Tag Archives: real estate
Average prices in England and Wales up over 6% year on year
Average property prices in England and Wales increased year on year by 6.4% in December, taking the average property value to £188,270, the latest index shows. Month on month house prices rose by 1.2% since November 2015, according to the monthly index report from the Land Registry. London recorded the greatest increase in its average property values with annual growth of 12.4% and the biggest month on month rise at 2.1%, taking the average price to £514,097. The North East saw the lowest annual price growth with an increase of 0.8%, taking the average price to £99,069, a considerable difference to the average price in London. Wales saw the most significant monthly price fall with a decrease of 0.8% to take the average price to £121,780. The most up to date figures available, show that the number of completed house sales in England and Wales fell by 8% to 79,960 compared with 86,452 in in October 2014 while the number of properties sold for more than £1 million fell by 2% to 1,231 from 1,258 a year earlier. Repossessions in England and Wales fell by 51% to 431 compared with 888 in October 2014 and the region with the greatest fall in the number of repossession sales was London with a fall of 71% from October 2014. Mark Posniak, managing director at Dragonfly Property Finance, pointed out that with demand strong and supply weak, prices in December defied the usual seasonal slowdown, adding that this is even more pronounced in London. He believes that the construction lag is having a significant impact on the market. ‘On a more positive note, we are seeing noticeably more construction activity at the moment, particularly by smaller developers. But this will take time to trickle through into the market,’ he said. ‘Looking into 2016, it's hard to see anything other than a continuation of the current trend of steadily rising prices, especially with interest rates unlikely to rise in the near future and a robust jobs market,’ he added. According to John Eastgate, sales and marketing director of OneSavings Bank, prolific buyer demand is fanning the house price growth. ‘A strengthening labour market, robust consumer sentiment and a supportive mortgage market all played their part, despite the obstacles provided by the festive period. This strength of demand has been compounded by the record low levels of property on the market at present,’ he said. ‘Uncertainty around economic growth in 2016 provides a reason for caution. The good news however, is that house building starts appear to be at their highest level since 2007. It is not yet strong enough to counterbalance demand. However if this trend of improvement is maintained, it should lead to a healthier property market for investors and buyers alike,’ he added. The lack of supply is also the explanation of what is currently happening with unseasonal growth in the market, said Jonathan Hopper, managing director of the buying agents Garrington Property Finders. ‘Even… Continue reading
UK govt puts public land up for sale for new home building
The UK Government has published details of 600 acres of surplus public sector land for sale as part of its drive to see tens of thousands of new homes built across the country. Housing Minister Brandon Lewis urged developers to seize the opportunity and look at the sites via the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA). Some 80 public land sites are now for sale and there will be 40 more over the next 18 months. It is estimated these sites will support more than 5,000 homes as well as land for industry and business. Over 20% of the sites already have outline or detailed planning permission. Lewis pointed out that the Government has embarked on the largest house building programme since the 1970s and said that some 160,000 new homes should be built through the sale of surplus public sector land. ‘Using surplus public sector land for housing has helped us get the country building again with the number of new homes up by 25%. Selling off these sites will allow us to go even further, delivering on our ambition to support a further 160,000 homes, while providing a significant boost to local economies and the taxpayer,’ he said. ‘I now want to see developers getting shovels in the ground as quick as possible and build the homes hard working people want and deserve,’ he added. The HCA is the government’s disposal agency for surplus public land, and using its local market knowledge, commercial expertise and experience of managing large portfolios of land, exceeded its contribution to the government’s last land programme by more than 3,000 homes. In total, Whitehall departments released enough public sector land to support more than 109,000 homes during the last parliament, Lewis also pointed out. ‘The sale of surplus public land helps to meet government priorities to build more homes and business premises, while delivering a financial return to the taxpayer,’ said HCA chief executive Andy Rose. ‘We will use our commercial expertise and local market knowledge to make land attractive to house builders, to help get homes built more quickly and meet local priorities. As the government’s disposal agency for surplus public land, we are well placed to support other departments and agencies in meeting their contribution to the government’s land programme,’ he added. A new Land Development and Disposal Plan sets out some key principles of land disposal, which followed a review of the HCA’s processes and were developed in cooperation with the Home Builders Federation and its members. These include clearer objectives for each site prior to sale, early and meaningful market engagement with a transparent pipeline of sites and clearer commercial terms. ‘Public sector land accounts for a significant proportion of potential residential land and can play an important part in helping the country to boost housing numbers,’ said David O’Leary, policy director at the Home Builders Federation. ‘The role of the HCA is critical in helping the government to meet its ambitious targets for releasing public land for… Continue reading
UK lettings agents see surge from buy to let landlords ahead of April tax change
New tenants and rental housing supply fell in the UK in December but agents are seeing buy to let investment demand rise ahead of new tax changes. Overall the number of prospective tenants in the private rental sector dropped 15% last month with agents registering an average of 29 per branch, down from 34 in November. The data from the monthly report from the Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA) also shows that a quarter of agents saw an uplift in buy to let investments as landlords rush to get in before the April stamp duty change deadline. It also points out that letting agents expect to see decline of buy to let properties once the extra 3% stamp duty is charged from April. Supply also decreased marginally in December, with an average of 182 properties managed per branch, down from 189 in November. Those looking for rental properties in London in particular continue to struggle, with an average of just 108 properties managed per branch, some 43% less than the national average. Alongside supply and demand, the number of tenants seeing rent hikes also dropped in December with 18% of ARLA letting agents reporting a growth in rent, a drop of 5% compared to November and the lowest reported in 2015. ‘As we’d expect in December, the UK saw a lull in activity, with people putting off any moves until January. The supply of housing stock was down, and fewer tenants were on the hunt for new properties,’ said David Cox, ARLA managing director. ‘It’s reassuring to see the number of agents reporting rent increases is still on the decline, which is some encouraging news for tenants as we start 2016,’ he added. The stamp duty reforms to buy to let properties are causing concern amongst ARLA letting agents. Some 62% of agents predict that the changes from April will push up rent costs, and a further 65% predict the new reforms will push landlords out of the market after April, and decrease supply. However, the announcement is already having an effect on landlords as 24% said that they have seen uplift in interest from buyers looking to invest in buy to let properties before the new changes come into play in April. ‘Buy to let landlords determined to complete purchases before the changes come into force in April are storming the UK housing market, meaning the lull we’d usually see is less significant,’ Cox explained. ‘But subsequently, after April, we’re very likely to see the number of buy to let properties on the market begin to decrease, and this will most certainly have a detrimental effect on renters across the country,’ he added. Continue reading
