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2nd April 2015
Latest figures from the Greater London Authority reveal that nearly 25,000 homes in the capital have been converted from "social" to "affordable" housing since 2012. Housing associations have been quietly switching thousands of tenancies on to higher rates to make up for a shortfall in government funding. Social rents are typically half the market rate, while "affordable" tariffs are up to 80% of private rent, and changing the housing category when new tenants move into a property means neighbours in identical flats can pay hugely different rents.
The Guardian (30/03/15)
2nd April 2015
A new report from CBRE, "London's growing market: the rental revival", reveals that 247,000 households in the city have started to rent privately in the past year alone. A new breed of "lifestyle renters" with middle to high earnings has been created, according to CBRE. They are willing to pay a rental premium of up to 40% for new-build stock compared with second-hand properties and are driving frenzied bidding wars.
The Sunday Times (29/03/15)
27th March 2015
Conservative mayoral hopeful Stephen Greenhalgh has proposed that only people who have lived or worked in London for at least three years should be able to buy new homes on public land in the capital. The policy would apply to residents irrespective of their nationality, and aims to help solve the problem of homes being bought as investments then left empty.
Evening Standard (26/03/15)
27th March 2015
Official statistics have shown that average UK house prices fell by 0.2% in January, to £273,000, following a surprise upturn in December. The Office for National Statistics said that the annual rate of price growth now stands at 8.4%, down from 9.8% in December. In London, growth fell to a 13-month low of 13% in January, down from 13.3% in December and 15.2% in November.
The Guardian (25/03/15)
27th March 2015
The gap between rental costs in London and the rest of the UK narrowed as rents rose in many regions but dipped in the capital last month. According to HomeLet data, average rents climbed by £10 to £899 in February, 9.9% up on the same month in 2014. Excluding London, the figure climbed £20 on January’s average to £724.
Daily Mail (24/03/15)
27th March 2015
Labour’s shadow London minister Sadiq Khan has suggested that town hall pension funds should be invested in affordable and social homes to help solve the capital’s housing crisis. He said London boroughs have funds worth £6bn, expected to rise to £24bn by 2020, which could build 30,000 homes a year - increasing to 120,000 - if it was all ploughed into housing.
Evening Standard (20/03/15)