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More money entered the UK housing market in April than at any point since 2007, according to industry group UK Finance, with almost £9bn of home purchase mortgages approved for nearly 43,000 such loans. The number of mortgages was up 6% on the month and more than 11% on April 2018, while remortgaging also picked up - with more than 31,000 homeowners shopping around for a new loan in the month. However gross mortgage lending eased back by 1.4% to £20.3bn year-on-year. Howard Archer, chief economic adviser to the EY Item Club, commented: “April’s marked rise in mortgage approvals suggests that housing market activity may well have got at least some temporary support from the avoidance of a disruptive Brexit at the end of March.”
City AM (28/05/2019)
Users of the Help to Buy scheme could be paying up to £4,800 more than necessary for their property – by buying at the wrong time, consumer website MoneySavingExpert says. The scheme offers a five-year interest-free loan, after which homeowners are charged 1.75% in interest, rising each year by one percentage point plus RPI. But interest charges start to accrue the April after the interest-free period expires, meaning those buying at the end of the calendar year will be charged interest more quickly.
The Daily Telegraph (20/05/2019)
Seven new family townhouses in the Docklands, a real rarity amid the gleaming new apartment blocks going up across the area, have gone on the market as part of EcoWorld Ballymore’s Townhouse Collection at London City Island. The new neighbourhood, on the site of a former margarine factory, is being built in a loop of the River Lea as it flows into the Thames close to Canary Wharf. Spread over six storeys connected by a lift, the townhouses - whose prices start from £1.45m - have vibrant red-brick façades, roof terraces, patios, and private parking.
Evening Standard (21/05/2019)
Transport for London’s investment delivery planning director David Hughes has told a London Assembly committee that a public consultation for the new Rotherhithe Crossing has been delayed, so that a value engineering exercise can be carried out to ensure it can be delivered within a £330m budget. The new river crossing for pedestrians and cyclists between Rotherhithe and Canary Wharf aims to relieve existing transport links and support growth in the Canada Water and Isle of Dogs areas. If built, the bridge will be the world’s longest lifting bridge, at 90m high, and spanning 180m across the Thames.
New Civil Engineer (22/05/2019)
Landlords are seizing an opportunity to boost rental yields as London house prices fall at an increased rate compared to the rest of the UK. House prices in the capital fell by 3.8% in the year to February, the biggest annual fall in more than a decade, according to the Office for National Statistics. Over the same period, house prices across the country rose by 0.6%. Traditionally the capital's high prices have pushed landlords seeking higher yields to other parts of the country, such as university towns in the north of England. However, falling prices in London mean rental yields are on the up. "For prospective investors who have long been keen to enter this market yet have been kept out by high property prices, now marks an opportunity to secure a solid investment at a slightly discounted price”, said Shaun Church of Private Finance.
The Daily Telegraph (17/05/2019)
Residential property transactions fell 0.3% month-on-month in April, according to data from HMRC, though were still up 0.8% on last year. Transactions for non-residential properties increased 9.5% on a monthly basis and increased 7.1% on April last year - showing demand for commercial real estate remains strong despite the ongoing Brexit uncertainty. Brian Murphy, head of lending at Mortgage Advice Bureau, said the figures point to a "degree of resilience" amid political turmoil.
City AM (21/05/2019)