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UK property sales up slightly but still well below a year ago
Residential property sales in the UK increased by 1.5% between April and May 2016 but the month’s seasonally adjusted figure is 11.9% lower compared with a year ago. The latest report from HMRC says that the large increase in transactions for March 2016 followed by the substantial reduction in April is likely to be associated with the introduction of higher stamp duty rates on additional properties in April 2016. But it points out that whilst April and May 2016 are lower than the corresponding months in 2015, it should be noted that the total for March to May 2016 is still substantially higher than the corresponding period last year. The additional property rates were announced in the Autumn Statement 2015 for England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and in the Scottish Government's draft 2016/2017 budget for Scotland. The report also says that additional non-tax factors may have played a role as well, for example the Bank of England's plans to curb buy to let mortgages resulting in a rush to purchase. The residential count includes properties paying the main and additional rates. Greg Bryce, managing director at SearchFlow, also believes that uncertainty surrounding the referendum on the future of the UK in the European Union has also been affecting the market and looking ahead activity levels in June look set to be dampened as buyers and investors are holding off any decision to purchase until after the vote. However, once the dust settles post referendum, it is expected that activity levels in the housing market will remain buoyant with a strong economy, employment level high, interest rates and mortgage rates low and the economic and housing policies unlikely to change very much. The market is expected to bounce back if the vote is for the UK to remain in the EU, according to Doug Crawford, chief executive officer of My Home Move. ‘Ultimately, high levels of demand for both rental and owner-occupied accommodation will drive transaction figures upwards,’ he said. The firms most recent forecast predicts that sales will rise by 7% this year and by 20% by 2020. The figures show there has been a continued ripple effect from the stamp duty change, according to Rob Weaver, director of investments at property crowdfunding platform Property Partner. ‘The desperation to complete before the April 1st deadline pulled forward thousands of housing transactions that would normally have happened in April or May. March recorded the highest number of transactions in a decade,’ he said. He also pointed out that overall, 2016 is beating 2015 with transactions for the first five months of the year up 13% on the same period last year. ‘If we vote Remain on Thursday, we can expect a rising trend in activity as buyers and sellers re-engage after the referendum,’ he explained. ‘Transactions should slowly rebuild as the summer months are historically strong. But the dire shortage of supply is the main reason why we see house prices on… Continue reading
More families renting homes in the UK, research shows
Families are the most common household type in the private rented sector in the UK for the first time, according to the latest research from the National Landlords Association (NLA). The findings show that more landlords now let to families with children, making up 48% of the sector, overtaking young couples with 47%. This represents a shift compared to four years ago, when young singles made up the largest group with 53% followed by young couples at 51% and then families with children at 51%. Indeed, the PRS now accounts for approximately five million households in the country United Kingdom and, according to the latest English Housing Survey, the proportion of families in the PRS has increased from 30% in 2004/2005 to 37% in 2014/2015, an increase 912,000 households in 10 years. For the majority of families surveyed, renting privately is a stable option, with 76% reporting they were happy with the length of their tenancy, and a similar proportion, 79%, reporting their tenancy was renewed or stayed the same at the end of the initial fixed term. As a result, the perception of renting as a barrier to family life is breaking down, with 60% of renting families saying that it was not while 77% of families considered their rented accommodation to be home, and the majority, 65%, reported that they were free to personalise it however they chose. ‘There is a genuine contrast between the experience of renting in the 21st century shown in this research and the prevailing housing culture in Britain that only views it as a stopgap, something to be tolerated while waiting for the opportunity to buy your own house,’ said Richard Lambert, chief executive officer at the NLA. ‘There is a rogue element to private housing that ruins the experience for far too many people, but for the majority of the 11 million private renters, renting offers an inclusive and flexible option which works for them in their current circumstances,’ he pointed out. ‘Contrary to popular perception, there’s growing evidence that renting is no obstacle to putting down roots and calling somewhere home. The majority of landlords want good, stable, long term tenancies, and these findings show that more and more are becoming receptive to helping families make a home in the private rented sector,’ he added. Continue reading
Property sales in Spain up over 16% year on year
Residential property sales in Spain are continuing to rise but this may be due to sellers accepting lower offers as prices are falling. The latest data from the General Council of Notaries show that sales increased by 16.2% in April year on year and in seasonally adjusted terms were up 18.9%. But prices are not following the growth trend, down 5.1% on average to stand at €1,241 per square metre. Both houses and apartment prices are falling, down 1.6% and 5.9% respectively. The growth is also reflected in lending with the number of mortgages for the purchase of a home rising by 38.3% year on year. The average amount was €120,125, a reduction of 4.9% compared to a year ago, also suggesting that people are paying less for properties. Meanwhile demand for prime property is also rising, especially in the most sought after areas. Well prices properties are being snapped up fast, often in just a matter of days, according to the latest report from Lucas Fox International Properties. Multiple agencies often find themselves competing with each other for the same clients, all of whom are looking to take advantage of the current low prices, according to the Barcelona based firm. ‘We're having to remove around 40 sold properties from our website each week as the market has picked up significantly. We currently have around 40,000 mainly overseas clients actively searching for homes to buy, the majority of whom want to invest in Barcelona, Madrid and key coastal areas such as the Costa Brava,’ said head of listings at Lucas Fox Ivan Belmonte. The report suggests that the lack of supply is due to the fact that new developments are still fairly slow to come onto the market and some owners are still waiting for prices to rise before they sell. According to Rod Jamieson, head of operations, published price data is often based on asking prices rather than actual sales prices so prices paid are not actually rising. ‘Our statistics show very minimal price increases, even in prime districts,’ he said. The firm’s data also shows that 50% of visitors to its website are from overseas and 50% national buyers. This compares to 56% and 44% respectively during the same period in 2015. The British continue to represent the biggest proportion of overseas visitors to the website at 10%, a slight drop from 2015, most likely due to fears over the European Union referendum outcome. After the UK, most overseas demand for Spanish homes comes from France, the United States and then Sweden. Continue reading
