Tag Archives: london
UK asking prices reach new record of £294,834
The price of property coming to the market in the UK this month has hit a new national record, up 0.9% to £294,834, the latest index figures shows. Demand is being fuelled by cheap borrowing yet supply is limited by some home owners’ reluctance to sell, according to the monthly index report from Rightmove. The average £2,550 asking price rise is the largest amount seen in the month of September since 2002, driven by price jump in family home sectors of 1.2% while owners of first time buyer properties have seen prices stall with a fall of 1.1%. Prices at the top end are rising faster with the research showing that the top 15 highest priced counties have all seen values rise this month by double the national average at 1.8%. These counties are all in the higher-priced southern regions which have all risen this month, driven by supply shortages with fewer home owners selling. The lower priced northern regions have seen prices fall, reducing would be sellers’ ability to raise adequate funds to move and exacerbating supply shortages while overall new seller numbers are down on the same period last year in both the north and the south with a drop of 4.9% and 7.1% respectively. ‘Prices are at an all-time high, yet borrowing is historically cheap and positive sentiment is aided by the ongoing postponement of rate rises from these six-year lows. Demand from those who can afford to buy remains high, and suitable supply remains tight, with the number of properties coming to market down 6% on the same period in 2014,’ said Miles Shipside, Rightmove director and housing market analyst. ‘The result is the biggest monthly price rise seen at this time of year for 13 years. High demand, lack of suitable supply, and increasingly stretched affordability are leading to some extremes in market forces in different sectors and parts of the country,’ he explained. ‘One of the effects is that those who own property that is in most demand, either by type or location, are seeing their values continue to rise. Their properties are rich in features and benefits that others want to buy, and as a consequence they are getting proportionately richer than either owners of less desirable homes or those who are not on the housing ladder at all,’ he pointed out. It is the typical family home market sectors that have risen most this month. Second stepper and top of the ladder properties, covering all property types with three or more bedrooms, went up by an average of 1.2%. In contrast first time buyer type properties with two bedrooms or fewer fell by 1.1%. ‘This year’s price surge in the first time buyer sector has stalled this month, and has now been overtaken by second stepper homes both in terms of monthly and annual increases. It looks like some of those buying typical first time buyer properties are now struggling to afford prices in this bracket… Continue reading
Report reveals skills shortage and planning are holding back UK house building
A severe shortage of skilled workers in the house building industry and the current planning system are combing to hinder efforts to tackle the UK’s housing crisis, according to new research. The report, which surveyed those within the housing supply chain, from SME contractors to major national developers, found real concern among these businesses on the effect of the sector’s skills shortage not only on individual firms, but also on national house building rates and the UK economy as a whole. However the research from Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking did find some approval for measures announced in the Summer Budget designed to tackle the current housing shortage, for example, plans to grant automatic planning permission for building projects on disused industrial sites. While the pace of house building is generally acknowledged to be improving, there remains much discussion about how it can be accelerated to match demand. According to the report, there are a number of key issues preventing the effective tackling of the housing shortage, including slow planning decisions, public opposition to development and lack of skilled workers. Some 24% of respondents said that the skills shortage is the biggest broader challenge currently facing their business while 35% believe there is a lack of suitable candidates to fill existing and new jobs. House builders said the skills shortage is most acute among electricians and site managers with project managers, quantity surveyors and architects following closely behind, reflecting the supply chain wide nature of the problem. But house builders appear to be taking steps to redress the balance with 31% prioritising investment in recruiting apprentices in an effort to increase the pipeline of talent coming into the industry. When asked what one change house builders would advocate for the alleviation of the housing shortage some 23% said greater local authority support to promote and fund building projects, while the same figure sought additional government support. Existing government schemes such as Stamp Duty reform and the Help to Buy equity scheme were flagged by 73% and 63% respectively as having a positive impact on the housing crisis. And despite the challenges cited in the report, house builders seem to be optimistic about the future, with respondents giving an average score of seven out of 10 when asked to rate their confidence in the success of the UK house building industry in the future. The research also found that 87% of respondents want to create new jobs in the next 12 months, and if replicated across the industry, this could mean the creation of more than 100,000 new house building roles. As an indication of future house pricing the first index to be based exclusively on house builder feedback predicted house prices will reach £232,826 by 2020, up 17% from £198,883 today. Some 84% said that rising house price increases were not affecting demand for new homes, and… Continue reading
Research shows fewer homes being built on greenbelt in England
The number of new homes built within the greenbelt in England halves over the last 10 years after peaking in 2001, new research shows. Less than 100,000 have been built on these type of open spaces, which are meant to prevent urban sprawl into the countryside, since 1995, but most are in the area around London. The research from real estate firm Countrywide also shows that the 96,000 greenbelt land homes built in the last decade made up 3.5% of the 2.7 million homes built in England. However, demand for new homes and a shift in development southwards saw 48% of all greenbelt development occurring around London in 2014 while four areas, Blackpool, Gloucester, Burton and Morecambe, have seen no new house building at all since 2011. A breakdown of the figures shows that the number of new homes built on greenbelt each year has halved since the early 2000s, falling from a peak of 6,700 homes in 2001 to 3,248 in 2014. The trend started before the downturn too. Despite a 36% rise in the number of homes built in England between 2001 and 2007, the numbers built on greenbelt fell by 46%. Last year just 3,250 homes or 3% of all homes were built on greenbelt, down on 2013 and the long run average. Over the last five years development on greenbelt has increasingly been on land surrounding growing cities in southern England, which the firm says reflect the demand for housing and a wider trend of new home delivery concentrated in the South of England. In 2014 the 1,575 new homes built on London greenbelt, accounted for 48% of all greenbelt development in England, up from 38% a decade ago. London has also seen the most homes built on greenbelt since 1995 at 39,100. Local authorities can grant permission for development in the greenbelt in special circumstances where the benefit from development outweighs perceived harm to the greenbelt. While there is debate, and conflicting guidance about specifics, broadly these may include significant economic benefits, replacing buildings and in some instances housing or other social need. ‘While development is generally prohibited within the greenbelt a small number of homes are given permission to be built. Many of these development sites would be at odds with common perceptions of greenbelt. Rather than picturesque countryside being concreted over, these sites were either brownfield, infill schemes or unused land with little amenity value,’ said Johnny Morris, group research director at Countrywide. ‘Sustained pressure, particularly in the South, to get more homes built and government plans to take a tougher line on local authorities with out of date plans, will likely see more homes built on greenbelt in future years. Just returning to the rates of development on greenbelt seen in the early noughties would yield an extra 5,000 new homes a year,’ he explained. ‘Research by Countrywide published earlier in 2015 showed around the 80 railway stations in… Continue reading
