Tag Archives: finance
Some urban homes values in the US outpacing traditional suburbs
Homes values in some urban areas in the United States are outpacing the value of homes in the suburbs in most top tier metros, new analysis has found. City life is gaining in popularity and high-end condos are popular in Boston, Washington, D.C., Seattle, and other cities with fast changing downtowns, according to a report from real estate firm Zillow. It points out that homes in the suburbs, a longstanding symbol of the American Dream, have typically been worth more, on average, than homes in urban areas. While that is still true in much of the country such as Nashville, Cincinnati, Ohio, and Richmond in Virginia, elsewhere things are changing. The change is most marked in in Boston, Washington, D.C., and San Francisco where the mean value of urban homes has recently surpassed the mean value of homes in suburban areas. And urban homes are gaining ground in Denver, Phoenix, and Chicago. The shift reflects demographic trends of millennials delaying family life and choosing condos, and shifting preferences, as people seek walkable neighbourhoods with urban amenities, the research suggests. It has vast implications for low income people who have traditionally lived in cities to be near services and employment. Zillow recently found that, in San Francisco and Seattle, high income people are making shorter commutes to downtown, while low income people are traveling much further to get to work in the urban core. Zillow based its analysis of urban and suburban home values on a survey of how people define their own neighbourhoods as either urban, rural, or suburban and then used characteristics of those places to extrapolate the results and define ZIP codes all over the country. By looking at home values within those areas, Zillow could see how home values have fared in each type of place over the years. ‘This trend, in part, reflects home buyers' changing preferences, as they seek amenity-rich, dense and walkable areas that are often closer to their workplace,’ said Zillow chief economist Svenja Gudell. ‘In the future, this lifestyle trend will change some suburbs as we know them, and they'll start to feel more urban as buyers move further from city centres in search of affordable housing in communities that still feel urban,’ she added. Nationally, suburban home values grew 5.9% in 2015, while urban home prices increased by 7.5%. In 1997, urban home values grew at 3.8%, slower than suburban values which grew 4.1% that year. On a per square foot basis, home values for urban areas are way up, indicating that people are willing to pay more for less space to live in the city. In Washington, D.C., for example, urban homes in 1996 cost 6% more per square foot than suburban homes. Today, they cost 41% more per square foot. Continue reading
Severe shortage of properties for sale pushing up asking price, says latest index
The supply of property coming onto the market in England and Wales has fallen by 8% year on year and as a result prices are set to keep rising. The latest index shows that in the East England asking prices have already risen 2.1% this year as supply is overwhelmed by demand while overall the average asking price for England and Wales is up 0.7% month on month. The date from Home.co.uk also shows that asking prices have increased in all regions except the North West and North East during the last month. And year on year asking prices are up 8.1% overall. In the East of England the supply divide is the most acute and in this region asking prices are up 12.2% year on year, meaning it has overtaken both Greater London and the South East which saw annual rises of 12% and 10.3%. The index report says that across England and Wales, prices remain on a strong rising trend and this looks set to continue as interest rates are currently on hold until at least 2017. It also points out that the total stock of property for sale remains very low, and scarcity will continue to be one of the key drivers of the 2016 property market in the UK. The second key driver is ultra-low interest rates. The number of properties entering the market is down 8% compared to a year ago. The hardest hit is the West Midlands where 17% less new stock arrived on estate agents' books this January compared to January 2015. The East of England is also in the midst of a property drought and 14% less stock was registered on agent portfolios last month. Looking to the North and Wales, the picture is very different. Only small drops in numbers of properties entering the marketplace have been observed in the North East, North West, Wales and Yorkshire. Supply in these regions remains relatively buoyant and, consequently, prices show little if any upward progress. ‘With interest rates on hold at super low levels for the foreseeable future, we are likely to witness price growth continuing to ripple out from London across the rest of the country. Lack of supply will be the key driver and, as buy to let investment continues to soak up many of the available properties, so supply will continue to dwindle,’ said Doug Shephard, Home.co.uk director. ‘The London market is now maturing and is slower and with more moderate price rises. Investment capital is now making its presence felt further afield in the East and South East where prices are leaping ahead and supply of stock for sale is crashing,’ he explained. ‘We may expect the same or a similar market dynamic to become manifest in the West Midlands, the South West and the East Midlands towards the end of the year, together with significant price growth,’ he added. ‘What is clear is that this property boom is not going away while borrowing… Continue reading
Amendments to tenancies bill in Scotland could hit provision of rural homes
New amendments to the Private Housing (Tenancies) Bill in Scotland have the potential to create significant problems for the provision of rural homes, it is claimed. The Bill has reached its stage two process within the Scottish Parliament with the Infrastructure and Capital Investment Committee meeting to discuss amendments that have been lodged. In total, 198 amendments had been submitted to the original draft Bill, demonstrating the depth of feeling regarding the future of the private rented sector and perhaps indicating there has been a lack of thorough consideration due to rushed timescales. However, Scottish Land and Estates said that it was particularly concerned that an amendment by Alex Johnstone MSP to allow a landlord to ask a tenant to leave in order to accommodate a new or retiring employee had been rejected. ‘The Scottish Government has stated repeatedly that the aim is for a simpler tenancy which strikes a fair balance by offering tenants more security and giving landlords robust and comprehensive grounds so they have the confidence to let without fear of not being able to recover possession under reasonable circumstances,’ said Katy Dickson, policy officer for business and property at Scottish Land and Estates. ‘The drafted legislation went some way towards this balance point but disappointingly a number of amendments which were approved will leave landlords dismayed that the new tenancy will bring the uncertainty and imbalance that they feared at the outset of the Bill,’ she explained. One of the main concerns for rural landlords is the rejection of Alex Johnstone’s amendment to allow a landlord to repossess a property in order to house a new employee or retired employee. ‘This ground would come with a full notice period and prior notification at the outset of the lease so that security was not lessened on all let property. Without this ground the ability for rural businesses to grow is restricted and landlords may well choose to move property out of the long term letting market into a holiday home or decide to leave it empty,’ Dickson explained. She said that frustration is growing at the Scottish Government’s continued lack of appreciation of the importance of this ground. ‘The Housing Minister repeatedly stated that a family should not be moved out to allow an employee to move in but has failed to recognise that an employee often comes with a family. The fact that there is similar uncontested ground for religious workers adds further confusion as why can tenants’ security be lessened for religious workers but not farm workers?’ added Dickson. She accused the Scottish Government of making a surprising U-turn by proposing an amendment to remove the initial period when they had previously stated that this provided landlords and tenants with security. ‘This was a disproportionate reaction to some campaign groups raising fears that it may be problematic for a limited number of people… Continue reading
