Why you should never, ever bet against UK house prices May 9, 2023 Remember the start of the year? “UK house prices have gone into sharp reverse over recent months. And we expect that elevated mortgage rates will result in at least a 12 per cent price correction,” so said Capital Economics at the time. This is from building society Nationwide last week: “While annual house price growth [...]
BNP Paribas first-quarter revenue beats expectations as trading outperforms May 3, 2023 BNP Paribas’s first-quarter sales beat market expectations as trading business at the eurozone’s biggest bank outperformed most of its peers, while it started to reap the benefits from rising interest rates. BNP’s quarterly profit more than doubled in the first quarter from a year earlier, bolstered by gains from its much-anticipated sale of its U.S. [...]
Natwest profits soar but customers withdraw £1bn as cost of living and tax bills bite April 28, 2023 Natwest has beaten profit expectations during the first three months of this year. Natwest Group, which includes Royal Bank of Scotland and Ulster Bank, recorded a pretax profit of £1.8bn in the three months ending 31 March. The total comes in ahead of analysts’ expectations of £1.6bn for the quarter and ahead of the £1.2bn during [...]
London rents surge to record high of more than £2,500 as experts warn of no let up in sight April 28, 2023 London rents have surged to their highest level on record and experts have warned there is little sign of the capital’s housing market improving any time soon, fresh figures out today reveal. The cost per month of renting a property in London climbed 14 per cent over the last year to £2,501, according to search [...]
Taylor Wimpey axed 450 jobs as construction giant sounds housing market warning April 27, 2023 Up to 450 jobs have been cut as home construction firm Taylor Wimpey as it looks to deliver £19m in cost savings. Ahead of its AGM today, the London-listed firm said spring had helped in year to date sales, while severe challenges remained for first time buyers still. In a trading update, it said a [...]
Bank of England won’t cut interest rates until Christmas but UK to avoid recession April 17, 2023 The Bank of England is poised to cut interest rates at Christmas, lured into the decision by inflation falling rapidly over the course of this year, new forecasts that also say the UK will dodge a recession out today claim. Governor Andrew Bailey and his team of economists are tipped to launch the first rate [...]
Wall Street rally lifts tech stocks in latest signal US inflation is cooling, now eyes turn to Fed rate decision April 14, 2023 A rally on Wall Street on Thursday lifted stocks to their highest level in almost two months following the latest sign that inflation continues to cool. The S&P 500 rose 1.3 per cent after a report showed inflation at the wholesale level slowed last month by more than expected. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained [...]
Homebuyers in London forced to wait it out as UK housing market slows down April 5, 2023 The average time to sell a home jumped by 15 days year-on-year in March as the UK’s housing market was impacted by increased living costs and soaring inflation. Estate agent Zoopla said homes in London took the longest time to sell with property taking an average of 44 days, likely fuelled by the soaring prices [...]
How likely is a UK property market crash and what IS happening with house prices? March 31, 2023 This week prospective buyers were hit with another flurry of less-than optimistic reports about the outlook for the housing market; house prices continued to fall in value and mortgage approvals struggled to get above pre-pandemic levels. Nationwide’s report found that house prices fell 3.1 per cent in March, the largest annual decline since July 2009 [...]
Mortgage approvals snap back following mini budget chaos, but net lending at lowest since 2016 March 29, 2023 Mortgage approvals have improved for the first time since August, as the market begins to shake off the stress of the mini-budget, however experts have warned that the housing market will “remain price sensitive”. According to the Bank of England’s Money and Credit report for February, net mortgage approvals for house purchases increased to 43,500 [...]