General Election 2015: How Tony Blair presided over the biggest rise in UK house prices in history April 22, 2015 There's no easy way to say this, but Tony Blair, rather than the likes of Margaret Thatcher or David Cameron, was the Prime Minister who presided over the highest-ever rise in property prices, it turns out. Research from Knight Frank suggests house prices rose a staggering 211.3 per cent during Blair's premiership – higher than [...]
UK house prices: Buyer interest surges in March despite looming General Election April 22, 2015 Home buyer demand surged in the UK during March, as almost 22 per cent more people were hunting for houses than in the previous month. The uncertainty around next month's General Election was expected to dampen demand in the market, but the figures show healthy interest – in line with seasonal trends in a non-election [...]
London house prices: Havering, Croydon and Bromley are London’s Help to Buy hotspots April 22, 2015 This month is the second anniversary of the launch of Help to Buy, the scheme which allows cash-strapped house buyers to borrow 95 per cent mortgages. The scheme may be one of the government's most controversial policies, but it has also been one of its most popular. In fact, new research suggests that, as of [...]
UK house prices: Babies born today will pay £3.4m for their first home April 21, 2015 If the current generation of first-time buyers thought they had it bad, spare a thought for the children born today, who will have to pay several million pounds for their first home, research has revealed. A study by online estate agent Emoov found that, given house price inflation – which has averaged out at 8.6 [...]
UK property prices: Half of parents worried their children will never own a house without inheritance April 21, 2015 Even with house price growth more muted than it was, first-time buyers are still finding it hard to climb the first rung on the property ladder. Now research has shown that parents are so worried about their offspring's inability to buy a house that they think the only way they will be able to buy [...]
London house prices: Capital homes increasingly unaffordable April 19, 2015 Homes in London have become drastically less affordable under the current government, according to a new report published today. A consumer’s capacity to buy a home in the capital is now 77 per cent worse than it was in 2010, according to the latest Ability to Buy index from the estate agent Hamptons International. London [...]
UK house prices hit new high, but growth slows to its lowest for 16 months as London feels the effects of stamp duty changes and mansion tax fears April 17, 2015 UK house price growth is at its slowest since 2013, despite the cost of buying a house hitting record highs. The capital was particularly affected, as changes in stamp duty and fears of a mansion tax hit sales. The figures According to figures from LSL property Services, March 2015 had the smallest annual rise in [...]
Brits spent £7.5bn on moving house last year: That’s £23,000 in stamp duty, surveyors and other fees if you live in London April 17, 2015 The average cost of moving house in London shot up to £23,000 last year – that's higher than the average (median) UK annual wage. The figures The price of moving house in the UK rose by £431 last year, bringing the average total figure to £8,698 in 2014, up from £8,258 in 2013 and £7,552 in [...]
UK house prices at record high as growth slows amid General Election uncertainty April 16, 2015 The average price of a property across England and Wales was at a new record last month, despite March seeing the smallest annual change in house prices since November 2013. A house now costs on average of £275,123. This is a 5.6 per cent annual rise, equating to £14,620. However, in London and the south [...]
UK house prices: Rental growth is now outpacing house price increases April 16, 2015 The price of renting a home in the UK has risen 10 per cent in the last 12 months – faster than the rate of growth for buyers. New data from HomeLet shows that the average rental cost rose in the 12 months to March in 11 of the 12 UK regions, with only Wales [...]