Tag Archives: housing
UK asking prices up just 0.4% but first time buyers paying much more
Property asking prices in the UK increased by the modest amount of just 0.4% in May, taking the average price to £308,151, according to the latest index figures. But it is first time buyers who have faced the highest rises, with the data from property portal Rightmove showing that for this segment of the market asking prices increased by 6.2% month on month and 11.4% year on year. In some areas first time buyers have seen prices rise even more with Croydon, Dartford and Luton recording an annual price surge of 18%. Those moving up the housing ladder have fared better with second steppers seeing prices fall 0.8% month on month, but they are still paying some 8.1% more than a year ago. The report points out that it was speculated that the investor activity drop-off after the April additional home stamp duty deadline would act as a brake on prices at the lower end of the market. However, intense investor activity, with March transaction numbers up a massive 80% on last year, exacerbated the property drought in this sector and is now causing upwards price pressure. This resulted in prices for properties with two bedrooms or less, typical first time buyer homes, increasing. ‘If you were expecting a long period of price doldrums at the lower end of the market following the mass exit of the buy to let brigade, this month’s 6.2% price rise will come as a big surprise,’ said Miles Shipside, Rightmove director and housing market analyst. ‘Properties at the lower end of the market were the most common target for the investor community, and the immediate aftermath of the tax deadline saw new seller asking prices drop in this sector for just one month. The 1.4% fall reported in April’s index appears to have been a very short lived knee jerk, with an average price surge of £11,298 this month for properties coming to market with two bedrooms or fewer,’ he explained. ‘It remains to be seen if these prices can be achieved and there may be some over pricing in the market; it is also a reflection of better quality property coming to market in this sector which is now targeting owner-occupiers rather than landlords,’ he added. He pointed out that since November when it was announced that an extra 3% stamp duty would be charged on additional homes and its implementation at the end of March, the price of property coming to market in this first time buyer/investor sector increased by 3%. In just four weeks it has now risen by 6.2%, the highest monthly rise recorded for this sector since February 2012. The report also show that demand for typical entry level property remains high, with searches on Rightmove specifying two bedrooms or fewer being up by 47% in April compared to April 2015 in spite of waning investor interest. In contrast, fresh supply for this sector is down by 1.5% in the last four… Continue reading
Chancellor says house prices could fall by up to 18% if UK votes to leave EU
House values in the UK could fall by 10% and up to 18% due to the economic shock that would hit the country if people vote to leave the European Union in the referendum next month, according to the Chancellor of the Exchequer. George Osborne, speaking at the G7 finance ministers’ meeting in Japan, revealed that the forthcoming Treasury analysis on the short term economic consequences of a vote to leave will demonstrate a wide range of negative impacts on families and businesses, including the housing market. It concludes that by 2018, home owners will be hit as growth in Britain’s housing market will be reduced by at least 10% and up to 18% compared to what is expected if the UK remains in the EU, as heightened uncertainty generated by Brexit hits financial markets, consumer confidence and home values. Independent authorities, including the International Monetary Fund, have warned that if Britain votes to leave the EU then mortgage interest rates would also rise because of financial market instability, meaning fewer people being able to get a mortgage and mortgage costs rising for all. The Treasury conclusion follows warnings from Virgin Money’s Chief Executive, the CEBR, S&P, Fitch and Deutsche Bank about the potential negative impact on Britain’s housing market from a vote to leave the EU. The Chancellor said finance ministers from other G7 countries attending the summit in Sendai confirmed that in their assessment, leaving the EU could cause significant financial market turbulence, affecting families and businesses. The Chancellor also challenged the idea that negotiating a new relationship with the EU would be easy if the UK votes to leave, warning that instead it would be a long, costly and messy divorce. In the coming days the Treasury is going to publish analysis of what the immediate impact will be. Osborne also said that mortgages will get more expensive and mortgage rates will go up. ‘If we leave the European Union there will be an immediate economic shock that will hit financial markets. People will not know what the future looks like. And in the long term the country and the people in the country are going to be poorer,’ Osborne said. ‘That affects the value of people’s homes and the Treasury analysis shows that there would be a hit to the value of people’s homes by at least 10% and up to 18%. And at the same time first time buyers are hit because mortgage rates go up, and mortgages become more difficult to get. So it's a lose-lose situation,’ he pointed out. ‘We all want affordable homes, and the way you get affordable homes is by building more houses. You don't get affordable homes by wrecking the British economy. And of course if we left the EU, mortgage rates would go up, it would become more difficult… Continue reading
Capital city rents edging lower in Australia
Rents in capital cities in Australia increased slightly by 0.1% in April, but overall rental rates edged lower and have now fallen by 0.2% over the past 12 months. This takes the average rental rate to $490 a week for houses and $467 a week for units across combined capital cities, according to the data from the latest CoreLogic monthly rental review report. Five of the eight capital cities saw a modest rise in rents over the past 12 months, including Sydney up 1.4%, Melbourne up 1.7%, Adelaide up 0.5%, Hobart up 1.1% and Canberra up 2.5%. Perth with a fall of 8.9% and Darwin with a decline of 12.6% both experienced large drops in rent rates and have collectively pulled the combined capital average lower while in Brisbane rents dropped by 0.6%. ‘We anticipate that the weakness in the rental market will persist over the year and rents will continue to fall over the coming months. The annual change in rental rates continues to be at its slowest pace since before 1996,’ said Research analyst Cameron Kusher. ‘At the same time last year, rental rates increased by 1.7% which indicates a sharp slowdown in rental growth over the past year,’ he pointed out, adding that factors contributing to a slowing in rental growth include falling real wages, excess rental supply in certain areas and lower rates of population growth, all of which have impacted on demand for rental accommodation. ‘With dwelling approvals at recent record highs and construction activity set to peak over the next 24 months, accompanied by many new properties still to settle, we anticipate that the weak rental market conditions will persist with rental growth continuing to slow and, or, fall in most capital cities,’ Kusher explained. He also pointed out that based on current market conditions, landlords won’t be in a position to lift rental rates and may actually need to reduce rents in order to keep their tenants. ‘We see renters as holding a stronger negotiation position and where they now have the potential to upgrade into higher grades of accommodation for a similar, or lower rents,’ Kusher said. Canberra is the only capital city where the annual rental change is currently stronger than it was a year ago. Kusher said this highlights the weakness in rental market conditions is being felt across all other capital city markets. With rental rates increasing in some cities in April, rates in Sydney, Adelaide and Hobart are at record highs. In all remaining cities, rental rates are now below their highs with the declines recorded respectively down 0.1% in Melbourne, 0.8% in Brisbane, 13.7% in Perth, 17.3% in Darwin and 5.4% in Canberra. The results show that as rental changes outpace home value changes, gross rental yields have trended lower and have hit record lows of 3.3% for houses and 4.2% for units. ‘In our two largest capital cities, we’ve seen rental yields move to record lows of 3.1% for houses and… Continue reading
