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Three year study says self builders in UK struggle to fulfil their dream home
Even people with the means to build their own home are struggling to do so in the UK in a housing sector dominated by traditional models of construction and ownership. According to a new report from Goldsmiths, University of London, despite the government wanting to encourage more people to build their own home and the huge popularity of the television programme Grand Designs, it is only those with access to certain things that ever end up fulfilling their dream. Dr Michaela Benson of the university's Department of Sociology at Goldsmiths, spent three years studying self building as a form of housing provision in the UK and examining the changing context of housing in Britain, from supply through to regulation, and the role this plays in contemporary self build. She conducted numerous interviews with those who have created their own homes, offering a personal, sociological, focus in contrast to most policy or industry led research and found that self build is a housing option only really open to those with social, cultural and economic capital as well as existing skills and knowledge. This is in contrast to the vision of Walter Segal and his self build projects in 1970s Lewisham, which saw men and women from a range of backgrounds come together to learn skills and create new communities, with dwellings that were quickly and cheaply built as well as environmentally friendly. Dr Benson has explored a diverse range of paths into self building, from community focused projects to self builds that weren’t planned but became necessary to families whose former houses had deteriorated to the extent to which the only solution was to knock them down and start again. She also found that while access to financial resources are a necessity in order to become a self-builder, even those with capital find that the housing sector and related industries just aren’t geared towards their needs. Many self builders seek new specialist materials, particularly those that reduce energy consumption for their homes, but have difficulty finding people with the expertise to install them. Self build mortgages are just as hard to procure. It’s apparent that more extensive adaptation of services and products to the needs of self-builders would be valuable if the industry is to be scaled up, Dr Benson argues. She says that the population of self builders can and should be more diverse. 'Although the majority of self build projects result in home ownership, the community self build sector also promotes self build for social or private rent, while some innovative schemes such as LILAC centre on mutual home ownership,' she said. 'These are an important part of the housing landscape that present real opportunities to challenge the system of house buying and tenure as it currently stands. Self building could challenge the dominant modes of housing procurement and a market oriented towards home ownership and profit making,' she added. The report includes a number of recommendations aimed at shaking up the traditional housing sector and making self building a more… Continue reading
Demand for property under £1 million in London likely to remain strong
Demand for London property priced 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 analysis report from real estate firm Knight Frank. Data from the report shows that annual growth in London's prime market fell to 1.7% in August as changes to stamp duty dampened demand and the number of £1 million plus sales were down by 21% in the year to April 2015. It also shows that annual price growth in prime outer London fell to 3% in August and annual rental value growth decreased to 2.5% in prime central London and 1.2% in prime outer London due to jitters over China and high stock levels. However, there are new areas coming into the prime market. The report explains that new £1 million London neighbourhoods include Hammersmith, Maida Vale, Queen’s Park, Muswell Hill and Vauxhall. The analysis, 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, shows that these areas have seen a transformation. 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) which have consolidated their positions as £1 million markets. 'Though it has been an unsettled 12 months, the sub£2 million market has been more immune to recent political and economic events, particularly as this price bracket sat beneath the threshold for the proposed mansion tax,' said Tom Bill, head of London residential research at Knight Frank. 'This market is more closely linked to domestic UK demand and the health of the country’s economy and it is easy to forget the fact the recovery has been stronger than many predicted, underlined by strong GDP data in July,' he pointed out. 'In a further recent sign of the improving outlook, cash bonuses in the 2014/2015 financial year were up 2.7% on the previous year and just 0.1% below their record level in 2007/2008. The result is that price growth below £1 million and between £1 million and £2 million has been stronger than the average in prime central London and prime outer London,' he added. The analysis shows that properties below £1 million grew 17.5% in prime central London and 21.3% in prime outer London in the two years to August 2015, compared to the respective averages of 9.5% and 15.1%. Between £1 million and £2 million, prices grew 15.7% in prime central London and 18.5% in prime outer London over the same period. Demand has also held up better for sub £2 million properties since December’s increase in stamp duty. There were 3.6% more viewings in the… Continue reading
UK sees strong month on month price growth, latest index shows
Residential property prices in the UK increased by 2.7% between July and August and are up 9% compared with a year ago, according to the latest index figures from the Halifax. The data from the lender also shows that on a quarterly basis, from June to August, prices were 3% higher than in the previous three month period. It is the biggest monthly price rise since May 2014 when it was 3.8% but the index report points out that monthly movements can be volatile and the quarter on quarter change is a more reliable indicator of the underlying trend. The index report also shows that buying still cheaper than renting. The average monthly costs associated with buying a three bedroom house in the UK for a first time buyer was £666 in June 2015, some 8% or £56 lower than the typical monthly rent paid on the same property type at £722 a month. With the price of a typical first time buyer home rising by 8% over the past year, the difference between the cost of owning and the cost of renting has narrowed from £85 to £56 over the past year. 'The underlying pace of house price growth is strong. The shortage of second hand properties for sale on the market is resulting in upward pressure on house prices,' said Martin Ellis, Halifax housing economist. 'At the same time, economic recovery, real earnings growth and very low mortgage rates are supporting housing demand. Strengthening demand and highly constrained supply are likely to mean that house price growth continues to be robust in the short term,' he added. However, according to Rob Weaver, director of property at residential investment platform Property Partner, for many people, weak supply and the resultant price growth have become an almost insurmountable barrier to getting on the property ladder. 'With supply so low, consumer confidence healthy and mortgage rates still at record lows, strong price growth is a trend that can only continue in the months ahead. If prices carrying on rising at this rate, even many haves will become property have nots,' he said. 'House price growth in August hit its highest level in 16 months, as the number of homes being marketed fell to record low levels. Sellers are just not coming to the market and no-one really has an answer to how to tempt them back,' he explained. 'We are in danger of seeing the days of free wheeling price growth, and we know where that ended up. There needs to be a focus on creating more supply, because without properties coming to the market, prices will continue to grow and the market will continue to become more and more volatile,' he added. Jonathan Hopper, managing director of the buying agents Garrington Property Finders, believes that price growth is being driven by a curious mixture of strength and starvation. 'Britain's economic strengths of wage growth, low inflation and bullish sentiment, are… Continue reading
