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The "mad rush" to buy properties to take advantage of stamp duty holidays waned in April, official figures suggest. Transactions fell by 36% compared with the record level of UK home sales in March, according to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC). According to property market experts, this was because the Government's stamp duty holiday was initially set to end on March 31st. A total of 111,260 properties were sold in the UK in April, down from 173,410 the previous month, the HMRC figures show. This remains nearly 200% higher than the same month a year ago, when the housing market was effectively closed in the first national COVID lockdown. However, analysts expect interest and prices to remain high. Andrew Southern, Chairman of property developer Southern Grove, said: “A spike in activity ahead of the original stamp duty deadline disguises what is still a strong performance as the housing market continues to benefit from a moving frenzy". |
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BBC News (21/05/2022) Daily Express (21/05/2022) Daily Mail (21/05/2022) |
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Nationwide offered 256,000 mortgage payment holidays and 105,000 payment breaks for loans and credit cards to those who financially struggled during the pandemic. Mortgages remained strong, as the bank confirmed a 95% mortgages return for first-time buyers and home movers. The stamp duty holiday saw many customers taking advantage of the pandemic-induced rule, which saw overall mortgage lending dip slightly to £29.6bn from £30.9bn in 2019. |
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Daily Mail (21/05/2022) The Sun (21/05/2022) The Times (21/05/2022) |
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A residential development in East London has launched new properties in what it calls the final opportunity for buyers to purchase. Notting Hill Genesis has launched new three-bedroom Shared Ownership homes with parking at Royal Albert Wharf. Buyers at Royal Albert Wharf have the chance to buy a share of a home’s value - between 25% and 75% - while paying a subsidised rent on the remaining share. “Royal Albert Wharf’s unique waterside position is a fantastic location for first-time buyers in search of a better quality of life whilst still being able to enjoy living and working in the city”, said James Munson, head of marketing at Notting Hill Genesis. “Its vibrant new community and relaxed atmosphere makes Royal Albert Wharf a great place to call home”. |
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Official figures show that the average UK house price has jumped by £24,000 in a year. The Office for National Statistics said prices rose 10.2% to £256,000 in the year to March 2021. March’s increase outpaces the 9.2% recorded in February and marks the fastest annual climb since August 2007. London saw the lowest annual price growth with a 3.7% increase, while Yorkshire and the Humber saw the biggest climb at 14%. Average house prices rose 10.2% in England, 11% in Wales, 10.6% in Scotland and 6% in Northern Ireland. The biggest increases have been seen on detached properties, as buyers sought more space in response to the pandemic. According to the ONS, the price of a detached home increased by 11.7% in the year. |
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BBC News (19/05/2021) Daily Mail (19/05/2021) Evening Standard (19/05/2021) The Times (19/05/2021) |
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Developers will face new “use it or lose it” taxes for failing to build homes on land that already has planning permission, with Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick said to be considering a levy as ministers look to encourage higher rates of building. It has been suggested that housebuilders could be forced to pay full council tax on all the properties in a project from one to two years after securing planning permission, regardless of whether they have been built. The CPRE has demanded levies on developers who fail to build, with Tom Fyans, campaigns and policy director at the countryside charity, saying: “In the eye of an affordable housing crisis we need a ‘use it or lose it’ approach”. Local Government Association analysis shows that since 2010/11, around 2.8m homes have been approved for construction but only 1.6m have been built. |
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A housing developer is setting up the first Bitcoin enabled community, which he claims will soon be "the norm" in housing markets in the next few years. Managing Director at One Bequia Storm Gonsalves is planning to create the first Bitcoin community in the Caribbean where goods, services and the houses themselves could all be paid for through digital currency. The properties, ranging from £670,000 to £1.6m, can be purchased using cryptocurrencies equivalents where prices are locked in to avoid fluctuations in price during transactions. Mr Gonsalves said he is happy to be "pioneering" the technology and says other developers and countries will be watching how to replicate his successes - stating it could be a very normal thing in the years to come. "There is a lot of wealth in the cryptomarket that cannot be ignored anymore - it's just too large,” he said. |