When Brent meets Chelsea: How buying property in all 32 London boroughs over the last 20 years would have made a savvy investment April 21, 2016 Judging which areas will generate the best returns over the next 20 years can be tricky even for the wisest property sage. Data from estate agent Knight Frank show that Hackney was the best performing borough during that time, with an annual price growth of 11.9 per cent, followed by Lambeth at 11.2 per cent. However [...]
Estate Agent Wars: Competitions watchdog warns firms over suspected collusion in OnTheMarket antitrust row April 21, 2016 Has the government just hammered the final nail in the coffin for OntheMarket? Estate agents have been sent a warning by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), telling them they may be breaking the law by making "joint decisions" to join the portal and exit rivals such as Rightmove and Zoopla. Those who are suspected of [...]
Mortgage lending rockets in March 2016 as stamp duty tax changes prompt a borrowing spree April 21, 2016 Mortgage lending ballooned in March as landlords and investors piled into the property market to beat a slew of tax changes which came into effect at the start of April. A total of £25.7bn was borrowed for home purchases in March, according to figures released by the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) this morning – 43 [...]
London house prices will continue to grow even if the UK leaves the EU, say homeowners April 21, 2016 Parts of London's property market might be stumbling, but that's not stopping the capital's homeowners being the most confident people in the country that Brexit would not affect their house prices. Foolhardy? Maybe. But according to a new survey, London's homeowners expect to see double-digit growth in their property prices over the next six months – [...]
Mount Anvil profits hit new record high as residential developer targets 1,000 new homes April 20, 2016 London property developer Mount Anvil posted a 25 per cent jump in pre-tax profits to reach a new record of £25m last year, after partnering with other developers to deliver nearly 500 new homes across the capital. The private company, which is redeveloping Keybridge tower in Vauxhall as well as Dollar Bay in the Isle of Dogs, said [...]
What to expect from TSB’s latest results tomorrow morning, one year on from Sabadell’s takeover April 20, 2016 TSB, the challenger bank snapped up last year by Spain's Banco Sabadell for £1.7bn after being carved out of Lloyds Banking Group in 2014, will report its first quarter results tomorrow morning. Earlier this year TSB boasted that more than 1,000 new customers were joining it each day, and that it was beating its own target for customers switching [...]
Rent-to-buy business Rentplus secures up to £70m funding as it aims to build 5,000 affordable homes by 2020 April 20, 2016 A new business aiming to build 5,000 affordable homes by 2020 has secured up to £70m in funding. Rentplus said the funds, from BAE Systems Pension Funds Investment Management, will be used to help deliver its first 580 homes. BAE has approved an initial £35m private placing of an inflation-linked bond for the company with a [...]
Investor confidence defies market rebound, hitting fresh lows while public and corporate bonds turn negative April 20, 2016 Investor confidence has hit a record low for the second month in a row despite a recovery in markets almost across the board since February lows, according to the latest Lloyds Bank Investor Sentiment Index out today. The latest reading reveals that once again broad sentiment lags behind markets performance. Investor confidence may have been impacted last month by the surprise European [...]
London construction activity slows as Brexit uncertainty and planning delays hit growth April 20, 2016 London's construction market suffered a sharp slowdown over the quarter, despite recent government efforts to encourage more housebuilding and deliver more homes across the capital. The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors' construction market survey found that private housing workloads rose at their slowest pace since fourth quarter of 2012, with only 20 per cent more of those working in the [...]
Grosvenor Group warns of lower returns and revenue profit in coming years April 19, 2016 Grosvenor, the privately-owned international property group which has existed since 1677, has cautioned of lower returns and revenue profit over the next few years after posting a 22 per cent fall in annual pre-tax profits to £527m. Revenue profit, the difference between revenue incomes and revenue expenses, climbed to £83.3m last year, from £80.1m in 2014, excluding the impact of property revaluation. Total [...]