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8th December 2017
IHS Markit's purchasing managers' index (PMI) for the UK construction sector rose to 53 in November, smashing expectations, as housebuilders and developers forged ahead. Business activity rose at the strongest rate since June, IHS Markit said, while new orders and employment numbers also increased by their most in five months. Housebuilding rose to 56.6 in November, its highest level since June. Meanwhile the commercial construction index remained in negative territory at 48.4 while the civil engineering component edged up to 49.4. “Extended tepid economic activity an d heightened economic, political and Brexit uncertainties are clearly hampering the construction sector,” Howard Archer, chief economic advisor to the EY Item Club, said.
Financial Times (04/12/2017) The Daily Telegraph (04/12/2017)
8th December 2017
Rachel Springall, a finance expert at Moneyfacts, has told would-be buyers that improved mortgage deals may soon hit the market, saying December usually sees lenders launch best buy rates to drive interest and help them hit end of year targets. “While fixed rates are gradually rising, lenders are still launching some decent offers to entice new borrowers,” she commented.
Daily Mail (05/12/2017)
8th December 2017
According to moneyfacts.co.uk, the Bank of England’s November rise in interest rates has been passed on to buy-to-let mortgage holders. The BTL rate has risen by 0.2% since 2 November, the highest monthly rise on record. The two-year tracker rate now stands at 2.43%, up from 2.40% last year. The average fixed rate has also risen to 2.93%.
Independent i (04/12/2017)
8th December 2017
Thirty projects have been shortlisted for the New London Architecture Don’t Move, Improve! Competition. The extension projects have been selected from over 200 submissions of extensions, studios and garden rooms, with the winner to be named in January. Those making the shortlist include a former water tank space converted into a penthouse flat and a patio that turns into a reflecting pool.
Evening Standard (06/12/2017)
1st December 2017
The Evening Standard examines the transformation of Canada Water, just a single Tube stop from Canary Wharf. Transport for London is working on plans for a new pedestrian bridge across the Thames linking the Isle of Dogs with Rotherhithe, to go with the existing underground and riverbus services, in anticipation of an influx of new residents; the first major development to come is British Land’s 46-acre site located between South Park and Russia Dock Woodland, with 650 homes to be completed in the first phase. If planning permission is granted, work will begin in 2019, with the first residents moving in 2021. For those who can’t wait that long, London Square Canada Water, which overlooks a central courtyard garden and enjoys splendid views of Canary Wharf, offers two-bedroom flats for up to £1.2m, while similar properties can be found further inland at L&Q’s Quebec Quarter, where two-bedroom properties start from £675,000.
Evening Standard (29/11/2017)
1st December 2017
Tower Hamlets Council has announced that its own housing organisation has withdrawn a planning application to build an eight-storey block of flats at the Limehouse Triangle open space next to Regent’s Canal. It is the latest in a series of projects in the area to be scrapped, following on from the withdrawal of plans to build a 28-storey luxury residential tower at Whitechapel Square, close to Christopher Wren’s 1695 Grade-I Trinity Green Almshouses at Mile End Gate, Swan Housing’s project near the George Tavern on Commercial Road, and 2,000 homes at Asda’s Isle of Dogs site, which would have overshadowed Millwall Park and Mudchute city farm.
East London Advertiser (28/11/2017)