Economic impact of Storms Eva, Desmond and Frank could hit £3bn December 30, 2015 The UK economy could be dented by as much as £3bn by damage from Storms Eva, Desmond and Frank. PwC said economic losses from the storms Desmond and Eva will be between £1.6bn and £2.3bn, while insured losses will hit £900m-£1.2bn. "Based on the currently available information, our understanding is that Desmond and Eva combined had at least 11,500 [...]
New buy-to-let rules are the biggest reason for rent rises in 2016 December 30, 2015 New rules introduced by the government for buy-to-let investors are the biggest reason that rents will rise next year, new research reveals. Nearly half of landlords surveyed by flatshare website spareroom.com said they will raise rent in 2016, with more than a third of them saying it was down to the increased costs incurred from new legislation, the [...]
CIPD: The Bank of England and the Office for Budget Responsibility are wrong about wage growth in 2016 December 30, 2015 Wage growth next year won't be as optimistic as the Bank of England and Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) anticipate, the Chartered Institute for Personnel and Development (CIPD) has warned. Despite the introduction of the National Living Wage, wage growth will remain at two per cent in 2016, the organisation said – much lower than [...]
UK house price growth hit an eight month high in December, Nationwide House Price Index finds December 30, 2015 December was a bumper month for property as house prices experienced their biggest monthly rise in eight months, new figures reveal. House prices in the UK grew 0.8 per cent on November, the largest increase since April when prices rose one per cent on the previous month, with the average price coming in at £196,999 at the [...]
House prices: The UK’s homes rose in value by £1.4bn a day in 2015 December 30, 2015 Like big numbers? Read on… The UK's homes rose in value by £1.4bn a day in 2015, giving our collective bricks and mortar a total value of £7.76 trillion by the end of the year, according to figures by online property portal Zoopla. That figure is £519bn – or 7.2 per cent – higher than last [...]
The UK’s spending power fell to its lowest in 12 months in November December 29, 2015 It seems the UK's shoppers are feeling less flush, after a new survey found they had £193 of spare cash last month – that's £14 a week, compared with November last year. But while Asda's Income Tracker suggested weekly income has now risen by double digits for 13 months in a row, it was lower than the £17 [...]
Newham is the UK’s top house price performer for 2015 December 28, 2015 Newham has taken the accolade for the UK's top house price performer in 2015, according to new research by Halifax. The borough recorded the biggest percentage rise in house prices among all major UK towns and cities over 2015, with the average house price in the borough rising 22 per cent against the previous year. The average [...]
Boxing Day sales 2015: UK footfall soars to defy online sales which dominated Black Friday and Christmas Eve December 27, 2015 Black Friday and pre-Christmas shopping may have been a letdown for brick and mortar retailers, but Boxing Day certainly delivered. In-store shopper traffic soared by 3.36 per cent year-on-year on 26 December, according to data from retail intelligence firm FootFall, showing that the rise is mainly driven by an increase in shopping centre footfall counteracting [...]
World’s largest economies: UK could overtake Germany and Japan to become world’s fourth biggest economy December 26, 2015 The strength of the UK's economic performance has been underlined as it was named the fifth biggest economy in the world for the second successive year and forecast to eventually overtake Japan and Germany. In its annual league table of world economies, the Centre for Economic and Business Research (Cebr) forecast the UK to become "the best performing economy" [...]
Mortgage approvals dip in November – but are still 25 per cent higher than the same period last year December 24, 2015 It may be hours before the great Christmas getaway begins, but the British Bankers' Association (BBA) hasn't let that get in the way of bringing you Serious News. This morning the organisation said the number of loans dished out to homebuyers has dipped, falling to 44,960 in November, down from 45,463 in October. No festive frivolities there… The [...]