Opinion: First time buyers purchasing new builds with the help of Mum and Dad are missing out on SDLT relief March 15, 2019 Stamp duty land tax relief for all first-time buyers for purchases up to £500,000: this was the pledge made by the Chancellor, Rt Hon Philip Hammond MP, in the 2017 Autumn Budget. Given the usual stamp duty threshold is far lower than the average house price in London, this was a big win for first-time [...]
Property of the Week: The historic lodge of the former St John’s Wood dairy is on sale for £5.35m March 15, 2019 It’s hard to imagine it now, but there was a time when Tesco didn’t even exist and Londoners got their milk from cows that wandered the streets. This lodge harks back to this simpler time, as it used to service the St John’s Wood farm and dairy. There used to be hundreds of milking parlours [...]
Opinion: Post-Brexit Britain should be open to the world and a foreign buyer tax sends exactly the opposite message March 15, 2019 House price growth is at its lowest rate in five years, according to the latest ONS statistics. While Brexit is clearly a contributing factor, stamp duty is the main culprit in the London market. It is therefore highly alarming that the government has decided to press ahead with divvying out yet another stamp duty burden. [...]
New homes: Our pick of the new builds going on sale in London this weekend March 15, 2019 New developments on the market this week Boat Race House, Barnes From £485,000 Enjoy a prime view of the finishing line of the Boat Race in the comfort of your own home at this new riverside development. As well as a view of the Thames, buyers of these new homes will be guaranteed private outdoor [...]
Property Legal Q&A: We believe our new build flat should be ready in three months’ time and have just been advised our mortgage offer has expired. What should we do? March 15, 2019 There are a few issues for you to consider. You do not say whether you have received formal notification from the developer requiring you to complete in three months. Usually, a contract for the purchase of a property not-yet-built will contain a procedure stating that completion is on notice i.e. the developer will notify you [...]
UK house prices: Ongoing Brexit uncertainty will hurt housing market, says RICS March 14, 2019 UK house prices will continue to plunge this year as prolonged Brexit uncertainty weighs on the market, according to the latest forecasts. Read more: UK house prices: Experts cast doubt on 'volatile' price hike Buyer enquiries, agreed sales and instructions to sell have fallen for the sixth month running, according to the Royal Institute of [...]
Savills profits slide as it warns of tough year ahead amid Brexit uncertainty March 14, 2019 Property firm Savills has posted a three per cent slip in profit before tax in 2018 as it warned of a decline in transaction volumes over the year ahead. Read more: Savills to hit 2018 targets but warns of uncertainty in the year ahead The figures Group revenue rose 10 per cent to £1.76bn. Profit before [...]
Focus On Stratford: Around 30,000 new homes are planned for the east London Olympic hub by 2030 March 13, 2019 The 2012 Olympic Games may feel like they happened last century, but their legacy lives on in Stratford. Though it resides in Newham, one of the most deprived boroughs in the capital, the host neighbourhood of the Games has attracted a phenomenal amount of property investment in both commercial and residential sectors. There are currently [...]
Property developer Weston buys Watford Laundry Factory for £85m March 12, 2019 Property developer Weston Homes has bought the historic Watford Laundry Factory for £85m as it begins work on a new residential development. The company will transform the site into a new scheme providing 227 new homes and a new commercial facility. The Watford Laundry Factory was founded in 1907 and has a long history of [...]
Lending rises for remortgages but falls for UK house buyers at end of 2018 March 12, 2019 Mortgage lending was up for remortgaging and down for house purchasing in Britain in the fourth quarter of 2018 compared to a year earlier, new statistics by the Bank of England and Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) have shown. The proportion of high loan-to-income (LTI) loans, those greater than four times the value of annual income [...]