Tag Archives: real-estate
Most UK regions see strong annual rental market growth
Nine out of 12 UK regions saw rental price rise in November compared to the same month last year, according to the latest rental index. However on a month on month basis there was the traditional autumn with nine out of 12 regions recording lower rental prices compared to October 2014, the findings from the Home Let index shows. It means that the average monthly private rent in the UK is £874 per month or £702 excluding London and Scotland saw strong rental price growth with an 8.7% increase in November 2014 compared to the previous month and 11.7% up on the same month last year. Overall the regions that have experienced the highest growth compared to this time last year include Scotland, Greater London, and the West Midlands, with rental prices 11.7%, 11% and 8.7% higher than this time last year, respectively. Regarding the autumn dip, with the exception of Scotland, the East Midlands and the South West all saw lower rental prices in November than in October. Scotland recorded a monthly increase in rental prices of 8.7% with the East Midlands and the South West recording monthly increases of 1.5% and 1.4% respectively. The index report says that the recent dip in prices reflects typical seasonal movement in the rental market and sits within the context of a market that remains strong. Annually, only three regions of the UK recorded lower rental prices in November 2014 compared to the same month last year. The North West dropped 3.6%, the North East fell by 2.5% and Wales was down 2%. ‘We see the autumn’s moderation in rental growth as broadly in line with the typical seasonal effect that often sees rental prices balance or even slip into reverse in many areas of the country at this time of year,’ said Martin Totty, chief executive officer of the Barbon Insurance Group of which Home Let is part. ‘The outlook for the private rented sector remains positive for several reasons, the pace of house building is unlikely to have a significant effect on the supply of property to buy or to rent in the short term, high house prices, and a mortgage market where lending criteria remains constrained, are combining to ensure that the demand from tenants needing rented accommodation remains strong,’ he explained. ‘In terms of seasonal highs we see Scotland bucking the trend of the rest of the country, the rapid growth in the Scottish rentals market reflects the strength of the economy north of the border, particularly in oil-rich Aberdeen, which has a thriving rentals sector, but also in other Scottish cities and throughout the country,’ he added. Continue reading
Western Australia has strongest residential property market in the country
Western Australia has the strongest residential building market in the country by a healthy margin, ahead of the Northern Territory and New South Wales, new data shows. The Australian Capital Territory took a tumble down the league table sliding from fourth to sixth and a recovery in Queensland is continuing, according to the latest bi-annual housing report from the Housing Industry Association. ‘Lower levels of activity in multi-unit segment drove the ACT decline, although there were also emerging signs of weakness in the ACT’s detached house building market,’ said Geordan Murray, HIA economist. ‘The recovery in Queensland continues to gather momentum. The analysis shows the improvements can be attributed to a boost in multi-unit home building. While Queensland still ranks as the second weakest jurisdiction nationally, the margin to the states sitting mid-table has narrowed markedly,’ he added. Overall, the report shows that Western Australia and New South Wales have caught up to Victoria in terms of historically high levels of new home building activity. However, activity in these states no longer appears to be rising. Murray said at this point in time, future growth hinges on the capacity of the Queensland market to sustain the recovery. Meanwhile, preliminary figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistic provide further evidence that the new home building upturn may have peaked earlier in 2014. During the September 2014 quarter, a total of $13.4 billion worth of work was done in the residential construction sector, a 1.6% decrease on the previous quarter, although it was 8.6% higher than a year earlier. Total work done on new dwelling construction fell by 1.8% during the quarter, but was still some 9.5% higher than the same period of the previous year. Renovations work done was unchanged during the September 2014 quarter and was 2.8% higher than a year earlier. ‘These figures provide further evidence that the upturn in new home building activity may have peaked during 2014. Australia needs to build about 180,000 homes per year over the longer term to meet its requirements,’ said HIA senior economist Shane Garrett. ‘We have only recently reached this threshold, and the fact that we are moving below it again bodes poorly for the country’s housing prospects. We also concerned to see that the renovations market has not made any headway over the most recent quarter. This is an area of residential construction that has endured a slump over the past few years,’ he explained. ‘We are in danger of falling behind in the quest to provide enough housing for future generations of Australians. Several factors act as major obstacles to the ensuring sufficient levels of new home building. It is vital that issues like land supply bottlenecks, planning delays and excessive taxation are dealt with as a matter of urgency,’ he added. Looking ahead, the ABS housing finance figures provide a positive signal for new home building activity in early 2015. While total lending to owner occupiers, excluding refinancing, eased by 1.4% in… Continue reading
UK housing minister announces £3.5 billion for new rental homes across the country
The UK’s housing minister has signed a new agreement to unlock £3.5 billion in funding to build new homes specifically for renting across the country. Brandon Lewis said that the deal with PRS Operations Limited, a subsidiary of Venn Partners LLP, is important to the government’s wider efforts to create a bigger, better private rented sector. The government’s private rented sector housing guarantee scheme enables landlords of new rented homes to use a government guarantee to secure long term financing. Lewis explained that this investment will increase the supply of purpose built, professionally managed private rental homes giving tenants more choice of better quality homes. Initially, up to £3.5 billion in government backed loans will be made available to landlords looking to invest at least £10 million for new homes available for private rent with the option to increase this to £6.5 billion in future. Venn Partners has created PRS Operations Ltd, a new organisation that will secure institutional investment in building homes specifically for private rent. This new organisation will work to arrange up to £3.5 billion of funding and then offer a series of smaller loans to eligible landlords looking to move into this expanding market. ‘House building is an important part of the government’s long term economic plan. The deal with Venn Partners to provide the guarantees scheme is part of a package of investment measures to help generate growth in the rented sector, while ensuring value for money for the tax payer,’ said Lewis. Other measures include a £3.5 billion affordable housing guarantees scheme, which has already helped provide over £1 billion in investment to provide over 9,000 new affordable homes, on some of the cheapest terms in the sector’s history The £1 billion Build to Rent Fund, which is on track to provide up to 10,000 newly built homes specifically for private rent across the country and the Private Rented Sector Taskforce, which has identified aspirations to invest over £10 billion of equity in the private rented sector. ‘We’ve pulled out all the stops to get the country building since 2010, including by creating a bigger better private rented sector. This is an exciting and important move that will help strengthen the private rented sector so that it meets the needs of tenants well into the future,’ Lewis explained. According to Danny Alexander, Chief Secretary to the Treasury, unlocking £3.5 billion of funding for the private rented sector will ensure that the government delivers the homes that people across the country need. ‘Housing starts are now at a six year high thanks to this government’s focus on building more homes. Investment in housing is essential for the future of an economy. That’s why for the first time in a generation, this government plans to directly commission homes, as well increasing investment in affordable housing to ensure the delivery of 275,000 affordable homes over the next five years. These guarantees will help to deliver more homes in communities across Britain,’ he added. Attracting significant institutional investment to the… Continue reading
