Posts with tag: UK property

High-end student accommodation demand rising

Published On: September 19, 2017 at 10:15 am

Tags: student landlords,student tenants,students,UK property

With the new academic year for higher education students starting for many this week, a new report suggests global demand from academics looking to study in the UK is set to rise overall by 2020.

It is projected that there will be an increase of 870,000 higher education students, giving a real boost to high end accommodation in university cities.

Student Demand

While UK student numbers have stabilised, the number of international students are set to rise sharply during the next decade. Previously, the provision of high quality student accommodation was the responsibility of the universities. However, in recent years, most new accommodation has been provided by private investors and developers.

Savills reports that investment in student accommodation in Britain has risen by 17% year-on-year. It is predicted that £5.3bn will be invested in purpose-built student accommodation by the conclusion of 2017, in comparison to £4.5bn last year.

International students can prove highly profitable for landlords and letting agents, with many prepared to pay greater rents for superior quality homes. In additional, international students are great for the UK economy- generating more than £25bn and providing a substantial boost to regional jobs and local businesses.

However, UK guarantor service Housing Hand suggests that one of the largest problems that international students face when renting a property is the lack of a UK guarantor.

High-end student accommodation demand rising

Concern

Jeremy Robinson, Managing Director of Housing Hand, noted: ‘This is a huge worry for students who are not able to pay 6-12 months in advance to secure their rental property. However, students who are unable to provide a quality UK guarantor can, provided they pass the Housing Hand application process, purchase our guarantor service.’

‘The good news for landlords and letting agents is they can access the huge potential market of international students and the previously too risky market of tenants, with poor credit history. We offer letting agents and tenants reduced financial risk and for both, a widening of what is available on the market.’[1]

[1] http://www.propertyreporter.co.uk/landlords/demand-for-high-end-student-accommodation-set-to-rise.html

Stamp Duty is ‘stunting the mobility of an entire generation’

Published On: September 13, 2017 at 10:41 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Property News

Tags: Brexit,house prices,housing market,UK property

Ahead of last year’s historic vote to leave the European Union, then Chancellor George Osborne warned that any such result would lead property prices to fall significantly in the short-term.

In fact, Osborne claimed that any UK departure from the EU could cause UK house prices to fall by as much as 18%. This was good news for many would-be homeowners stuck in the rental market due to affordability issues.

Stamp Duty

The average price of a UK property at the time of the EU vote meant that Mr Osborne’s prediction meant the average residential property could fall in value by over £50,000, within two years of the vote.

Mr Osborne’s predictions seemed extremely bold, given the housing shortage in the UK – and so it has proved!

Alongside uncertainty, another issue playing a major part in prospective purchaser’s attempts to get onto the property ladder is Stamp Duty. These reforms, introduced by Osborne, have contributed to a slowdown in the market and a sharp fall in property sales in London.

Paul Smith, CEO of haart estate agents, noted: ‘Stamp duty is stunting the mobility of a whole generation. Until Government revises this regressive tax we cannot hope to solve the affordability crisis.’

Property Prices

The Office for National Statistics yesterday released its latest house price data, which showed that the average price of a property in the UK is up by 5.1%, or £11,000, year-on-year.

Of course, these figures suggest that the aforementioned ‘housing crash’ seems very unlikely- bad news for renters holding aspirations of owning their own property.

Stamp Duty is ‘stunting the mobility of an entire generation’

Continuing, Mr Smith said: ‘How can economists and industry commentators alike claim we are experiencing a Brexit induced downturn in the property market, when the average buyer is having to pay £11,000 more to buy a home than they did in the month of the vote to leave [the EU]?’

‘London experienced weaker house price growth again in July, but it would have done little to relieve aspiring buyers in the region, as the average house price continued to creep up to the half a million pound mark.’

‘Our latest branch data shows that the number of first-time buyers registering in London is down 27% on the year. Salaries simply cannot keep pace even with more subdued growth, and being stuck in a never ending rental trap is becoming the reality for increasing numbers.’.’[1]

[1] https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2017/9/a-growing-number-of-tenants-are-stuck-in-a-never-ending-rental-trap

Where are the best (and worst) locations for new builds in Britain?

Published On: September 12, 2017 at 9:59 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Property News

Tags: new builds,new-build properties,properties,UK property

Interesting new research from Arygyll Property Partners suggests that a good combination of value for money, house price growth and demand is key to the UK’s best location to build a new property.

Taking this into account, Argyll’s analysis shows that Leeds offers the best mixture. New build homes here are worth 41% than existing properties in the city on average. In addition, new builds have risen in value by 13% year-on-year.

