General Election 2015: Virgin Money CEO Jayne-Anne Gahia wants a strong leader who will back business April 13, 2015 ELECTION COUNTDOWN 23 DAYS Every day until the final week of the election campaign, we ask a business leader to say what policies would entice them to vote for a particular party. JAYNE-ANNE GADHIA: CEO VIRGIN MONEY I will vote for the party who has the strongest leader. Leadership is essential for success [...]
Housing market sees a burst of spring activity as valuations rise April 13, 2015 PROPERTY valuations in March have risen by their highest levels since 2007, according to surveyors. Valuations increased 36 per cent on the month and 42 per cent compared to last year, new figures released by estate agent Connells show. First time buyer valuations nearly matched the rest of the market, rising 33 per cent on [...]
Government loan guarantee sees higher average deposit April 13, 2015 THE AVERAGE deposit for a house purchase using Help to Buy rose to its highest number for 10 months in February, according to figures released by the Mortgage Advice Bureau yesterday. Buyers using the mortgage guarantee scheme put down an average deposit of £9,936 in February, up by 9.2 per cent from January’s £9,099. It marks [...]
House prices in London to fall this year for the first time since 2009 as stamp duty hits property prices April 13, 2015 House price growth in the whole of the UK is about to outstrip London for the first time since 2009, a think tank reckons, after stamp duty and the mansion tax combined to scare buyers. Research published by the Centre for Economic and Business Research (CEBR) today suggests house prices in the capital will actually [...]
First-time buyers make the most of sudden stall in UK house prices April 12, 2015 First-time buyers snapped up 21,000 houses in February, taking advantage of a short-term blip in house prices, according to estate agents Reeds Rains and Your Move. That is an 11 per cent rise in the number of transactions on the month. The average first-time buyer paid £143,767 for their property, down four per cent on [...]
Focus on Bermondsey: Take a walk on the south side April 9, 2015 Affordable housing in Zone One is becoming something of a rarity in London, but look just south of the river and you’ll find one area in particular that’s still a decent prospect for first-time buyers looking for a good investment. Paul Bent, sales manager at Kinleigh Folkard & Hayward’s London Bridge branch says young professionals [...]
Maximum excitement on the grand national April 9, 2015 THE WORLD’S most famous steeplechase charges into most of our living rooms tomorrow afternoon and Sporting Index have a range of markets to keep you gripped by the action. A total of 40 horses are set to line up, but how many will finish? Traders are predicting 17-18 will complete the marathon 4m3½ furlong course. [...]
UK property prices: House price growth still falling – but mortgage approvals are up April 9, 2015 Growth in house prices fell again in the three months to March, to 8.1 per cent, down from 8.5 per cent in January, research by Halifax suggested today. That puts growth at a "similar" rate to September 2014 – although it's now "significantly" below July's peak of 10.2 per cent, it added. Month on month, [...]
Three reasons new car sales had their best month since 1999 April 8, 2015 Car dealerships across the country have been partying like it's 1999. They sold 492,774 new cars last month, which represents a six per cent increase from the same time last year, data released today by the Society of Motor Manufacturers has shown. It was the best March on record, as well as the best monthly performance since [...]
UK property prices: Have renters given up on owning their own home? Just 40 per cent of renters are saving for a house April 7, 2015 The UK's renters have given up on graduating to property ownership, it seems – after new research suggested just 43 per cent of renters aged between 20 and 45 are saving to buy a home. The figure has fallen by six percentage points since last year, Halifax's Generation Rent report showed. More than half [...]