UK house prices: Why buyer activity, proximity to Chrismas and the end of school holidays mean today’s the best day to sell your home September 3, 2015 If you're planning on putting your property on the market, get going – because research suggests today, aka 2 September, is the best day of the year to sell your home. According to online estate agent Emoov. now schools have gone back, prospective buyers' minds are turning to the great property search. The research found [...]
2016 London mayoral election: Bypassing bureaucrats is the key to fixing London’s housing crisis September 2, 2015 How would you feel if a property developer wanted to knock down the 1960s council estate next door and replace it with a shiny, new and modern estate with more homes? On the one hand, you will eventually wake up each morning to a rather nicer view (although any chance of seeing the Shard [...]
London house prices: Former Mayfair garage becomes world’s most expensive mews house after £24m sale September 2, 2015 A former garage in Mayfair which once housed 1920s sports cars has smashed the record for the world’s most expensive mews house after being sold for £24m. The four-storey property, known as 43 Reeves Mews, dates back to 1734 when it once served as stable quarters housing servants and groomsmen of the super-rich residents of Grosvenor [...]
PMI: UK construction growth accelerates again in August thanks to cheaper energy September 2, 2015 The UK’s construction sector expanded at a faster pace in August, according to survey data released today. Markit’s construction purchasing managers’ index ticked up to a score of 57.3 from July’s 57.1, moving further above 50 “no change” mark. Higher levels of business activity have now been recorded in every month since May 2013 – although [...]
Mortgage lending increases on low interest rates and rising UK house prices September 2, 2015 The housing market is picking up, with homeowners looking to remortgage to take advantage of low interest rates and unlock some of the climb in property prices. The number of approvals for home purchases was 68,764 in July, compared with an average of 64,186 over the past six months. Approvals for remortgages were 38,042, also [...]
Bank of England interest rate rise threat sends first-time buyer sales to a pre-recession high August 28, 2015 The threat of a rise in borrowing costs led first-time buyers to look through increased deposit costs and indulge in a "summer of white-hot activity" with completed transactions hitting a pre-recession high. Monthly first-time buyer sales rose 4.9 per cent to 29,700 in the month to July, according to an index by estate agents Your Move and [...]
Nationwide figures: UK annual house price growth lowest since June 2013 August 27, 2015 Annual house price growth has slowed to its lowest level since mid-2013 making property a little bit more affordable this month – but this isn't set to last. Nationwide figures released today showed house prices rose 3.2 per cent in the year to August, down from a 3.5 per cent increase a month earlier. On [...]
Bank of England governor Mark Carney’s interest rate rise comments prompted a flurry of house buying in July August 27, 2015 Bank of England governor Mark Carney's suggestion that the rate decision will "likely come into sharper relief around the turn of this year" has prompted a flurry of homebuying, new figures suggest. Demand for houses rose 4.1 per cent in the year to July, and 5.3 per cent in the last month alone, according to [...]
Government’s starter homes programme won’t help London’s first-time buyers August 27, 2015 Londoners hoping to buy their first home will not get much help from the government, according to a new report out today. In the report, Shelter, the housing and homelessness charity, takes issue with the government’s affordable house building policies, saying its flagship “starter homes” programme will fail to help most first-time buyers. Prime Minister [...]
UK housing market: Remortgaging spurred on by Bank of England interest rate hike threat August 26, 2015 Remortgaging has surged as the prospect of an interest rate rise leads homeowners to lock in better deals. The number of people switching to lower rates was 29 per cent higher in July than in the some month last year, figures released yesterday by the British Bankers’ Association (BBA) showed. “Savvy homeowners are snapping up [...]