London house prices barely slowing in 2014 December 10, 2013 HOUSE prices in the capital will continue to soar next year, rising by up to seven per cent, estate agent Marsh and Parsons predicted yesterday. The agency has 18 buyers on its books for every prime London property, well up on the 13.5 a year ago and a level which will keep the market rising. [...]
UK must build 1.5m new homes November 6, 2013 Think tank calls for huge construction drive over next five years THE NEXT government must commit to build 1.5m homes by 2020 to stem an emerging social and economic crisis, according to a report released today. Westminster think tank Policy Exchange has calculated that the UK desperately needs to build 300,000 houses every year between [...]
Buoyant Britain: Growth forecasts rise November 5, 2013 Growth forecasts rise as services improve at best rate in 16 years UK SERVICES posted their strongest growth in over 16 years during October, with the economy’s biggest sector showing no signs of slowing down as the fourth quarter kicked off. A major survey of firms revealed yesterday suggested that the economy could grow by [...]
Mortgage deals strike a four year high in August September 24, 2013 THE SURGING housing market has pushed mortgage lending to a four-year peak, according to the British Bankers’ Association (BBA), while lending to businesses remains anaemic. The BBA said that last month its members approved 38,228 mortgages, an increase of just over 25 per cent from the same month last year, highlighting the recent boost to activity [...]
Winners and losers from the great bond market crash of 2013 September 5, 2013 DON’T say you weren’t warned. The great bond market crash is upon us and it has further to go. The cost at which the US, UK and some other governments can borrow is shooting up, with the 10-year gilt and the 10-year Treasury bond both breaching the symbolic 3 per cent yesterday. Mark Carney and [...]
Buyers flock to market but supply shortage hits sales August 18, 2013 IN THE year to July, the number of first-time buyers in London rose by an astonishing 109.1 per cent. According to information released today by estate agent Haart, there has been a 27.9 per cent rise in new buyers across the country, and a 60.3 per cent increase in London alone. Despite this surge in [...]
London housing bubble inflates further August 16, 2013 LONDON house prices soared to more than 12-times the average income in June, official figures showed yesterday, as economists warned the boom could prove unsustainable. Government policies to keep interest rates low and help first time buyers onto the property ladder are pumping up a bubble, analysts said. The average price in London shot up [...]
London housing bubble inflates further August 13, 2013 LONDON house prices soared to more than 12-times the average income in June, official figures showed yesterday, as economists warned the boom could prove unsustainable. Government policies to keep interest rates low and help first time buyers onto the property ladder are pumping up a bubble, analysts said. The average price in [...]
Buy-to-let loans surge to 5-year high in fresh boom August 8, 2013 LENDING to buy-to-let landlords has soared to its highest level in nearly five years thanks to strong tenant demand and increased mortgage availability. Lenders advanced 40,000 mortgages worth £5.1bn in the three months to the end of June, up 21 per cent in value on the previous quarter and the highest since 2008, according to [...]
Estate agents: Help to Buy is boosting prices August 7, 2013 THE GOVERNMENT’S flagship scheme to stimulate the housing market is pushing up prices, estate agents warned yesterday, despite new Bank of England governor Mark Carney playing down the risk of a housing bubble. Homes in the Greater London area will shoot up by 6.9 per cent in value this year, according to Cluttons, while annualised [...]