Tag Archives: london
UK govt flagship Help to Buy scheme helps over 70,000 home owners
Help to Buy, the UK government’s flagship scheme, has helped more than 71,000 people across the country buy a new home, the latest official figures show. In total over 66,000 households have been helped by the Help to Buy mortgage guarantee and Equity Loan which was introduced to help those who cannot afford a mortgage to buy a home. Some critics claimed it would not actually help those who needed it and be used by buyers in London to the detriment of others but the figures show this has not happened. The figures reveal that 81% of Help to Buy sales are to first time buyers, helping 54,000 into their first home and the vast majority of sales have been outside of London and at prices well below the national average. Together with the government’s NewBuy scheme which offers 95% mortgages for those buying new build properties, the number of new home owners has reached more than 71,000. The figures also show how Help to Buy is benefiting every region of the country. The North West is the highest region for the mortgage guarantee, while the Equity Loan scheme for new build properties is particularly successful in the East and South East and overall 94% of completions under the scheme remain outside London. Leeds council is the highest performing local authority across the country for the two parts of Help to Buy with almost 1,000 new homes secured by its residents. While Birmingham council has seen a significant increase of over 300 new completions. Help to Buy is also helping to increase housing supply and get Britain building by driving demand for new build homes. Over half of the homes bought through the scheme are new build properties, and private house building is up 20% since the launch of the Equity Loan scheme. The government also says that Help to Buy is supporting responsible lending, with the average house price for the combined schemes at £186,000, or £156,000 for mortgage guarantee and £211,000 under the equity loan scheme, all of which are well below the UK average house price of £273,000. The average house price to income multiple under the mortgage guarantee scheme is just over 3.5 times salary, and capped at a 4.5 times ratio to ensure responsible lending. Figures for the mortgage guarantee scheme also show completions have been least concentrated in regions where house price growth is highest, for instance in London the scheme makes up just 1% of all mortgage lending compared to an average of 3% across the country. ‘Getting the keys to your first home is a moment that no one forgets. It’s about being able to start planning for the future and enjoying the security that you’ve worked hard for,’ said Prime Minister David Cameron. ‘But in the aftermath of the great recession the prospect of buying a first home was nothing more than a pipe dream for many thousands of hardworking people in Britain. Even those with a decent salary who could… Continue reading
UK estate agents report a better balance between buyers and homes for sale
A better balance between the number of homes for sale and the number of registered home buyers in the UK is emerging, according to the latest report from the National Association of Estate Agents. The October Housing Market survey found that member agents reported an average of 53 properties for sale per branch, some 15% higher than the monthly average for the rest of 2014. It is the highest number recorded on books since October 2013 and compares with an average of 51 properties was recorded per branch in September. While supply showed signs of an increase, the number of house hunters registered per NAEA member branch fell, from 406 in September to 380 in October, easing the balance between the number of available homes and demand. The survey data also shows that the average number of homes sold during the month remained static on September figures, at average of nine sales per NAEA member branch. The number of first time buyers recorded fell, down 6% in October compared to the previous month’s figures, to 24% of total sales from 30% of total sales in September. ‘There is a better balance emerging between the level of demand and supply, as the number of registered house hunters falls for October, while the average number of available properties registered per branch rises to accommodate those looking to buy,’ said NAEA managing director Mark Hayward. ‘However, both supply and demand is still seasonably low for October. The decrease in buyer demand and in particular the decline in first time buyers, along with a relatively static sales market, could be a direct result of the stricter lending criteria which came into play six months ago at the end of April this year, making it harder for house hunters to access mortgage finance. This has certainly been reported as one possibility by our NAEA member branches,’ he added. When asked if the new MMR rules had led to a direct decrease in the overall number of home buyers since it was introduced six months ago, some 79% of NAEA member branches agreed it had affected the current number of buyers. With the exception of September 2014, in which 406 home buyers were recorded on average per branch, the number of house hunters registered per member branch had shown a decrease on figures recorded in April 2014 when it was 392 home buyers in the month MMR was introduced. NAEA member branches also said they believed the MMR had particularly affected demand among first time buyers with 70% of member branches reporting the implementation of MMR had led to a decrease in the number of first time buyers since it came into force. ‘First time buyers will be especially more cautious about making a purchase due to the stricter lending criteria now in place, which makes it harder to secure finance,’ explained Hayward. ‘In addition, prospective… Continue reading
Buying a home in an English market town costs £25,000 more, new research shows
House prices in market towns in England are on average £24,766 or 12% higher than their county average, according to research from Lloyds Bank. Two out of three market towns in England have an average house price that is above their county average. Beaconsfield in South Buckinghamshire has the largest house price premium with homes trading at 156% or £501,648 above the county average. Wetherby has the next highest premium with prices 99% or £157,016 above the West Yorkshire average, followed by Bakewell in the Derbyshire Peaks at 88% or £147,224. Overall one in eight market towns in the survey have a house price premium of at least £100,000 and 10 of the most expensive market towns are in southern England. Beaconsfield is also the most expensive English market town with an average house price of £822,753. Petersfield in Hampshire at £402,216 and Cranbrook in Kent at £393,778 are the next most expensive market towns in England. Outside southern England, Bakewell is the most expensive market town with an average property value of £314,966. Three of the top five least expensive market towns are in County Durham. Ferryhill has an average house price of £85,763, followed by Crook at £106,591 and Stanhope at £128,114. The other towns include Immingham at £110,565 and Tickhill at £133,550. ‘Market towns are important hubs of social interaction and cohesion, as well as providers of employment and support for local business. Market towns are also, in most cases, very attractive places to live,’ said Andy Hulme, mortgages director at Lloyds Bank. ‘This is reflected in the majority of market towns having higher property prices than their surrounding counties, a premium that increased in the past decade,’ he explained. He pointed out that home buyers continue to be attracted to the high quality of life, architecture, history, setting and community spirit offered by market towns and are prepared to pay a premium to live there. The research also shows that the average house price in market towns across England has risen by £60,586 or 34% from £179,535 in 2004 to £240,121 in 2014. This is equivalent to an average rise of £505 per month over the past decade. Two market towns have seen house prices grow by more than 50% since 2004. The biggest increase in prices over the past decade was in Ferryhill where the average price rose by 76% from £48,743 to £85,763. Ferryhill is followed by Saffron Walden in Essex at 59%, Lewes on the south coast at 48%, then Beaconsfield, Midhurst in West Sussex, Berwick upon Tweed and Yately in Hampshire all 47%. Nine out of 10 market towns have seen prices rise since the bottom of the housing market in 2009. Contrary to the decade as whole, it has been market towns in the south that have performed best in the past few years. Beaconsfield in Buckinghamshire recorded the largest price growth in the past five years at 37%, followed by Saffron Walden at 36% and Yateley at 36%. The average… Continue reading
