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20th January 2017
House price inflation picked up to 6.7% in the year to the end of November, according to the ONS, which said the average price of a UK home in November was £218,000, up £2,000 on October’s average and £14,000 higher than November 2015. England’s average property is now valued at £234,000; regionally, East of England saw average prices climb 10.5% in the year to November, while those in London were up 8.1% and the South East of England saw a 7.2% increase.
The Daily Telegraph (17/01/2017)
20th January 2017
The Guardian looks at responses to Prime Minister Theresa May's speech setting out her plans for Brexit, citing comment from Rics head of policy Jeremy Blackburn, who said: “While clarity is undoubtedly welcome, one thing is clear, a loss of access to the EU's skilled workforce has the potential to slowly bring the UK's property and construction sector to a standstill."
The Guardian (17/01/2017)
13th January 2017
New research reported in the Evening Standard has identified the London neighbourhoods which have seen the most significant increase in asking prices in the past 10 years. Wapping leads the way, with an average asking price of £901,031, an 154.8% increase. The area’s resurgence is epitomised by the £1.5bn transformation of the 15-acre site that once hosted News International’s headquarters, into London Dock, which will eventually provide 1,800 new homes, along with a new arts and shopping quarter. The east London enclave is followed by Brockley (£528,016); Clapton (£639,861); St John's Wood (£1,473,962); Notting Hill (£1,689,501); New Cross (£488,981); South Lambeth (£901,035); South Tottenham (£494,528); Camden (£1,130,722); and Whitechapel (£642,420).
Evening Standard (11/01/2017)
13th January 2017
London Mayor Sadiq Khan has announced that all parts of the City Hall group will offer employees help with renting a flat and urged businesses to follow suit. The campaign, Fifty Thousand Homes, calls on employers to offer staff housing advice and help to buy through mortgage guarantees or loans, preferential lending terms for mortgages and to consider providing quality rental accommodation. More than 100 employers including Mace Group and Grant Thornton UK LLP have signed up, and the campaign is backed by business groups, including London First, and housing charity Shelter.
Evening Standard (10/01/2017)
13th January 2017
House price growth has hit its highest level since March, according to the Halifax house price index, as a lack of supply propped up the market since the EU referendum. On a monthly basis, the index showed prices increased by 1.7% last month, up from 0.6% in November, with the three-month average of year-on-year house price growth hitting 6.5% last month, up from 6%. The figures show that the average house now costs £222,484. Halifax's data showed Luton recorded the highest year-on-year growth, at 19.4%, followed by Barking and Dagenham in east London, where house prices increased 18.6% last year. Martin Ellis, Halifax's housing economist, has voiced a belief that 2017 will see "reduced housing demand" due to rising inflation and squeezed wages.
The Independent (09/01/2017)
13th January 2017
The Guardian analyses research from consumer body Which? that shows most under-30s in London can't afford the minimum sum required for shared ownership homes. Researchers looked at 525 shared ownership properties within a 20-mile radius of central London last November and found that those buying a minimum share using a 95% mortgage would need to earn at least £37,300 a year - considerably more than the average £27,900 earned by under-30 Londoners. Across the capital, no homes in Zone 1 were affordable for the average person under 30, while 10% were in Zone 2. Zone 4 proved a better option, with 42% affordable.
Source: The Guardian (07/01/2017)