Docklands News

Borrowers are paying off their mortgages before the interest rate goes up again. Nearly £5.1bn was overpaid on home loans in the first three months of this year, while nearly 144,000 borrowers remortgaged over the same period, according to the Bank of England. Last year was a record year for overpayments, with £21.8bn taken off mortgages as homeowners who saved money during the pandemic lockdowns used it to pay down debt. Santander said the amount overpaid between January and April this year was even higher — up 20% on last year to £700m. Graham Sellar, the head of mortgages at Santander, said: “With the cost of living continuing to increase and rate rises more frequent, people are turning their attention to managing their debts".

The Times (13/05/2022)  

Economists have warned that stamp duty is a “distorting tax” that could be worsening Britain’s housing crisis by stifling activity. Kath Scanlon, deputy director at LSE London, says: “Economists are pretty much agreed that this is a bad tax and some kind of ongoing property tax is a much better tax. It used to be the case that the average buyer purchasing the average house would not be liable for stamp duty land tax anywhere … That is definitely not the case now.” The Treasury raised £14.1bn from stamp duty in 2021/22, the highest total on record. The typical property in Britain paid £2,100 in stamp duty before the pandemic but a property price boom has pushed the average up to £3,800. Sam Robinson, senior research fellow at think-tank Bright Blue, says: “We've been seeing quite a few properties pushed into new stamp duty brackets as a result of a rise in house prices”. 

The Sunday Telegraph (15/05/2022)  

Award-winning development Royal Albert Wharf is opening its doors this Saturday (May 14th), offering buyers the opportunity to experience life down at the docks and view a collection of show homes. Royal Albert Wharf is an up-and-coming creative hub in the Royal Docks, and is just a five-minute walk from Gallions Reach DLR. The event is centred around the Parkside phase, a collection of three-bedroom apartments including a limited number of exclusive split-level penthouses available to move in now. Located on the seventh-floor, residents benefit from fantastic views of Northern Square park and beyond to the River Thames. The extra space afforded by these split-level apartments not only provides a great option for professionals working from home, but also creates the perfect environment for growing families. Prices for the three-bedroom lateral apartments at Parkside start from £590,000 and the three-bedroom penthouse apartments start from £680,000.

BDaily (09/05/2022)  

Figures from the Halifax show house prices rose by 1.1% last month, bringing the annual pace of growth to 10.8%. It is the tenth consecutive monthly rise - the longest run since 2016 and leaves prices nearly £28,000 higher compared to April 2021. The price of the average home is now £286,079 and the lender says that, at the current rate of growth, the price of a typical home could hit £300,000 by the end of the year. Greater London continues to show the slowest rate of growth at 6.2%. However, it also has the highest-priced houses in the UK at an average of £537,896. Halifax managing director, Russell Galley, said: “Housing transactions and mortgage approvals remain above pre-pandemic levels and the continued growth in new buyer enquiries suggests activity will remain heightened in the short-term.” 

BBC News (06/05/2022)   Daily Mail (06/05/2022)   Evening Standard (06/05/2022)   The Guardian (06/05/2022)  

House price inflation is unlikely to be quelled any time soon as prices continue to be driven by historically low stock levels. Despite warnings of a recession on the horizon, current property activity continues to be buoyant, according to the latest RICS Residential Market Survey. Its April survey found that the supply of homes on the market and new listings continues to be sparse. “There is little evidence at this stage of house price inflation losing much momentum, while expectations for the coming twelve months have only moderated slightly from recent highs,” RICS economist, Tarrant Parsons, said. 

City AM (12/-5/2022)  

Buyers will need a 37% pay rise by next year to secure lending on the average home as rising interest rates price out borrowers. Remortgaging will also become unaffordable, experts have warned, leading to forced sales and falls in house prices. Lewis Shaw of Shaw Financial Services, a mortgage broker, said: "A lot of people are going to get absolutely clattered when their fixed-rate mortgages come to an end and there is a big risk that house prices will fall. An awful lot of people will suffer from rate shock." Capital Economics forecast the Bank Rate to hit 3% by 2023. In this case, a typical buyer would need to earn £54,260 to qualify for a mortgage on the average priced £270,000 house

The Daily Telegraph (06/05/2022)