London rent prices: Surge pushes capital to twice rest of UK for first time July 27, 2014 The cost of renting in London is rising at nearly twice the pace of the UK, reaching more than double the average for the rest of the country for the first time. New figures released today by Homelet indicate that the rents on new tenancies in London are rising much more rapidly than official [...]
London Report: Home lending up but rise in UK prices is slowing July 27, 2014 MORTGAGE approvals figures appear likely to show the housing market is moving again, after tough new MMR loan tests slowed lending figures. However, house price data due on Thursday suggests prices may not be soaring as much as earlier this year. They are expected to have risen 0.5 per cent month-on-month in July – the [...]
Don’t be gloomy – but there are still risks to the strong UK recovery July 27, 2014 Friday’s GDP data took us past a very symbolic landmark. The level of output in the UK is now slightly above its pre-recession peak. However, we should bear in mind that the UK population has risen by more than 4 per cent since early 2008. Average income per person is therefore still some way below [...]
Global Innovation Index: Britain’s won a silver medal – even without a Google July 27, 2014 Apart from the risk of shocks from geopolitical crises, the outlook for the economy looks a whole lot brighter than it has for a long time. Friday’s UK GDP figures are the latest in a steady stream of good news, but this doesn’t need to be the only thing to brighten your Monday morning: the [...]
London house prices: Growth slumps July 25, 2014 The boom might be ending: London House Prices have stagnated in July, recording their first almost growth-free month since December 2012. According to data from Hometrack – which is a survey rather than indexed data – prices in the capital were unchanged at zero per cent for July, down from 0.5 per cent in June and 0.6 per cent [...]
Canary Wharf sets its sights on becoming residential landlord July 24, 2014 The boss of Canary Wharf Group said yesterday that government attempts to pour cold water on the housing market would do little to ease the UK’s housing crisis as the group prepares to make a push into residential. Sir George Iacobescu said that while the Bank of England had “tightened the screws on finance…it doesn’t [...]
London property market: So you think you know Chelsea? July 24, 2014 Everyone thinks they know Chelsea. Even if you don’t live there, you have an idea of it. The term Sloane Ranger was used in the 80s to describe a certain breed of socialite that lingered around the King’s Road, and reality TV show Made in Chelsea has brought the stereotype back into the public eye. [...]
London has the third most millionaires in the world after Tokyo and New York July 23, 2014 More than a quarter of a million Londoners are dollar millionaires, even when you exclude the value of their homes – making the capital the third most popular city in the world for high earners. London has 281,000 dollar millionaires, not including primary residences, according to a global study from Spear’s and Wealth Insight. That [...]
Interest rate hikes risk a household debt tragedy if we don’t act now July 23, 2014 Beware the economist bearing forecasts. The only thing that’s ever certain about economic predictions is that they’ll turn out to be wrong. But this one’s nailed on: interest rates are going to rise. Hardly the riskiest punt – the current emergency base rate of 0.5 per cent can’t be sustained forever and, as yesterday’s Monetary [...]
London house prices up £43,115 in six months as market soars July 22, 2014 The price of an average house in London has risen by £43,115 in the first six months of this year alone, according to astonishing figures from Zoopla, more than the annual salary of an average electrical engineer. By the property website’s reckoning, average property prices in London have risen 8.2 per cent between January and [...]