buyer activity since the election. It is most likely this is going to translate into a more buoyant picture in the months to come,’ he added. Continue reading
New Zealand sees strongest new home figures for almost a decade
New building consents in New Zealand have increased to the country’s strongest house building rate for nine years, according to the latest official figures. Housing supply is increasing particularly in Auckland and Christchurch, according to Building and Housing Minister Nick Smith, with 25,000 plus new consents per year nationally. The latest annual figure of 25,038 compares to the low of 13,236 following the global financial crisis. A breakdown of the figures shows there were 756 new building consents for Auckland in March, which compares to just 209 per month before and 7,940 building consents in the year to March 2015 in Auckland, the highest since 2006. ‘We are well on the way to recovering the 10,500 homes lost to the earthquakes in Canterbury, with another record set for building consents. The 588 consents issued last month confirms the Government's view that the Christchurch housing market will have supply and demand back in balance by 2017/2018,’ said Smith. ‘These positive signs follow a general pattern of strong growth that has continued for almost four years. They confirm the latest GDP data showing a $9.5 billion annual investment in residential construction – an all-time high. It shows that the Government's programme of measures to increase housing supply is working,’ he added. Smith also pointed out that there are now Housing Accords in place with six local councils to free up more land faster. ‘We have initiatives in place to constrain building materials costs, rein in development contributions, cut compliance costs and invest in improved sector productivity,’ he said. He explained that the new $435 million HomeStart support package, which came into effect 01 April, is projected to assist 90,000 people into home ownership. ‘This is good progress but with strong net migration data from fewer New Zealanders leaving, we need to keep doing more. The next steps in our programme include our planned second phase of reforms to the Resource Management Act and place based initiatives like those announced today at Tamaki. The Government remains committed to supporting more New Zealanders into their own home,’ he concluded. Continue reading
UK help to buy schemes continue to benefit first time buyers, latest data shows
The UK’s flagship housing schemes aimed at boosting the property market continue to flourish with first time buyers benefitting the most, the latest published data shows. In the first two years of the Help to Buy Equity Loan scheme to the end of March 2015, some 47,018 properties were bought with the total value of these equity loans at £1.99 billion and the value of the properties sold under the scheme totalling £10.01 billion. The mean purchase price of a property bought under the scheme was £212,932, compared with a mean equity loan of £42,394 and some 82% of the homes were bought by first time buyers. Figures for the Help to Buy NewBuy scheme saw 17 home purchases were made in the first quarter of the year, bringing the total number of house purchases up to 5,706 since the launch of the scheme in March 2012. The Help to Buy Equity Loan scheme can be used to purchase a new build property up to the value of £600,000, with a maximum equity loan of £120,000. The numbers of homes purchased in the scheme to the end of March were greatest in the £150,001 to £200,000 price bracket, representing 30.9%. The data also shows that of total sales some 22.1% were for properties between £200,001 and £250,000. These two price brackets combined therefore accounted for over half of the total completions in the scheme. The median purchase price for all purchases in the scheme was £191,000 with the majority of sales are bunched in the lower price brackets. The mean equity loan was slightly higher at £42,394, and 19.9% of the mean purchase price. This reflects that the majority of completions in the scheme used the full 20% equity loan available. The most frequent type of property sold under the scheme were terraced houses, representing 29% of total completions, followed closely by semi-detached properties at 28.7%. Detached properties and flats made up 26.4% and 15.9% of completions respectively. The numbers of homes purchased in the scheme to date in terms of total applicant household income were greatest for purchasers with a household income between £30,001 and £40,000 a year, representing 25.2% of total completions. Some 17.8% of completions had applicants with a registered household income of between £20,001 and £30,000 a year, with 3.2% of completions with applicant household incomes lower than this. Some 80.3% of completions had applicant incomes of £60,000 or less, whilst 3% of completions had applicants with a registered household income in excess of £100,000 a year. The quarterly figures for the NewBuy Guarantee scheme are based on legal completion dates for transactions in the scheme as reported by participating mortgage lenders. This covers England only and shows data from the launch of the scheme on 12 March 2012 to 31 March 2015. The total value of the Government Guarantees for these completed sales was £59.5 million. To date, there have been no claims made with respect to the guarantees made… Continue reading
