Mortgage lending hits post-recession high of £220bn in 2015 January 21, 2016 Mortgage lending rose by eight per cent last year compared with the year before, the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) said this morning. Lenders approved £19.9bn of home loans in December, taking the 2015 total to £220.3bn – the highest annual figure since 2008. December's lending figure was slightly down on November, but was 23 per [...]
UK housing shortage hits mortgage lending in December January 21, 2016 Mortgage lending fell in December as a shortage of new homes, higher prices and recent government measures such as stamp duty reforms weighed on the property market. Figures from e.surv chartered surveyors today showed there were 68,218 house purchase approvals in December, down 3.1 per cent from 70,410 in November. E.surv director Richard Sexton, said. [...]
UK house prices: Bexley, Cambridge, Bristol and Bedford among the UK’s hottest property spots, while Aberdeen, Stockton-on-Tees and Bradford are “coldest” January 20, 2016 Cambridge, Bristol and Bedford are among the regional cities vying with Greater London as the top 10 hottest property spots in the country – but Aberdeen, Stockton-on-Tees and Bradford are where demand is weakest. That's according to online estate agent Emoov, which puts the London Borough of Bexley at the top of its index for the last [...]
Oil price: North Dakota Sour worth next to nothing as supply glut bites January 19, 2016 The world is set to drown in oil this year, so it's hardly surprising that at least one buyer is pricing oil around the zero mark. Different types of oil are priced against benchmarks, such as Brent and West Texas Intermediate (WTI), depending on the quality, as well as ease of transportation to a refinery. "It really is the buyers [...]
Private equity firms dine out on restaurant chains January 19, 2016 The restaurants and bar sector was a veritable feeding frenzy of deals last year, with more choice of companies to buy than an all-you-can-eat Chinese buffet. Robust trading conditions thanks to improved consumer spending provided an opportune time for private equity companies to sell long-term investments to rival buyout firms with cash to spend. CBPE’s sale of [...]
UK house prices: Bovis Homes share price rises as it posts record profit January 15, 2016 Housebuilder Bovis Homes has ended the week on a high, with the announcement it made a record profit in 2015. Not surprisingly, the news sent shares up. The figures In a statement posted this morning, Bovis said it delivered 3,934 homes in 2015, eight per cent higher than in 2014. Average selling price increased seven per cent to £231,000. Private reservations increased by 10 per [...]
Britain needs an industrial house-building revolution to tackle housing market failure January 14, 2016 The world is moving from uncertainty to instability. Economic, political and social “flashpoints” include the United States, EU, China, North Korea and the Middle East. While the UK has sensible economic goals – 2.5 per cent growth, 2 per cent inflation, £1 trillion of exports by 2020 and improved public finances – progress is mixed. [...]
House prices: UK outpaced London as prime central property prices dropped last year January 14, 2016 House prices in central London fell by 8.7 per cent last year as higher stamp duty bills hit demand for £1.5m-plus homes, new research shows. Estate agents Your Move and Reeds Rains said prices dropped sharply in the capital’s five most expensive boroughs, dragging the annual rate of growth in London to 5.6 per cent, [...]
London house prices: Your home is paying off your annual commute in around a fortnight if you live in Surbiton, Tandridge, Harpenden, Henley and Epsom January 13, 2016 Have you found yourself grumbling about the ever-increasing cost of commuting, even when your train is delayed/cancelled/diverted for no apparent reason? If you're a property owner, it's time to turn that frown upside down. New research suggests that if you travel into London from the commuter belt, your home is actually paying off the cost of your annual [...]
Barratt share price jumps as housebuilder posts “excellent” first half January 13, 2016 Another day, another housebuilder smugly proving the property sector is where it's at these days. But one analyst was still cautious… The figures The company said it completed 7,626 homes in the six months to the end of December, 9.4 per cent more than last year. The company was receiving 0.66 net private reservations per active site each week – up from [...]