New Build Properties

Data from the report shows that the top 10 local authorities for building new homes were:

Region	Major residential planning applications granted	New build property price increase (YoY)	New build value compare to existing homes	Monthly Transactions compared to average for a local authority	Weighted Ranking
Leeds	95%	13%	41%	380%	1
Birmingham	96%	14%	40%	373%	2
Cornwall	80%	11%	8%	355%	3
County Durham	85%	12%	59%	244%	4
Wiltshire	84%	14%	29%	215%	5
Bradford	94%	11%	42%	201%	6
City of Bristol	91%	13%	12%	180%	7
Manchester	95%	13%	23%	153%	8
East Riding of Yorkshire	87%	12%	41%	145%	9
Liverpool	97%	11%	55%	139%	10

Brian Markovitz, Director of Argyll Property Partners, observed: ‘Developers should head to Leeds if they’re looking to build homes in England. Property values for new builds in the city are seeing double-digit growth as increasing employment drives demand for homes. The significant gap in the price of new homes compared to existing properties means there are healthy profits to be made, while the high transaction figures suggest homes should be relatively easy to buy and sell.’

‘Leeds City Council is also one of the best for encouraging house building, approving almost all of the major applications it receives. Major new developments such as the Seacroft site in the east of the city suggest many are already discovering the opportunities Leeds has to offer for house builders,’ he continued.[1]

Where are the best (and worst) locations for new builds in Britain?

Worst New Build Regions

On the other hand, Surrey Heath in South-East England was found to be the least attractive location for new build homes. High property values in Surrey mean that developers have to pay a premium price to ensure a site, in comparison to other regions of the country.

The worst 10 local authorities for building new homes were found to be:

Region	Major residential planning applications granted	New build property price increase (YoY)	New build value compare to existing homes	Monthly Transactions compared to average for a local authority	Weighted Ranking (out of 324)
Surrey Heath	75%	7.24	-23%	-52%	324
Hambleton	75%	4.44	24%	-55%	323
Epsom and Ewell	38%	8.64	12%	-50%	322
Ribble Valley	86%	2.69	49%	-66%	321
Richmondshire	85%	4.22	35%	-64%	320
Pendle	77%	0.96	62%	-43%	319
Spelthorne	50%	9.27	-1%	-41%	318
Three Rivers	67%	6.89	30%	-58%	317
Hammersmith and Fulham	80%	5.23	-2%	-17%	316
Islington	79%	6.86	-2%	-31%	315

Mr Markovitz concluded by saying: ‘For developers, Surrey Heath doesn’t appear to be the best location for new builds. The higher land values in the area mean that profit margins will be squeezed. Despite Surrey Heath’s proximity to London, the large amount of Green Belt land in the area means home sales are also significantly lower than the average for a local authority. Renovating an existing home may yield better returns for anyone looking to invest in Surrey Heath. It’s also noticeable that two London boroughs feature close to the bottom as Stamp Duty, high land values and a decline in transactions combine to hamper Prime Central London’s attractiveness to developers.’[1]

[1] http://www.propertyreporter.co.uk/property/where-are-the-best-and-worst-locations-in-the-uk-to-build-new-homes.html

UK property prices set to rise by 50% in next 10 years

Published On: September 1, 2017 at 1:41 pm

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Property News

Tags: Brexit,house prices,property prices,UK property

Interesting new research has revealed that Britain’s property market is set to be resilient in the face of ongoing Brexit uncertainty.

The investigation conducted by eMoov suggests that property prices are set to rise by over 50% during the next 10 years.

Price Rises

Analysis from eMoov suggests that UK house prices have risen by 0.37% per month on average since the EU referendum, in comparison to 0.67% per month on average between June 2015 and 2016.

Data from the report indicates that if values carry on rising at 0.37% per month, the average UK house price would still reach £34,757 in the next decade. This is a rise of 56%.

Using data from the Land Registry, the firm applied the present rate of growth to the current average house price up until 2027 in order to assess the new data.

It then calculated the total percentage difference between the current and future average house price in order to rank each city on the highest overall growth rate.

Nottingham comes out on top for price growth since the Brexit vote, with prices rising by 0.8% per month on average. If this was to continue, the average house price would increase 160% from £133,215 to £346,592 by 2027. Glasgow has seen values increase by 0.7% a month since the start of June last year, which was the second highest.

Oxford and Cardiff have also seen strong price rises since the Brexit vote.

UK property prices set to rise by 50% in next 10 years

Growth

Even those cities that have seen the smallest house price growth since the EU referendum vote would still see decent increases. Newcastle, where prices have risen by an average of just 0.07% on average each month since June 2016, would see the current average of £156,753 rise by £13,731 to £170,485 in the next 10 years.

