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HMRC figures show that stamp duty on residential property climbed 10% in the last tax year, hitting a record total of £12.9bn, with London homes accounting for 39% of the total. Nationally almost £9.3bn in stamp duty was paid on residential purchases, while £3.63bn was raised from commercial property transactions. Tax on second homes and investment or buy-to-let properties raised £4.06bn. The HMRC data also shows that since stamp duty was scrapped for first-time buyers buying properties costing less than £300,000, 69,100 buyers have benefitted from the concession. First-time buyers in London saved an average of £4,300.
The Daily Telegraph (28/09/2018) Financial Times (28/09/2018) Evening Standard 28/09/2018)
Figures indicate that mortgages rates across the board – for first-time buyers, remortgaging, and buy-to-lets – remain low. Research from Moneyfacts suggests that average two-year fixed rates have now dipped below 2.5%, with deals available for as little as 1.39% - only 0.64% over the base rate.
Daily Mail (01/10/2018)
Prospective buyers looking for a one-bedroom property in upmarket postcodes near a tube or rail station in London need to be earning at least £200,000 a year. TotallyMoney has tagged each station on the London Underground map with the average salary required to afford a dwelling nearby. To live near Knightsbridge tube station requires earnings of over £248,000, or £173,000 for a flat near Hyde Park Corner, Mansion House or Bond Street. To live on the Isle of Dogs requires an annual wage of £86,700 near Crossharbour, down to £67,400 at Island Gardens.
Daily Mail (03/10/2018)
Although all of the larger properties at One Park Drive, a sleek 58-storey, waterfront building overlooking the South Dock on the Isle of Dogs, are now sold out, many others are still available, including one-bedroom flats for £825,000. The Herzog and de Meuron-designed tower is based in the Wood Wharf district, which will eventually host 3,600 private, affordable and rented homes, along with a primary school and a GP surgery. Camille Waxer of Canary Wharf Group says the new site will also host more neighbourhood-style shopping experiences, such as The Lanes, which will host independent and local companies. ““A lot of people want to live here. We’ve been asked about residential property for some time”, she explained, adding: “It will feel different to the existing estate and more like other parts of London.”
The Daily Telegraph (22/09/2018)
A new report by the Royal Mail and the CEBR details the fastest growing areas for new build properties in Britain between 2010 and 2017. Topping the list is Tower Hamlets, seeing a 14% leap over the period. The research also revealed the top 20 fastest growing housing areas by number, with Cornwall topping the list with 17,450 new builds. Further, it shows that the fastest growing type of new housing to be built is now flats, up by 7% for 22% of the market in the five years to 2017 across England & Wales. Only the North East, East Midlands and Wales are the exceptions with detached houses the most common type of new-builds.
Daily Mail (25/09/2018)
A former Tory treasurer has suggested that scrapping stamp duty would be cost neutral, as homeowners would spend more on home improvements. Lord Stanley Fink said that high stamp duty bills are prohibiting even wealthy home movers from spending money on furniture, home decor and extensions. Scrapping or cutting stamp duty on home purchases would lead to a rise in such spending, he said, resulting in a loss-cancelling boost for the Treasury from a bigger tax take via the industry.
The Sunday Telegraph (23/09/2018)