Countryside creep: London homeowners flee capital at record rate August 2, 2021 London homeowners are fleeing the capital at record levels as city slickers pursue newfound housing needs triggered by the Covid crisis, according to new figures released today. Research by estate agent Hamptons shows 61,830 Londoners purchased homes outside the capital in the first six months of this year, the highest number since they started recording [...]
Two-tiered recovery? High Streets struggle as one-in-seven shops sit vacant July 30, 2021 A wave of administrations, closures and downsizing has decimated the UK high street, with new figures out this morning showing one in seven shops are sitting empty – and the problem is getting worse. In the second quarter of 2021, the overall vacancy rate increased to 14.5 per cent across the UK, from 14.1 per [...]
Rush to beat stamp duty deadline drives mortgage borrowing to record high July 29, 2021 A rush to complete house purchases before the tapering of the stamp duty holiday at the end of June drove mortgage borrowing to a record monthly high, reveal new figures published today. The Bank of England said mortgage borrowing hit £17.9bn in June, surging 163 per cent in just a month from £6.8bn in May. [...]
The rise in house prices slows after stamp duty holiday ends July 28, 2021 Property prices have continued to rise but at a slower pace since the stamp duty holiday came to an end, according to the Nationwide HPI report for July. Annual house price growth slowed to 10.5 per cent in July, from the 17-year high of 13.4 per cent recorded the previous month. In month-on-month terms, house [...]
Exclusive: IWG founder and office veteran Mark Dixon on why hybrid working is the new normal July 28, 2021 Office space giant IWG swung to a £650m loss last year due to the impact of coronavirus on working habits, it announced earlier this year. However, founder and CEO Mark Dixon has full confidence in the future of London’s offices, as he sits down with City A.M. for an exclusive interview. Dixon said his company [...]
Converted: London Jehovah’s Witnesses HQ to start new life as film studio July 27, 2021 The former headquarters of the UK Jehovah’s Witnesses in north London will be given a fresh start as a film and TV hub in a bid to tap into surging demand for studio space. Flexible workspace firm Purpose has snapped up the 200,000 square feet site in Mill Hill and plans to transform it into [...]
House prices to surge another £50,000 over next five years July 27, 2021 House prices are expected to surge another £50,000 over the next five years, further reducing affordability in the UK property market, according to new forecasts published today. Estate agent Savills predicts house prices will jump nine per cent this year, driven by the extended stamp duty holiday and prospective buyers rushing to purchase larger homes [...]
London home sellers now get 91 per cent of asking price, but Westminster buyers achieve largest discount July 27, 2021 Home sellers in London are now achieving 91 per cent of their initial asking price, an increase of six per cent on the first three months of this year, data from sales agent Benham and Reeves has found. As a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, some in the market panic-bought to secure properties over the [...]
Exclusive: London Mayor Sadiq Khan welcomes Hongkongers with open arms July 24, 2021 London’s City Hall announced this week it plans to free up £900k to help tens of thousands of Hong Kong migrants to settle in the capital this year. The financial package is part of a wider strategy to help those fleeing the political turmoil in Hong Kong set up home in London. In an exclusive [...]
UK’s first fossil-fuel-free development to be built on London’s South Bank July 23, 2021 The UK’s first fossil-fuel-free major property development is set to be built in London and will be worth some £2.5bn. The new South Bank neighbourhood, by property developer Native Land, will see the 1.4m sq ft space known as Bankside Yards be built with zero emissions in operation. It includes more than 350,000 sq ft [...]