UK house price growth falls to six-year low in weak start to 2019 January 31, 2019 UK house prices almost stopped growing altogether in January as the annual growth rate fell to almost a six-year low, figures reveal today. The 0.1 per cent growth rate was just a fifth of December’s own sluggish 0.5 per cent rate of annual growth, Nationwide’s data showed, and its worst since flat growth in February [...]
Let it be: London councils should allow offices and shops to be converted into homes January 31, 2019 Amid all the Brexit brouhaha in Westminster it is important that parliamentarians do not forget the many other issues that affect people's day-to-day lives. Bravo, therefore, to MP Chris Philp for reminding Theresa May during yesterday's Prime Minister's Questions that the dream of homeownership remains all too elusive for many young adults – particularly in [...]
Should we be worried about the rise of the Bank of Mum and Dad mortgage? January 30, 2019 In the years leading up to the financial crisis, it was relatively easy for wannabe homeowners to get loans for the full value of a property – otherwise known as a 100 per cent loan-to-value mortgage. Of course, we know the problems caused by these mammoth loans, and since then, affordability criteria have become stricter [...]
London house prices dip over 2018 January 30, 2019 London house prices dipped in 2018, with uncertainty looming large over the capital in spite of double-digit growth across many of the UK’s other major cities. Property prices in London tumbled 0.2 per cent last year, according to new data which underlines fears of a slowdown in activity across parts of the capital’s housing market [...]
Sammy Tak Lee reignites feud with West End landlord over freedom to raise cash January 29, 2019 Hong Kong billionaire Sammy Tak Lee has ratcheted up a shareholder feud at one of London’s biggest landlords this morning, after telling investors to vote against resolutions that would allow the company to raise money through allocating more shares. West End property group Shaftesbury is bracing itself for its second investor revolt in two years after Lee, [...]
Profit slips at housebuilder Crest Nicholson with London market blamed for ‘challenging year’ January 29, 2019 Profit before tax fell 15 per cent at housebuilder Crest Nicholson last year with its chief executive blaming Brexit and slower demand in London. In the year to 31 October pre-tax profit was £176.4m, compared to £207m the year previously, while operating profit margin fell from 20.3 per cent to 16.7 per cent. Chief executive [...]
Hilton steps up UK presence with four new hotels in £200m partnership January 28, 2019 Hilton is ramping up the size of its UK hotel empire after announcing a £200m investment partnership with private equity business Dominvs Group today, as it plans to build three more hotels in London and one in Bath. Among the new acquisitions are two hotels on either side of the Square Mile, with Creed Court [...]
Sharp rise in property values for UK’s top shared office space providers January 28, 2019 The value of property owned by the UK’s biggest shared office providers soared by more than a third last year. In a sign of the growing flexible workspace market, the value of the industry’s top ten share office providers’ property jumped 35 per cent to £13.6bn last year. The new data, released by real estate [...]
Kier Group negotiating sale of its housing maintenance business in a bid to reduce debt January 27, 2019 Kier Group, the troubled outsourcing company, is nearing an agreement to sell its housing maintenance division. The deal, if agreed, would be part of a previously announced plan to shore up the balance sheet of the construction and building services provider by selling non-core assets. Read more: Short sellers release pressure on construction outsourcing giant Kier [...]
Interiors: Stacks of stones and giant pebbles will be filling your living room before you’ve even realised what happened January 25, 2019 There’s nothing like a statement piece of furniture to break the ice when new guests arrive – something quirky and interesting to get conversation flowing. Have you considered picking up a pebble? Pebbles and stacked stones are having a moment in interior design this year. And when you see all the fun ways furniture-makers are [...]