Stamp duty hike: a ‘bitter but manageable pill to swallow’ for UK landlords November 5, 2024 Last week’s Budget announcement raised Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) to five per cent tax, yet household landlords seem unfazed. London-based estate agent Benham and Reeves carried a survey to find out how UK landlords reacted to this hike. Concerns about potential hikes in capital gains tax (CGT) on property investments weighed heavily on landlords [...]
IWG buoyed by workers returning to the office November 5, 2024 Hybrid workspace platform International Workplace Group (IWG) has reported an uptick in revenue boosted by strong growth in its managed and franchised properties. Revenue grew by two per cent in the three months to 30 September, 2024, on a year-on-year constant currency basis, the company told markets this morning. The firm grew revenue at its managed and [...]
UK fund withdrawals reach largest on record amid Budget panic November 4, 2024 UK equity fund withdrawals reached their largest on record in October as investors pulled billions out of markets to escape tax rises in the Budget. Investors sold a £2.7bn stake in funds throughout the month in anticipation of Chancellor Rachel Reeves hiking capital gains tax, up from £564m of withdrawals in September, according to data [...]
Is your business about to feel the Ozempic squeeze? November 4, 2024 Reshaping stomachs with weightloss drugs like Ozempic likely means reshaping some markets (and probably your strategy), says Paul Armstrong Ozempic, Wegovy, and Mounjaro are driving a subtle but undeniable shift in obesity rates across the U.S, showing a 2 per cent drop so far. While it’s too soon to crown these drugs the cure-all, their [...]
How Shared Ownership can help Londoners escape high rents November 3, 2024 If you’re looking to get on the housing ladder then a range of new Shared Ownership properties (some in Zone 1) appeal this autumn Fears of a rise in stamp duty for first time buyers were allayed yesterday when Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced the rise would only affect second home buyers. The news means landlords [...]
How will the Budget impact the prime housing market? November 1, 2024 The Budget was, by and large, a set of fiscal promises for people who rely on public services. So with that in mind, how might the Budget affect the prime housing market, a market exclusively for the UK’s wealthiest buyers? Prime houses are typically defined as the upper five per cent of houses in any [...]
Autumn Budget 2024: City of London avoids ‘fright night’ tax raid from Rachel Reeves October 30, 2024 While Rachel Reeves’s maiden Budget will hike taxes by £40bn, the City of London has been spared a worst case scenario, writes Elliot Gulliver-Needham. The City has issued a cautious sigh of relief after the Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ Autumn Budget failed to follow through on some of the more radical rumours floated over the past [...]
Autumn Budget 2024: Landlords and renters hit by tax rise October 30, 2024 Labour’s Autumn Budget has introduced major tax changes which will impact landlords and renters across the UK. Chancellor Rachel Reeves, as expected, announced an increase in Capital Gains Tax (CGT) on higher-rate tax payers from 20 to 24 per cent, and basic-rate tax payers from 10 to 18 per cent. Yet, the nil rate band [...]
Autumn Budget 2024: Stamp duty for second homes upped to support first-time buyers October 30, 2024 Chancellor Rachel Reeves has increased the amount of tax Brits will pay when buying their second home to provide support for first-time buyers and those moving home. Second-time buyers previously paid three per cent stamp duty on homes worth up to £250,000. From tomorrow, they will pay five per cent tax. The increase will also [...]
Autumn Budget 2024: Taxes rocket by £40bn as employers told to pay more October 30, 2024 Rachel Reeves has hiked employers’ national insurance contributions (NICs) by 1.2 per cent, as she delivered the Labour government’s first Autumn Budget in office, which saw taxes rise by a record £40bn and government borrowing increase. The Chancellor unveiled the rise – which is set to see the levy hit 15 per cent for firms [...]