The crunch has made foreign dream homes far more affordable September 30, 2010 TOUGH economic times have opened the door for a new generation of property investment. Tumbling prices in both the UK and abroad have actually made this investment option more accessible than it was prior to the credit crunch. Nick Clark, managing director of the Property Investment Show, says: “House prices in England and Wales suffered [...]
Paragon set for a return to buy-to-let September 28, 2010 PARAGON, the buy-to-let mortgage provider, has returned to new lending after pulling out two years ago due to the global economic turmoil. Paragon chief executive Nigel Terrington said the company would specifically target professional landlords – an area of the market which it believes is underserved by buy-to-let lenders. Terrington said there were two primary [...]
China bid for UB gives Cable a headache September 27, 2010 United Biscuits could be the next iconic British firm to be snapped up by a foreign buyer, posing a fresh problem for embattled business secretary Vince Cable. China’s Bright Food Group has its eye on a $3.2bn (£2bn) bid for the maker of Jaffa Cakes and McVities biscuits. Cable has campaigned for tougher regulation to [...]
Britons hit by uncertainty September 26, 2010 BRITISH households felt their wallets stretched even further in September as a combination of rampant inflation, job market uncertainty and static incomes caused a marked deterioration in households’ finances, the Markit Household Finance Index will show today. Markit’s survey revealed that 27 per cent of households reported a deterioration in September compared to just 7 [...]
The housebuilding chief executive who can see clear blue skies ahead September 26, 2010 FOR A MAN who took over a housebuilder in the middle of a devastating financial and property crisis, David Ritchie, the chief executive of Bovis Homes, looks remarkably relaxed. But it is certainly fair to say the pain has eased in recent months for the firm, even though Ritchie remains in the middle of turning [...]
It’s a landlord’s market for hungry Londoners September 23, 2010 THE period of fear, uncertainty and stagnation in the aftermath of Lehman Brothers’ collapse is well and truly behind us – if you’re looking at the rentals market, that is. Prices in central London are at levels not seen since before the meltdown, according to property services firm LSL. Rents in London rose by 2 [...]
US house prices at 6-year low September 22, 2010 US HOUSE prices fell 0.5 per cent in July to their lowest level in six years, official figures showed yesterday, heaping further woes on homeowners as the end of government-backed tax credits aimed at first time buyers began to bite. The US government had offered first time buyers a tax credit of $8,000 (£5,106) to [...]
Londoners hit as house prices fall September 19, 2010 THE UK HOUSING market dropped back for the third month in a row in September, with London prices now also moving into the red. Figures from Rightmove show that average asking prices across the UK dropped by 1.1 per cent to £229,767 compared with the previous month. Prices have now fallen back by a total [...]
Margins too tight to bear September 16, 2010 THE British dairy market is notoriously competitive, but investors were not prepared for yesterday’s shock profit warning from Robert Wiseman. Although its first-half numbers are in line, the second half is going to turn sour. Full-year profits are now forecast to be £7m lower than thought. A crushing round of price negotiations with Tesco is [...]
CML: Lending weak in July September 13, 2010 MORTGAGE lending in July continued to be weak in what is often a strong month, according to the latest figures released yesterday from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML). The CML said mortgage lenders issued 56,000 new mortgages worth £8.4bn in July, up slightly on June’s figure of 52,000 mortgages at £7.7bn and 53,000 mortgages [...]