Russell Quirk, Chief Executive Officer of eMoov, observed: ‘With latest industry figures indicating an end to the post-Brexit market slowdown that has seemingly plagued the market over the last 18 months, many UK home owners will be breathing a sigh of relief, despite having still enjoyed a notable annual increase in their property’s value.’

‘Although these recent slower rates of price growth are unlikely to persist going forward, and we are by no means predicting they will, this research demonstrates that the outlook would still be rather positive and far from the apocalyptic prophecy’s many have talked the market down with since the Brexit vote.’[1]

[1] http://www.propertywire.com/news/uk/brexit-brexit-british-house-prices-set-rise-50-next-decade/

UK property listings fall for second successive month

Published On: August 9, 2017 at 11:01 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Property News

Tags: general election,landlords,property listings,UK property

New property listings in the UK have slipped for the second successive month since the General Election, according to new research.

Data released from online estate agents HouseSimple indicates that new listings fell by 1.6% in July, following a fall of 1.9% in June. This suggests that the expected boost to the market following the election has not materialised.

Uncertainty

Many property sellers put off marketing their properties before the vote, but the resulting hung Parliament and continuing Brexit uncertainty is still deterring both buyers and sellers from the market.

Of the 100 towns and cities covered by the HouseSimple Index, more regions saw an increase in supply in July compared to June. However, supply as a whole fell across the country, led by a 30% month-on-month slip in Newquay and 25.6% drop in King’s Lynn .

On the other hand, Dundee saw new listings almost double to 96.9% in July, while Truro in Cornwall saw a rise of 55.2%.

In London, supply fell at more the twice the rate of the UK average during July, down by 4% compared to figures seen in June. Outer boroughs saw the largest rises, with Redbridge and Sutton recording rises of 22.7% and 13.2% respectively.

UK property listings fall for second successive month

Limbo

Alex Gosling, Chief Executive Officer of HouseSimple, observed: ‘Right now it feels like sellers aren’t really sure what to do. There is so much negative press around Brexit and very little confidence in the Government after such a calamitous election campaign; and fear and uncertainty is weighing heavily on house price growth.’

‘We were expecting to see a late spring boost in new properties being listed in June and a stronger than usual early summer, but neither has materialised. Sellers are in limbo. However, it does already feel like a semblance of normality is starting to return to the market, and by the end of the summer the election will be a distant memory so we could well see a strong September in terms of activity,’ he continued.

Concluding, Mr Gosling said: ‘At the end of the day, life goes on, and the message to anyone thinking of selling is don’t delay a move simply because you’re worried what the market is going to do next. If your property has dropped 5% to 10% in value, it’s likely prices will have dropped in the area you’re buying. If you see a place you want, then try and negotiate with the seller to factor in that drop.’[1]

[1] http://www.propertywire.com/news/uk/new-property-listings-fall-uk-second-month-row/

UK property values to increase by 1% in 2017

Published On: May 24, 2017 at 9:35 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Property News

Tags: house price growth,landlords,UK housing,UK property

A new piece of analysis suggests that UK property price growth will amount to just 1% during 2017, as the slowdown since summer 2014 continues.

In central London, where the slowdown has been more prominent, prices are predicted to fall slightly over the course of the year. Looking ahead however, values here could rise by 14.2% by 2022, according to the research from international real estate firm Knight Frank.

Property Price Rises

The firm’s research indicates that prices will rise across Britain by 2.5% in 2018, 3% in 2019 and 2020 and by 4% in 2021.

In the capital, with prices falling by 1% this year, values are expected to rise by 2% next year, 2.5% in 2019, 3% in 2020 and 5.5% in 2021.

Rents are forecasted to continue their steady rise – increasing by 1.4% this year, 2% in 2018-2021 to reach a cumulative 9.8%.

However, the report highlights the uncertainty surrounding the performance of the UK property market, such as Brexit and the slowdown in economic growth.

UK property values to increase by 1% in 2017

New-Builds

A recent slowdown in market activity can be attributed to a lack of available properties to purchase, which in turn has put more focus on the delivery of new-build homes across the UK.

Data from the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG) indicates that the number of new properties being built over recent years has increased. This said, levels are still way below those required to meet current demand.

The report reads: ‘The shortage of housing stock available to buy coupled with ultra-low mortgage rates have put a floor under pricing across the UK, but the question of affordability is becoming more pressing in some areas, especially as lenders still expect sizeable deposits from buyers.’[1]

‘As the UK moves closer to Brexit, any economic uncertainty could have a knock-on impact on the housing market, especially if wage growth and employment levels across the country are affected.’[1]

[1] http://www.propertywire.com/news/uk/uk-property-prices-set-grow-just-1-2017-recover/