Tag Archives: investment
Prime London property market sees strong buyer and letting activity at start of 2016
New buyer registrations and tenancy agreements in the prime London residential market have soared from last January, with buyers and renters particularly looking for one bedroom homes. The number of new buyers registering in January 2016 was 24% higher than in the same month in 2015 like for like, according to the latest London property monitor report from estate agents Marsh & Parson. Outer prime London areas are experiencing the highest New Year demand from interested buyers, with Barnes and Bishops Park seeing among the strongest rises in the number of buyers registering locally to buy property, the details also show. However, this sudden surge in demand for Prime London properties is contrasting with a continued shortage of housing stock in the capital. The supply of homes in prime London fell 12% year on year in the last three months of 2015. This has led to intense competition to own a home in the capital, with 13 buyers for every property in prime London at the end of last year. ‘The New Year always tends to bring a resurgence in purchase activity but the figures we’re currently seeing are strong. Private buyers, landlords and other investors are rushing to secure their preferred property before the 01 April Stamp Duty hike,’ said Peter Rollings, chief executive officer of Marsh & Parsons. In the lettings market, increased demand has led to a burst of January activity. The number of tenancies agreed in the first two weeks of 2016 was up 44% compared to the same period in January 2015 on a like for like basis. Prime Central London in particular enjoyed solid lettings growth, as agreed tenancies surged by 91%. The central zone is expected to see faster rental activity in 2016 than it did last year, when a slowdown in corporate lettings resulted in cooler annual rental growth of 0.6%. Meanwhile, outer prime London saw steadier expansion in tenancy agreements of 23% in January 2016 year on year. One bedroom properties are the main drivers of this strong growth in lettings activity and property demand, according to the report. These smaller homes have seen the biggest rise in value of any property type in prime London over the past year, with average prices increasing 3.1% between the fourth quarter of 2014 and the same quarter of 2015, equating to a real term rise in value of £18,417. By contrast, average prime London property prices saw only a 1.7% increase over the same period, across all property types. The typical rental value of one bed lets across prime London has risen by 6% over the course of 2015 from £392 to £415 per week compared to an average of 1.9% across all property types. Within the prime central area, one bedroom lets experienced even faster growth of 7%. ‘Prime London lettings activity has seen strident start of year growth, especially in the prime central area. This can… Continue reading
Rental prices up year on year in 11 out of 12 UK regions, latest index shows
Residential rents prices have increased in 11 out of 12 regions in the UK with the South East of England and the East Midlands showing the highest annual rent increases. Overall the average rent in the UK, excluding Greater London, is now £740 per month while in the capital city it is £1,510 per month, according to the latest rental index from HomeLet. Only the North West of England has seen rental prices drop with a fall of 3.4% from £646 per month to £624 per month. However, rent prices for new tenancies in Greater London are rising at the slowest rate for almost two years. The January index data shows Greater London rent prices are 6.2% higher for the three months to January 2016 compared to the same period in 2015, the slowest rate of growth seen in Greater London, the slowest since March 2014. By comparison, rent prices in other regions continue to rise steadily with the South East of England and the East Midlands seeing the highest rent price rises in the three months to January 2016, at 7.2% and 6.8% respectively. Monthly data gives a different picture. Rent prices in the UK, excluding Greater London, were 0.2% higher in the three months to January 2016 than in the three months to December 2015. In Greater London, rent prices have fallen by 0.9% in the three months to January 2016, compared to the previous month. Overall, six out of 12 UK regions have seen rent prices rise in the three months to January 2016 compared to last month, while six have seen prices fall. ‘It’s notable that there has been a further fall in the rate at which average rents in the Greater London area are rising. In recent years, the capital has seen much faster rates of increase than the rest of the country, but it may be that an affordability ceiling has now been reached in London and that rents will now track other parts of the UK more closely,’ said Martin Totty, chief executive officer of the firm’s parent company Barbon Insurance Group. ‘The fact that UK wide average rents in the private rented sector continue to show sustained upwards growth reflects there is still strong demand for rental properties, driven mainly by the impact of the long term structural imbalance in supply and demand of property,’ he pointed out. ‘Landlords achieving higher average rents over time also suggests that tenants starting a new tenancy are proving they can afford higher average rents. With demand outstripping supply, some would-be tenants may be able to outbid rivals for properties, which could drive higher rents,’ he added. Continue reading
Aberdeen property market showing signs of moving again
The property market in and around Aberdeen, which has been hit by the fall in oil price, is showing encouraging signs of activity according to latest figures from an independent property consultancy. The report from CKD Galbraith reveals that its regional office in Cults has been successful in bringing more properties to the market in Aberdeenshire as well as reducing the average time taken to sell a property by almost three weeks. CKD Galbraith’s Aberdeen statistics from the final quarter of 2015 show that the supply of properties coming onto the market increased by 50% quarter on quarter. They also shows that the average time taken to sell a property was down by 32.75%, almost three weeks, compared to the previous quarter of 2015. ‘The Aberdeenshire property market has continued to show positive results throughout the final quarter of 2015 despite the downturn in the oil and gas industry in Aberdeen. We have been greatly encouraged by the increase in the number of properties coming onto the market and there has been a healthy appetite from buyers viewing properties,’ said Hannah Christiansen, head of residential at CKD Galbraith’s Aberdeen office. ‘Good properties at the lower end of the market continue to sell well, with good viewing levels and strong offers whilst the higher end of the market does continue to move, albeit its taking slightly longer. People are still moving home in Aberdeen and excellent property, in both city and rural locations, continue to be in demand,’ she explained. ‘The industry wide figures for sales in Aberdeen over the previous quarter have been down across the industry, as reported by the latest Registers of Scotland figures. However, we have witnessed a strong start to the year and as we enter the prime Spring selling period we are confident the market will see healthy activity with a flurry of properties for sale prior to the introduction of the 3% levy on second homes coming into place in April,’ she added. The latest Registers of Scotland index report covering the final quarter of 2015 showed that the total volume of residential property sales in Scotland increased by 14.5% compared with the same period in the previous year. The average property price in the quarter was £167,734 an increase of 1.6% compared to the previous year. Continue reading
