Tag Archives: real-estate
Dubai to get mandatory affordable housing quotas
A proposal by Dubai Municipality to introduce mandatory affordable housing quotas for all new residential developments is expected to bring a wide range of benefits to the emirate, it is claimed. The move will create further maturity in the market and is long overdue, according to a new report from international real estate consultants, Cluttons. With the residential market in Dubai now meandering through the second half of the current property cycle and with values stabilising following the tremendous growth recorded in 2013 and the first half of 2014, the timing for the introduction of such legislation is ideal, the firm says. According to Steven Morgan, chief executive officer of Cluttons Middle East, the issue of affordability has been one that has been quietly bubbling away in the background for some time. ‘With the introduction of the Federal Mortgage caps and the doubling of property registration fees, we saw genuine end users in the market forced into a holding pattern as they attempted to make the transition from rented accommodation to owner occupation,’ he said. ‘The surging rents, driven by the exceptionally strong underlying demand, which was linked to the robust economic growth, meant that household finances were coming under tremendous pressure on several fronts,’ he pointed out. ‘Now of course, with rents starting to show greater stability, households have a window of opportunity to consolidate their finances and make that leap to owner occupation. The prospect of those on monthly incomes of between AED4,000 and AED12,000 being able to control their rental outgoings will no doubt go some way to aiding the speed at which deposits can be amassed,’ he added. He also pointed out that it is important to remember that there is a huge pent up demand for affordable housing in the UAE and with rental affordability thresholds being breached in many cities, we welcome the news on this key issue. According to Cluttons, the idea of affordable housing is not a new concept and it has served cities such as London well, where developers are liable to provide affordable housing for developments starting with as little as ten units. In particular it has aided in the creation of diverse communities, while allowing people from all financial backgrounds to live alongside one another. ‘There have of course been exceptions to the rule, where developers have been permitted to build off-site affordable housing, with land costs being cited as the primary driver for this. Dubai stands to learn a valuable lesson from this as the authorities in London have often been criticised for effectively creating lower income neighbourhoods through this method,’ said Cluttons' international research and business development manager, Faisal Durrani. He explained that Dubai is clearly not short of affordable neighbourhoods. Karama and Satwa are two key stand out areas that evolved organically at the edges of the Deira-Bur Dubai and Jumeirah districts, respectively. ‘During the course of expansion of any city, affordable districts often tend to spring up on the fringes… Continue reading
UK house prices up 2.6% in first quarter of 2015, latest index shows
UK house prices were 2.6% higher in the three months of 2015 than in the previous quarter but the annual rate of growth is still falling. The latest index from the Halifax shows that annual price growth fell slightly from 8.3% in February to 8.1% in March, taking the average price of a home to £192,970. The quarterly rate of change increased for the third consecutive month. It is now at a similar rate to September 2014 when it was 2.7%, prior to a marked slowdown in the last three months of 2014. The data also shows that house prices increased by 0.4% between February and March, offsetting February’s 0.4% fall. According to Halifax’s housing economist Martin Ellis the recent return to real earnings growth for the first time in several years, very low mortgage rates and last December’s stamp duty changes are supporting housing demand. ‘The rising level of house prices in relation to earnings should, however, curb house price growth and activity,’ he added. He also predicts that the annual rate of house price growth, which has continued to ease in the first quarter of 2015, is forecast to end the year at 3% to 5%. The index report also points out that housing supply remains tight. According to figures from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors new instructions fell again in February suggesting that the trend remains down following January’s modest rise, which was the first increase in six months. However, house price optimism rebounded in February as inflation continued to fall and the expectation of an interest rate rise receded further, according to the Halifax Housing Market Confidence Tracker. Ellis said that this optimism is reflected in the outlook for both buyers and sellers, with buying sentiment up to its highest level since the Confidence Tracker launched in 2011 at net +35. At the same time, selling sentiment reached an all-time high and now stands at +27. The report also mentions the regional differences in stamp duty. Some 81% of residential stamp duty revenue raised in the UK in 2013/2014 was in the four regions of southern England; Greater London, South East, South West and East of England, according to the HMRC. This was significantly higher than their 71% share in 2007/2008 when total stamp duty revenues were at a similar level at £6.68 billion in 2007/2008 against £6.45 billion in 2013/2014. London alone contributed 42% of all UK stamp duty revenues in 2013/2014 compared with 28% in 2007/2008. Indeed, London was the only region to see an increase in revenues between 2007/2008 and 2013/2014. Continue reading
Expansion of London cycle scheme could boost house prices, it is suggested
The continued expansion of London’s cycle hire scheme will benefit home sellers living near bike docking stations and attract potential buyers to living in previously less well connected areas, it is claimed. The ‘Boris Bike’ programme, named after the Mayor Boris Johnson who introduced the scheme, already offers Londoners the use of 11,500 bikes across more than 700 docking stations and with new sponsorship is set to expand even further. Transport for London has identified a further 1,000 potential docking stations that could be ready for use by early 2016. According to estate agent Marsh & Parsons, in much the same way that proximity to a tube station has long increased the attractiveness and saleability of properties in the capital, as well as the actual cash value, it has seen a rise in buyers enquiring about local bike docking points and expects this interest to continue to increase as the scheme achieves greater prominence. ‘South London has long had a core of cycling commuters. To date, this trend has primarily been people using their own bikes, so secure storage has long been a high priority for such individuals when house hunting,’ said Tom Crabtree, the firm’s Clapham office sales manager. ‘But with the cycle hire scheme continuing to grow and public awareness of the programme improving, proximity to a bike docking station is starting to feature on the wish lists of buyers. As with the tube network, where the vast majority of stations are north of the river, South London hasn’t been afforded anywhere near the same number of docking stations as the other side of the Thames,’ he explained. ‘But hopefully the expansion plans will restore some of this imbalance and help open up some relatively inaccessible areas south of the river which would benefit residents, aspiring homeowners and potential sellers who would have a more attractive asset on their hands,’ he added. There were more than 10 million separate journeys made in 2014 using the bike scheme according to Transport for London, a 25% increase from 2013. London’s love affair with cycling as a means of commuting is also confirmed by the Office of National Statistics which reported that the number of residents in the capital cycling to work had more than doubled from 2001 to 2011. As well as being located at popular tourist attractions and close to other transport hubs such as tube and train stations, bike scheme docking stations are primarily installed on residential streets and Marsh & Parsons’ research found that the most prestigious street in the capital to feature one is Grosvenor Crescent in Belgravia, where the average current property is worth £22,435,017. ‘London has long had a world class public transport system and the introduction of the cycle hire scheme five years ago has added to the attraction of areas such as Battersea and Fulham which, despite being £1… Continue reading
