Autumn Budget 2024: Stamp duty for second homes upped to support first-time buyers Property Chancellor Rachel Reeves has increased the amount of tax Brits will pay when buying their second home to provide support for first-time buyers and those moving home. Second-time buyers previously paid three per cent stamp duty on homes worth up to £250,000. From tomorrow, they will pay five per cent tax. The increase will also [...]
Starmer hands councils millions for housebuilding on brownfield sites Business The Government has committed £68m to unlocking brownfield sites in 54 local authorities as it looks to deliver on its election promise of 1.5 million homes by 2029. Around a sixth of councils will receive money to turn neglected land into new homes, which the government have said will “transform local communities and help families [...]
Bellway profit craters but shares jump on strong look-ahead Business Despite a significant drop in completions and profit, housebuilder Bellway has said it is well-positioned to deliver growth going forward and supports the Government’s plan to unlock housing construction. Shares surged by more than eight per cent in early trades. Bellway told markets this morning that profit fell by 44.6 per cent in the year [...]
Stamp duty: TSB and Shawbrook join mortgage lender call for reform before Budget October 15, 2024 A group of mortgage lenders and brokers have called on the government to refund stamp duty for homeowners in a bid to accelerate energy efficiency improvements in UK housing and reduce national emissions. TSB, along with Shawbrook, the Mortgage Advice Bureau (MAB) and Leeds Building Society, have called on the government to provide more support [...]
Vistry shares plunge after builder warns on profit October 8, 2024 Vistry shares plunged around a third in early deals this morning after the company issued an unscheduled profit warning. The share price has since stabilised, but it remains down by just over 24 per cent. The group has warned that its profit will be £80m lower than expected this year due to issues with some [...]
Grainger: Higher rents and acquisitions support double-digit growth October 7, 2024 Residential property giant Grainger has reported double digit rental income growth due to high demand in the rental market and continued price increases. Rental growth for the year was 6.3 per cent, down from 7.7 per cent in 2023. The property giant noted that rents had been supported by a tight housing market, with “rapidly [...]
Zoopla: Property portal returns to the black after cutting almost 100 jobs September 20, 2024 Online property portal Zoopla returned to profit during its latest financial year as its sales passed the £90m mark. Newly-filed accounts with Companies House have revealed that the business swung to a pre-tax profit of £18.7m in 2023, having reported a pre-tax loss of £6.2m in the prior 12 months. The results also show that [...]
MJ Gleeson: Planning setbacks hit profit September 18, 2024 Housebuilder MJ Gleeson has blamed planning setbacks in the UK for a decline in operating profit. Overall revenue at Gleeson rose by 5.2 per cent from £328.3m to £345.3m, although profit before tax fell by 21.3 per cent to £24.9m. The company – split into a land division and homebuilding division – said that Gleeson [...]
Value of mortgages in arrears hits highest level since 2014 – Bank of England September 10, 2024 Mortgage holders are continuing to feel the pain from the Bank of England’s efforts to combat inflation, according to new figures. Data released by the Bank showed that the value of outstanding mortgages in arrears hit £21.9bn in the second quarter of this year, the highest figure since 2014. This was a 32 per cent [...]
There’s a hidden carbon cost to the government’s housing targets August 15, 2024 But an innovative use of cement could help reduce the construction sector’s emissions, writes Dalraj Nijjar