TSI
UK architects report that private housing sector workload is falling
Overall workload for architects in the UK is rising but the private housing sector workload has fallen, according to the latest data from the Royal Institute of British Architecture (RIBA). Practices have reported that their overall workload is growing at an annual rate of 8% and that current staffing levels are 6% higher than they were a year ago. All regions in the UK returned positive balance figures, with practices in the North of England the most optimistic with a balance figure of +48 and practices of all sizes remain upbeat about work prospects. But, after a record high forecast in June, July 2015 saw a significant note of caution with the RIBA Future Trends Workload Index falling sharply to +22, down from +44. The private housing sector workload forecast fell to +23 in July 2015 from +39 in June while the commercial sector workload forecast saw a moderate fall down to +13 in July 2015 from +19 in June. The data also shows that the public sector workload forecast dipped slightly to -1 in July from +2 in June with practices expecting little medium term change in public sector expenditure levels within the built environment. The RIBA Future Trends Staffing Index also declined +12 in July from +20 in June, however, the employment market for salaried architects remains very positive and 98% of respondents expected their staffing levels either to increase or to stay the same over the next few months. Small and medium sized practices are still confident about increasing their staffing levels with balance figures of +6 and +42 respectively. However, large practices are more likely to be actively appointing new staff, with a balance figure of +67. ‘Despite the fall in our headline index, it is important to state that our forecast remains firmly in positive territory. This drop seems largely to have been driven by some loss of confidence by our practices in the medium term outlook for work in the private housing sector, especially in London and the South of England,’ said RIBA executive director members Adrian Dobson. ‘Private housing has been the main driver of increases in architects’ workloads in the last couple of years, so this is a development that we will be monitoring closely in the next few months. It is too early to say if this is a definitive trend and the crucial autumn period will give a better indication of the prevailing sentiment,’ he explained. ‘Our participating practices continue to suggest that the majority of firms are seeing solid growth in workloads, though there is significant pressure on fee levels and profit margins on projects typically remain tight, constraining salary levels,’ he added. He pointed out that future Bank of England interest rate rises may yet dampen activity in the key private housing and commercial sectors. But with the current low inflation environment looking set to continue this seems to remain a relatively distant prospect at present. The overall economic environment for architects… Continue reading
Recovery in property sales in Spain proving sustainable, latest data suggests
Homes sales in Spain are showing strong growth, up by 13.9% in the second quarter of this year following a rise of 4.4% in the first quarter, according to the latest data from the Ministry of Public Works. It is the six quarter in a row when sales have increased year on year, suggesting that the recovery in the Spanish real estate market is being sustained. It is also the second best quarter since 2010. However, the market still has some way to go to its pre-crisis level as sales are 58% lower than the peak of 2006. A breakdown of the figures shows that some 12.5% of sales were for new homes and sales increased in 14 regions, as well as in the autonomous cities of Ceuta and Melilla, and fell in three. The biggest increases were in La Rioja with growth of 44.2%, Ceuta and Melilla at 33.9%, the Balearic Islands at 30.1%, Cantabria at 29.4% and Murcia at 25.7%. Sales fell by 14.7% in Navarra, by 1.5% in Extremadura and by 0.6% in the Basque Country. Overseas buyers living in Spain accounted for 17.2% of sales while sales to non-resident foreigners amounted to 5%. Alicante had the highest number of foreign buyers at 4,141, Málaga 2,517, Barcelona 1,470, Madrid 1,173 and Tenerife 1,099. The sustained recovery is also confirmed in the latest figures from the General Council of Notaires, showing that the property market grew by 11% in July compared to the same month in 2014. The data shows that the Spanish property market has expanded in nine of the last 12 months with only January and February seeing sales fall. According to Mark Stucklin, of Spanish Property Insight one of the main factors behind rising home sales is easier, cheaper mortgage credit. There were 17,450 new mortgages signed in July, up 27% on the same month last year, taking the number of sales involving mortgage financing to 46%, highest level since the boom years in the middle of the previous decade. Prices area also starting to recover. The data from the official house price index published by the National Institute of Statistics shows that they rose by 4% over the 12 months to the second quarter of 2015. The Balearics saw the biggest rise in prices with growth of 7.3%, driven by a 7.8% rise in new build prices and a 7.4% rise in resale prices. Indeed, new and resale house prices have been rising since the second quarter of last year, and the trend appears to be picking up speed for both new and resale properties. But figures from the Notaries suggest that prices are not yet in recovery mode. The data from them shows prices down by 0.3% in the second quarter of the year. But Stucklin believes that there are reasons to be sceptical about the index. Compared to 2007, Spanish house prices are down 33%, according to the index with resale prices down 40% and new build… Continue reading
Survey reveals positive attitude to renting in the UK
The majority of tenants in the UK private rented sector are satisfied with their current landlord with only 5% refused a longer term tenancy, new research shows. Overall 65% of tenants believe their rental payment represents ‘good’ or ‘very good’ value for money and have positive attitudes towards renting, according to the study commissioned by Paragon Mortgages. The quarter two tenant market analysis, carried out by BDRC Continental, reported a rise in tenant satisfaction with 80% satisfied with their current landlord and 87% of tenants now regarding their rented property as their home rather than a short term arrangement. The research also highlighted that the average duration of tenants living in their current rented property in the second quarter of 2015 was seven years, with the typical total stay in the private rented sector being 12 years. When asked about their long term housing plans some 35% of participating tenants intend to remain within the sector and 24% intended to buy a house in the future, with the proportion of respondents citing the unaffordability of housing as the reason for renting privately increasing from 69% to 74%. ‘This research provides a valuable insight into the sector. There are many surveys of landlords and many academic reports on the PRS. There are, however, too few surveys that poll tenants directly on their experience of renting privately,’ said John Heron, managing director of Paragon Mortgages. ‘This survey has identified high levels of tenant satisfaction and an appreciation of the good value that rented accommodation can offer across the country. It is more disappointing though to see that affordability constraints are impacting negatively on future choices in housing with less than a quarter of tenants expecting to buy their own home in due course,’ he added. Continue reading
