Government to force councils to reveal empty properties as part of housing push February 3, 2016 Local authorities are to be forced to publicly disclose all the properties they own as part of government plans to make better use of public sector land and build more homes. Speaking at the Government Property Conference this morning, Cabinet Office minister Matthew Hancock said that through the Housing and Planning Bill councils will be [...]
Top shareholder Old Mutual backs Sainsbury’s bid for Home Retail Group February 3, 2016 One of Home Retail Group's top shareholders has publicly backed Sainsbury's £1.3bn cash and shares offer for the Argos-owner, despite previously calling for a bid of at least 200p per share. Old Mutual, which owns a 3.6 per cent stake in Home Retail, making it the retailer's third largest shareholder, said it regards the latest offer by Sainsbury's [...]
Canary Wharf to outstrip other London office districts in 2016 with strongest rental growth February 3, 2016 Canary Wharf’s gleaming office towers have lagged slightly behind rival districts last year, posting an eight per cent rise in rental growth against 12 per cent in the City and an astonishing 24 per cent leap in Shoreditch – thanks to the cool kids moving in. However, with rents becoming increasingly unaffordable for small to [...]
Why do entrepreneurs move to the countryside? Falling land values sparks rise of rural startups, says RICS February 3, 2016 There is an entrepreneurial revolution taking place it is happening among Britain’s green pastures, a new report claims. Rising property prices in city centres and falling land values have made buying a plot in the countryside increasingly attractive to those outside traditional farming communities, according to the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), fuelling a surge in new business [...]
Poundland launches gardening range with celebrity TV presenter Charlie Dimmock February 3, 2016 Green-fingered shoppers and fans of a bargain rejoice. Poundland has joined forces with celebrity gardener and TV presenter Charlie Dimmock to create a new range of gardening tools, the retailer announced today. The Charlie Dimmock range, which launches on 29 February, will feature 130 lines of gardening essentials ranging from hand tools and heavy duty gloves to hanging bird feeders and [...]
Property market upbeat on lending activity in 2016 despite Brexit fears February 2, 2016 Lenders are predicting an upbeat outlook for the European real estate investment market this year, despite fears of a Brexit and the China market slowdown posing greater uncertainty, new research finds. Cushman & Wakefield’s latest European lending trends report found that more 90 per cent of the 60 leading European lenders surveyed – who collectively provide over €80bn of [...]
Findel dashes Mike Ashley’s hopes after selling Kitbag to American buyer February 2, 2016 Findel has offloaded its replica football shirt business Kitbag to an American firm for £11.6m, putting an end to Mike Ashley’s hopes of buying the subsidiary. The home shopping retailer said it has completed the sale to Fanatics, a US sportswear firm, more than a year after putting the sports strip retailer on the market. [...]
St Modwen to put £620m Nine Elms Square up for sale, paving the way for next year’s biggest land deal February 2, 2016 St Modwen has announced plans to put its £616m Nine Elms Square residential scheme up for sale in what it predicts will mark one of the biggest land deals in the market this year or next. The regeneration specialist and its French joint venture partner Vinci are carrying out a complete overhaul of New Covent [...]
Zoopla poaches Notonthehighstreet.com’s finance chief Andy Botha February 1, 2016 Zoopla Property Group has gone shopping at Notonthehighstreet.com after poaching the online retailer's chief commercial & financial officer Andy Botha. Botha will jump ship and take on the role of chief financial officer at Zoopla on 18 April, the online property portal said. He will take over from Stephen Morana, who announced his intention to step down last month. Botha joined Notonthehighstreet.com in 2013 [...]
