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Gross mortgage lending in the UK in April reached £20.4bn, 13.3% higher than a year earlier. The number of total mortgage approvals also increased 11%, driven primarily by remortgage approvals which were almost 30% higher than a year earlier and 11% up on the previous month, according to figures from UK Finance. However the data confirmed home buying was down 9.4% on the previous year, representing the fifth lowest level in three years.
City AM (25/05/2018)
The Royal Albert Wharf housing development in Beckton has been named London’s best residential project at the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors’ 2018 awards ceremony. The development, on a site formerly occupied by a pharmaceuticals warehouse, will have three blocks containing 350 homes, 40% of which will be affordable, under affordable rent and shared ownership schemes. The wharf is being constructed by the Stratford-based unit of Galliford Try Partnerships.
Newham Recorder (18/05/2018)
Research from Lloyds Bank shows that first-time buyers in London pay double the UK average to get on the housing ladder, with the average buyer in the capital paying £420,132 for their first home, while the average first-time buyer across the country pays £210,515. The average deposit paid by a first-time buyer in London is £92,833, more than 60% higher than in 2013. Five years ago 17% of all first-time buyers in the UK were in London, while the proportion has now dipped to 12%. Meanwhile, London house prices fell 0.7% in March according to the Office for National Statistics, with average property costing £472,000, compared to the English average of £241,000.
Daily Mirror (22/05/2018) Evening Standard (22/05/2018) Financial Times (23/05/2018)
UK house sales fell 2.7% in April compared to the same month last year, according to HMRC’s monthly UK housing transactions report, which shows that while the seasonally adjusted estimate of house sales increased by 3.5% between March and April, transactions were 2.7% lower compared with the same month last year.
City AM (22/05/2018)
A report from Halifax shows that flats have out-paced other property types in terms of price growth over the past five years, with values up 48%. Price rises for flats in London were even stronger, with a climb of 54%. Across Britain, the average price of a flat has increased by £75,074 over the period, equating to a £1,251 rise per month. Terraced homes rose by 41%, followed by semi-detached homes (39%), bungalows (38%) and detached homes (27%).
Daily Mail, (18/05/2018)
British Land has submitted a planning application to redevelop a 53-acre site at Canada Water, which includes the Surrey Quays shopping centre. According to the masterplan, the property group wants to create a new town centre and include 3,000 homes. The plans are also expected to deliver 2m sq ft of workspace and 1m sq ft of leisure and retail space. Work will begin next year with the project expected to be completed in 2033; the development’s first phase will provide around 650 homes. Later phases include a 45-storey residential tower and the refurbishment of the 119,000 sq ft printing plant into a events centre with 5,000-capacity.
Financial Times (14/05/2018) Property Week (14/05/2018)