Tag Archives: real estate
Average House prices in England and Wales up 8.4% year on year
Average house price in England and Wales increased 1% in August to reach £177,824, according to the latest index from the Land Registry. The data also shows that prices have increased by 8.4% year on year and are now not far from the peak of £181,383 in November 2007. Overall over 82,600 residential properties in England and Wales lodged for registration in August ranging from £13,000 to £24.5 million. The biggest price increase was in London with a year on year rise of 21.6% and London also experienced the greatest monthly rise with growth of 2.7% in August. The North East saw the lowest annual price growth with a rise of 3% and both the South West and the North West saw the most significant monthly price fall of 0.1%. The most up to date figures available show that during June 2014 the number of completed house sales in England and Wales increased by 11% to 73,158 compared with 66,123 in June 2013. The number of properties sold in England and Wales for over £1 million in June 2014 increased by 34% to 1,135 from 848 in June 2013. Jonathan Hudson of West End estate agent Hudsons Property, pointed out that while London is well beyond the average price in 2007, it is interesting to see the rest of the country is almost there too. ‘However, with London and the South East making up the majority of the average prices, it shows some parts of the UK are someway adrift, still more so than this figure suggests,’ he explained. ‘The annual 8.4% increase in August will be from transactions agreed a few months earlier, so it will be interesting to see how these figures match up in a few months’ time, due to a drop in buyers in the last quarter compared to the recent boom years,’ he added. He also pointed out that while some areas in the UK are still struggling with regards to getting close to the average price of 2007, with the economy moving in the right direction, and with stricter lending, hopefully repossessions will decrease further,’ he said. Continue reading
Studies show more people in UK planning to downsize to fund retirement
Some 12% of the UK’s retired population are planning to downsize their property within the next five years, potentially unlocking an estimated £136.5 billion of housing equity in the process. This equates to 1.36 million people planning to move to help fund their retirement, according to the data from retirement income specialists MGM Advantage. The data also shows 18%, or 1.99 million retired people, have already downsized. By analysing house price data, calculating the amount of cash released through moving from a detached property to a bungalow, allowing for stamp duty and moving costs, MGM Advantage has worked out the UK average is £102,851. This figure represents an 18% increase in cash released compared to just a year ago when the average was £84,776, and is due to the relative increase in the value of a detached property compared to a bungalow. The data shows there are significant regional variations, with Greater London releasing the most cash at £295,593, while Wales didn’t fare anywhere near as well with a figure of £54,301 released after moving costs. ‘People often refer to their property as their pension, and these numbers show that many are considering downsizing to provide an income boost in retirement. However, the downsizing dream could turn into a retirement nightmare, as some areas of the country fare much better than others. This is simply a reflection of the housing market in the UK,’ said Andrew Tully of MGM Advantage. ‘Banking on your own home to provide an income in retirement does not come without risk. The old adage of all your eggs in one basket still holds true. Careful planning and consideration should be given before making the move, and with returns available from the cash released still very low, it is likely the capital will also be consumed over time,’ he pointed out. ‘If people want to stay in their homes to avoid the upheaval of moving, then solutions like equity release can provide an alternative route. A professional financial adviser will be able to help you navigate the retirement income maze and decide what is best for your personal circumstances,’ he added. Meanwhile, separate research from Baring Asset Management shows that 7% of non-retired people, the equivalent of around 2.5 million individuals, admit they are planning on selling their primary residence to fund their retirement. This is up 2% from last year. In total, 16% of people, nearly six million, say they are planning to rent or sell property to fund their retirement, up from 13% last year and the highest such figure since 2009. The survey found that the economic climate continues to have an impact on people looking to use property to fund some or all of their retirement: the number saying they now plan to sell or downsize a property to fund all of their retirement has risen to 4% from 2% in 2012. While the research found that a third (33%) of people that last year said they are planning on either… Continue reading
Lawyers warning over complexity of right to buy land proposals in Scotland
Plans to empower Scottish communities who want to register an interest in land in towns and cities could backfire due to the complexity of proposed changes to the law, it is claimed. According to the Law Society of Scotland, proposals to extend communities’ right to buy land to include people living in urban areas, could be thwarted by the complexity of the proposals and potentially limit rather than empower local groups and stall development plans for neglected land in urban areas. The Community Empowerment (Scotland) Bill introduced into the Scottish parliament amends the Land Reform (Scotland ) Act 2003 by allowing community bodies to register an interest in respect of not only rural land, but now also urban land in Scotland ‘While the committee welcomes the policy intention behind the bill, our concern is that there may be unintended consequences from the current proposals,’ said Alan McCreadie, secretary to the Society’s planning committee. ‘For example, what would happen if a community registered its interest in urban land which is already subject to a redevelopment proposal? While Scottish Ministers could, in those circumstances, decide that registration is not in the public interest, the uncertainty could have an adverse impact on investment decisions for developers,’ he explained. ‘The Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 has benefited people in Scotland’s rural communities and we would want to ensure the same kind of success in our towns and cities. The committee, however, highlights a marked difference between rural land and urban land which may well have a higher price and consequent development costs,’ he added. The Society also highlights that the procedure for registering community interest in abandoned or neglected land, which is undefined in the bill, is similar to Compulsory Purchase and there should therefore be a requirement for a viable business plan and robust development proposals in respect of any community right to buy abandoned or neglected land. ‘The very complexity of the proposals may also be an issue. Introducing an overly complex, bureaucratic process could discourage communities from working to improve their local area and it may be advisable to set up a central body to steer community bodies through the provisions of this bill,’ added McCreadie. Continue reading
