Buy to let stampede not enough to stop mortgage lending from rising in April May 19, 2016 The housing market shows no sign of letting up as mortgage lending came to a post-crisis high for the month of April, despite the buy to let stampede in March. Gross mortgage lending – the amount dished out by lenders to people buying new homes – came in at £18.5bn in April, up 16 per cent over the year [...]
EU referendum: Brexit risks compromising plans to build hundreds of thousands of new homes May 19, 2016 If Britain votes to leave the EU it risks sparking a chronic construction skills deficit, compromising plans to build hundreds of thousands of new homes. According to new research, a Leave vote could lead to a cut in the construction workforce, which would in turn jeopardise plans to expand the UK's housing stock that would otherwise ease [...]
Parliament’s BHS inquiries: Everything you need to know May 18, 2016 Two parliamentary committees will come together for a second time next week as part of an ongoing investigation into the collapse of BHS. The Work and Pensions select committee and the Business Innovation and Skills select committee held a joint hearing last week, grilling the chief executives of the Pension Protection Fund and The Pensions Regulator over the [...]
UK house sales and purchases set to jump by a fifth by 2020 – but will still be below 2007 levels May 18, 2016 UK housing transactions are set to jump by a fifth by 2020, but this will still be eight per cent lower than pre-financial crisis levels, according to a new report today. Conveyancing services provider My Home Move predicts that the number of annual property transactions will rise from the 1.23 million recorded last year to [...]
Property prices are continuing to soar – and it’s not just because of stamp duty May 17, 2016 There's yet more evidence that the government's stamp duty changes forced house prices up in March – but experts are warning that a chronic undersupply of housing will continue to push prices up overall. UK house prices increased by nine per cent in the year to March 2016, up from 7.6 per cent in the year to [...]
Surprise: Asking prices have jumped to new record highs of £308,151 across England and Wales May 16, 2016 In what seems now to be an ongoing trend, asking prices in England and Wales jumped to a new record high of £308,151 on average in May. The "eye-watering" increase is a rise of £1,118 on the previous month, property website Rightmove said in figures released today. The price uplift has come despite a flurry to [...]
Housebuilder Crest Nicholson’s share price rises as it rides the house price wave May 16, 2016 Brexit threat? What Brexit threat? Crest Nicholson proved this morning that housebuilders continue to be on a high – despite market uncertainty. The figures In a trading update this morning, the housebuilder said it completed 1,206 homes in the six months to the end of April, up seven per cent from last year's 1,124 homes. Sales rate per outlet rose four per cent on [...]
Keeping pace with programmatic: Ooyala’s Scott Braley explains how broadcasters and publishers can monetise better May 16, 2016 Programmatic trading is fast overhauling the online video advertising market. According to SpotX, 23 per cent of the UK’s video ads were programmatic last year. By 2020, this figure is forecast to reach 60 per cent. Better access to consumer data is allowing brands and their agencies to choose impressions more carefully and bid in real-time [...]
Warren Buffett has been linked with a group that is looking to bid for Yahoo May 15, 2016 Warren Buffett, the legendary investor, is backing a consortium that is bidding for the core internet assets of Yahoo, according to reports. The head of Berkshire Hathaway, also known as the Sage of Omaha, is reportedly among a group that includes Dan Gilbert, the billionaire founder of Quicken Loans. US news reports and the Financial [...]
Will Brexit knock house prices? Not in prime central London May 13, 2016 In a bid to sway voters, George Osborne is predicting Armageddon in every economic sector as the collateral damage of Brexit. This week he pointed the finger at property prices, predicting a significant dampening if the UK votes to leave. The chancellor is correct that the property market does stall in the face of investor uncertainty, [...]