Exclusive: Capital gains tax on French properties to soar for UK residents post-Brexit December 2, 2020 UK residents with a second home in France will have to pay substantially more capital gains tax on property sales starting from next year when Britain leaves the Brexit transition period. French tax authorities confirmed today that UK residents will no longer benefit from the EU exemption from a social levies tax and will need [...]
Countrywide rejects £82m takeover bid by rival estate agent firm Connells December 2, 2020 Estate agent chain Countrywide has rejected an £82m offer from rival firm Connells, and announced it has received an improved proposal from private equity investor Alchemy Partners. The company said today that it had considered the 250p per share cash offer from Connells – a subsidiary of Skipton Building Society – but has unanimously rejected [...]
Cath Kidston returns to the high street with flagship Piccadilly store December 2, 2020 Cath Kidston has this morning opened a flagship store in Piccadilly, which will be its only physical branch after the retro-inspired retailer fell into administration earlier this year. The retailer closed all of its 60 UK stores in April, resulting in the loss of 900 jobs, after its Hong Kong private equity owner Baring appointed [...]
Canary Wharf redevelopment gets green light as landlords seek Covid-friendly offices December 1, 2020 Redevelopment plans for a Canary Wharf office block have been given the green light, as property owners seek to capitalise on demand for Covid-19 secure office space. Real estate asset management firm Quadrant and funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management have secured planning permission to redesign 30 South Colonnade in the east London financial district. [...]
Debenhams closure: What next for struggling retail landlords? December 1, 2020 Retail landlords are set to take a multimillion pound hit following the collapse of Debenhams and Arcadia’s fall into administration, and could struggle to fill the space left by closed flagship stores. Many property owners, which have already been impacted during the pandemic due to a spike in retail restructurings and renegotiated rents, will lose [...]
Mortgage approvals jump to 13-year high as pandemic prompts house moves November 30, 2020 Mortgage approvals jumped last month as the coronavirus pandemic, and support measures such as the stamp duty holiday, prompted more people to move home. The number of mortgage approvals for house purchase reached 97,500 in October, compared to 92,100 the previous month, reaching the highest level since September 2007. Approvals were 33 per cent higher [...]
Housing market confidence cools in November November 30, 2020 Confidence in the UK housing market cooled in November, with fewer people thinking that their property increased in value compared to last month. Bankers Halifax said that just 14 per cent of people surveyed said that they believed their home had become more valuable this month, compared with 17 per cent in September and October. [...]
Evergrande Property ‘prices at lower end’ in $1.8bn Hong Kong IPO November 26, 2020 Evergrande Property Services Group – part of China’s second-biggest property developer – reportedly achieved the lower end of expectations to raise $1.8bn in its major Hong Kong IPO. The public offering priced at HK$8.80 (85p) per share, according to sources who spoke to Reuters. The marketed range was HK$8.50 to HK$9.75. It comes with Evergrande [...]
OBR forecasts house prices to fall next year as furlough and stamp duty holiday end November 25, 2020 House prices are expected to fall next year due to the end of the stamp duty holiday and a hit to household incomes when the furlough scheme draws to a close.
Tories call for Sadiq Khan to scrap rent control push after policy ‘failed’ in Berlin November 25, 2020 City Hall’s Conservatives are calling for Sadiq Khan to drop his rent control policy, after new analysis this week showed similar measures depleted Berlin’s supply of new flats. The new study showed the supply of rental apartments fell by 41 per cent while demand soared by 172 per cent within a year of Berlin’s rent [...]