Rent on newly-let homes falls for first time in five years after ‘relentless’ rise August 11, 2025 Average rents on newly-let homes have fallen for the first time in around five years, according to a property firm. Across Britain, the average rent on a newly-let property fell by 0.2 per cent year-on-year in July, marking the first annual decline since August 2020, during the height of the Covid pandemic, Hamptons said. Despite [...]
Housebuilders in focus amid Labour’s planning reforms push August 10, 2025 UK housebuilders will be in sharp focus as the sector grapples with construction woes, despite the Government ploughing ahead with plans to stimulate more building. Persimmon and Balfour Beatty will announce their half-year results on Wednesday, and Bellway will provide a trading update on Tuesday. York-based developer Persimmon said in May that forward sales – [...]
House builder blames ‘broken planning system’ and interest rates for loss August 7, 2025 In independent house builder has blamed the “broken planning system” and high interest rates putting off first time buyers for it falling into the red. Cheshire-based Eccleston Homes has reported a pre-tax loss of £1.2m for the 12 months to 31 October, 2024, down from the £2m profit it achieved in the prior year. New [...]
House prices rise ahead of key Bank of England rate decision August 7, 2025 House prices rose at their fastest pace since the start of the year in July, as buyers shake off concerns about higher property taxes and push ahead with purchases. Prices rose 0.4 per cent in June, according to the latest index from Halifax, with the average property price now £298,237 compared to £297,157 last month. [...]
Canary Wharf Group tops 250,000 sq ft of office space leased this year August 6, 2025 Canary Wharf has announced two new major leasing deals, taking the total amount of space leased this year to 250,000sq ft. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA) will extend their office footprint to 60,000 sq ft and extend its lease at One Canada Water until 2035. SmartestEnergy, which helps companies navigate the energy transition, will lease 20,000sq [...]
Construction sector contracts at the fastest pace since 2020 August 6, 2025 Activity in the UK’s construction industry is contracting at the fastest rate since the coronavirus pandemic in 2020 as high costs and tax hikes bite. The sector is vital for the Labour government’s plans for a house building boom and improvements in infrastructure, with the private sector expected to help boost the UK’s economic growth. [...]
Professional landlords to replace ‘hobbyist’ investors August 5, 2025 The much-publicised decline of the small-scale private landlord is leaving huge scope for professional lenders to take their place, in a ‘net positive’ for the market, according to property experts. Private landlords are being squeezed from all directions: A combination of lower tax relief, higher mortgages and tighter regulation has continuously pushed yields down. Amateur [...]
Laing O’Rourke: Heathrow Terminal Five builder doubles profit August 4, 2025 Laing O’Rourke, the construction giant behind Heathrow’s Terminal Five, more than doubled its profit during its latest financial year. The business has posted a pre-tax profit of £41.5m for the 12 months to 31 March, 2025, up from the £18.1m it reported for the prior year. The profit comes after Laing O’Rourke lost £288m in [...]
Housing affordability creeps up amid wage growth and rate cuts August 1, 2025 Housing affordability in the UK has slowly been improving amid slower house price growth than wage growth, as well as a fallback in mortgage rates. House prices grew 2.4 per cent in the year to July, according to Nationwide’s latest house price index, while wage growth was five per cent. The price of a typical [...]
‘Responsible landlords’ urged to stay in the private housing market July 31, 2025 The UK’s landlord association has urged landlords to remain within the country’s private housing sector, warning that their exit could lead to a ‘disastrous’ outcome for tenants. Arguing that private landlords selling up is a direct cause of homelessness, the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) said that “responsible landlords” need to stay in the market [...]