London house prices fall despite market’s coronavirus recovery August 13, 2020 London house prices continued to fall in July, new data revealed today, despite an increase in demand from new buyers. Respondents to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) UK Residential Survey also do not expect this demand to continue, as wider government support measures begin to be phased out later in the year. Buyers [...]
More than 3m older people can’t downsize due to lack of suitable housing August 13, 2020 More than 3m people in the UK over the age of 65 want to downsize to a smaller home but can’t due to a lack of suitable housing and a competitive market. Ahead of the Autumn Budget, a report by Homes for Later Living called for ministers to set a goal of building 30,000 retirement [...]
Bellway shares dip on low July house sales August 11, 2020 Shares in Bellway fell this afternoon as the housebuilder revealed that sales were down in July despite the easing of lockdown restrictions Private customer reservations were 140 per week last month, down from 162 a week in July 2019. The developer’s share price fell 4.17 per cent as it said it completed the sale of [...]
Derwent London hikes dividend as landlord expects resilient office demand August 11, 2020 Property firm Derwent London this morning said it expects demand for office space to be resilient despite the coronavirus pandemic, saying there is “no substitute” for face-to-face collaboration. The landlord hiked its dividend for the first half of the year as it said it is confident about the future of the role of the office, [...]
Government urged to pay £5bn of retailers’ rents after lockdown August 10, 2020 Retail, hospitality and leisure firms have urged the government to pay up to £5bn to cover a proportion of rents for struggling businesses to avoid further high street job losses. Trade bodies, including the British Property Federation (BPF), British Retail Consortium (BRC) and UK Hospitality, have called on the government to launch a Property Bounceback [...]
We need a London housing strategy that doesn’t ignore the squeezed middle August 10, 2020 The UK — and London in particular — faces a housing crisis. This is not news, and nor has the need for more affordable housing been ignored by politicians. Last week, the government announced an overhaul of planning rules to make it easier to build, while earlier this month, a House of Commons committee published [...]
Rightmove: Demand surges 50 per cent after housing market reopens August 7, 2020 Property platform Rightmove said demand was up 50 per cent in June and July as potential buyers sought new homes after months spent in lockdown. Rightmove’s share price jumped 8.93 per cent to 629.4p this morning after the company reported a bounce in activity after the housing market reopened. The figures In the six months [...]
UK house prices jump in July in post-lockdown ‘mini-boom’ August 7, 2020 UK house prices jumped in July after coronavirus lockdown restrictions eased and the government announced a stamp duty holiday, sparking a “mini-boom” in the property market. UK house prices in July were 1.6 per cent higher than the previous month. House prices last month were also 3.8 per cent up compared to July 2019, according [...]
DEBATE: Are the new planning reforms what’s needed to help alleviate Britain’s housing crisis? August 7, 2020 Are the new planning reforms what’s needed to help alleviate Britain’s housing crisis? James Heywood, head of welfare and opportunity at the Centre for Policy Studies, says YES. The new planning White Paper is surprisingly radical and, though the devil is in the detail, the reforms it sets out are hugely encouraging. Our current Kafkaesque [...]
Property industry reacts to planning system overhaul August 6, 2020 The government has launched a consultation on England’s planning system, as it seeks to slash red tape for new developments. In the planning White Paper, published this morning, the government said it wanted to cut the number of planning cases that are overturned at appeal by creating a “clearer, rules-based system”. Every area will have [...]