Chancellor Philip Hammond to close Help to Buy mortgage guarantee scheme at end of 2016 September 29, 2016 Chancellor Philip Hammond has confirmed that he will be closing the Help to Buy mortgage guarantee scheme at the end of this year. In a letter to Bank of England governor Mark Carney, he said the scheme's purpose has been "successfully achieved" and he will close it to new loans at the end of 2016. [...]
The number of mortgage completions made through Help to Buy fell year-on-year in June September 29, 2016 The number of mortgage completions made with the government's Help to Buy scheme has fallen by eight per cent year-on-year in June, according to figures from the Treasury. Completions made through Help to Buy reached 3,118, a monthly increase of 27 per cent. Read more: Government Help to Buy Scheme under fire over deposit clauses [...]
Bank of England announces latest details of landlord crackdown September 29, 2016 The Bank of England's crackdown on landlords kicked up a notch this morning, with a set of tough new lending restrictions for buy to let mortgages. Threadneedle Street's banking supervision arm, the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), has long been concerned with the risks the UK's buy-to-let sector poses to financial stability and has again tightened [...]
City of London braced for £2bn business rate hike September 29, 2016 The City of London is bracing itself for a tax hike estimated at more than £2bn when new business rates are revealed tomorrow. Details of new business rates represent the first re-evaluation since 2010. Due to rocketing rents in London over the past six years, businesses in the capital are expecting huge increases for the [...]
Brexit isn’t a Woolworths moment for commercial property in the City September 28, 2016 In the days following the EU referendum, I found myself looking back to one of the seminal moments of 2008: images showing hundreds of Woolworths shops closing their doors for the final time. At that point, no other event seemed to better illustrate the effects of the global financial crisis on the UK high street. With hindsight, [...]
Opinion: The Private Rented Sector needs to be vibrant and consistent enough to cater for a wide range of needs September 28, 2016 There are currently 4.5m privately rented households in the UK – a number which is expected to grow to 6m over the next few years. Popular perception paints this growing band of tenants as millennials finding it difficult to get onto the housing ladder in big cities. But Your Move’s latest research into UK tenants [...]
Holiday Homes: Why the Four Seasons is pouring millions into Hvar, Croatia’s answer to the white island September 28, 2016 Hvar, in Croatia, seems to have it all: great weather, a fabulous coastline and a cool, relaxed ambience. Popular with the island’s young clubbers as well as the high-end sailing set, it’s even being hailed as a potential successor to Ibiza, all of which is attracting increasing numbers of property buyers and investors. It helps [...]
Why more private developers are looking to buy up the air rights above your building and make a fortune September 28, 2016 It isn’t hard to find a property expert claiming the future of the London housing market is up in the air. But there’s a growing band of developers who agree with them, albeit in a more literal sense. Smaller housebuilders have to get creative when looking for viable development opportunities, and for an ambitious few, [...]
Foxtons has moved into The Big Issue’s former offices in Vauxhall September 28, 2016 Foxtons has moved into The Big Issue's former office in Vauxhall after the local council rejected the estate agent's plans for an illuminated shop front. The Big Issue's head office had been in Vauxhall for 15 years. But now the magazine – which raises money for the homeless – is headquartered in Finsbury Park, in the constituency of Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn. Foxtons officially opens [...]
Apple is moving to Battersea Power Station in 2021 September 28, 2016 Apple has said today that it will be leasing space at the Battersea Power Station. The tech giant will be taking around 500,000 square feet across six floors inside the converted riverside power station. When Apple moves in in 2021, it will account for 40 per cent of the development's total office space. Apple will be moving [...]