020 7538 0102
House prices saw the biggest dip since 2012 in April, led by the upper tier of the property market. Rics said a net balance of 8% of surveyors reported prices falling rather than rising, with falls in London weighing down the overall price growth reading across the UK. In the capital, a balance of 65% of surveyors saw prices fall over the month rather than rise - the weakest reading since February 2009. Nearly seven in 10 surveyors reported that sales prices were coming in below asking prices for properties valued above £1m, while 59% said sales prices were either at the same level or slightly above asking prices for properties marketed at £500,000 or less. Regionally, drops in prices were reported in the South East and South West, for the first time since May 2013; Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland saw rises.
The Daily Telegraph (10/05/2018) The Times (10/05/2018)
The scale of London's super-basement craze has been revealed in a study that found 4,650 had been approved in a decade. Around 1,000 gyms, 550 media and cinema rooms, 380 pools, 380 wine stores and 120 staff rooms have been uncovered in plans for huge basements built between 2008 and 2017. In total 112 'mega basements' with three or more storeys had been approved, and 785 'large' basements with two or more storeys, the Newcastle University study shows.
Daily Mail (08/05/2018)
First-time buyers are missing out on £9.4bn of extra cash as fewer than 2% of those eligible are using a Lifetime Isa, research from savings app Moneybox suggests. It says that while 9.5m Britons are potential first-time buyers, only 150,000 have opened the Isa launched in April 2017 which lets savers aged 18 to 39 add up to £4,000 in each tax year - with the state adding 25% to the pot.
The Daily Telegraph (04/05/2018)
UK construction output fell 2.7% in March, according to the Office for National Statistics, the biggest decline since August 2012, driven by falls in both repair and maintenance, and new work, which fell 2.8% and 2.6% respectively. On a month-on-month basis, construction output fell 2.3%.
City AM (10/05/2018)
Developer St George City has launched Cashmere Wharf, a 26-storey residential tower in Wapping designed by architects Patel Taylor. The building hosts 141 studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments, and is part of London Dock, a project by St George to create 1,800 homes where once goods from across the world were unloaded and stored. The site, once home to the News International empire, is an 11-minute walk from Shadwell Overground, where the DLR to Canary Wharf takes just seven minutes; it is also close to Wapping, Aldgate and Whitechapel, soon to be served by the Elizabeth Line. Residents will have exclusive access to amenities such as a gym, swimming pool, sauna, private screening room, and 24-hour concierge. Prices start at £685,000.
The Wharf (28/04/2018)
The annual rate of house price growth edged higher in April, after two consecutive months of decline, according to Nationwide. House prices rose by 2.6% in the year to April to reach an average price of £213,000, up from £211,625 in March. In monthly terms prices rose by 0.2%, after falls in March and February, and the annual rate of growth remains down from 4.9% in April 2016. The share of cash transactions has dipped slightly since the introduction of the additional stamp duty levy on second properties, while first-time buyer levels are back "broadly in line" with pre-crisis levels, Nationwide added. Robert Gardner, Nationwide’s chief economist, said subdued economic activity and the ongoing squeeze on household budgets meant the slowdown would continue.
Financial Times (27/04/2018)