Stamp Duty revenue generated from property sales in London has the potential to deliver a 91% increase in the number of affordable homes built in the capital each year, reports leading housing association Network Housing Group.

The London Finance Commission’s report Raising the Capital, released today, recommends wide reaching changes to tax raising and spending, including calls for the Mayor to be given control over business rates, stamp duty and other taxes. Continue reading →

The proportion of homeowners who think that house prices will increase this year is also at the highest level for almost three years with three quarters (74%) of those surveyed predicting prices in their area will increase, the most since the second quarter of 2010.

Confidence has grown notably over just the past few months as only 65% of owners predicted an increase back in December. And only 13% of owners now expect prices to fall over the course of the next six months, down from 19% at the end of last year.

Owners in Yorkshire and the Humber are the least bullish Continue reading →

But properties have been getting larger. Since 2001, the mean floor area has increased from 86.9m2 to 91.6m2. The table below shows the increases across different property types. The largest increase has been in detached houses, where the average floor area is 7% higher than in 2001.

Whilst larger new build houses may have helped boost average floor areas, extensions and loft conversions are also likely to have contributed. 26% of properties have been extended since their construction, whilst 5% have had a loft conversion. 16% of properties benefit from additional space through having a conservatory.

85% of owner-occupied properties in England have Continue reading →

An Agents’ survey of companies close to the housing market also found a marked improvement in mortgage conditions over the past year. The easing in credit conditions – in part due to the effects of the Funding for Lending Scheme – was seen by many contacts as causing some ‘freeing up’ of the housing market, with some potential buyers – including first-time buyers – encouraged to return to the market.

However, there were reports that sales were taking longer to complete than had historically been the case, reflecting tighter scrutiny of mortgage applications than in the past and buyer uncertainty in some Continue reading →

35%, equivalent to 8.6 million people, could not pay their rent or mortgage from their savings for more than a month.
18%, equivalent to 4.4 million people, wouldn’t be able to pay their rent or mortgage at all if they couldn’t secure a new job immediately.

The research reveals families with children are in the most precarious situation. 43% could not pay for their home for more than a month, and nearly a quarter (23%) could not meet their payments at all.

In total, 3.9 million British families may be just one paycheque away from losing their family home.

As Government cuts take effect Continue reading →

"They look at the graphs of price increases across central London and believe that the first person who views their property will want to buy it. It’s understandable, especially as there are instances of property selling within days of it coming onto the market. With a comprehensive marketing and sales strategy, very often the best buyer can be found quickly. But in the real world, not all properties sell like the proverbial hot cakes.

"Consider buyer profiles. Increasingly central London purchasers are non-emotional buyers – buying for rental investment or for children or for other specific purposes. And overseas buyers dominate the Continue reading →

Brendan Sarsfield, chief executive of housing association Family Mosaic and vice chair of g15, which represents London’s largest housing providers, will be chairing the conference.

Other high-profile speakers include National Landlords Association chief executive Richard Lambert, Places for People chief executive David Cowan, Paul Brickell, of the London Legacy Development Corporation, Homeless Link chief executive Rick Henderson and Royal Town Planning Institute president Dr Peter Geraghty.

The conference, which takes place from 30 April to 1 May at the Grosvenor Victoria Hotel, comes just under three months after London mayor Boris Johnson outlined his vision for London’s housing market at CIH’s Presidential Dinner Continue reading →

This increase follows a set of impressive house hunter figures in January where an average of 314 house hunters were registered per branch compared with 282 in December 2012. Although February’s market report shows that house hunter levels have since reduced to 289 per branch, the rise in sales might suggest that the heightened demand has been satisfied.

February also saw an increase in the supply of houses, with the average number of properties per NAEA branch increasing from 56 in January to 58 in February. First time buyers (FTBs) entering the housing market dropped slightly from 25 per cent in January Continue reading →

Even the average deposit for a first-time buyer, at £27,984, would take almost 13 years to save.

With property ownership seeming like a distant dream, the research suggests that many renters may have given up on property ownership with just 29% actively saving to put a deposit on a home.

When renters have managed to put money aside they have, on average, less than half the amount (£12,142 vs £29,382) saved by those who are not paying private sector rents.

Those who rent privately are 50% more likely than the average to have no savings at all (25% vs 17%) and a third more Continue reading →

Just over 80% of properties sold between January and March were bought for less than their Home Report valuation – with buyers paying an average of 6.1% below the valuation figure to secure their purchase.
 
The average house price in Edinburgh during the first three months of 2013 stood at £193,443. This marked a decrease of 0.9% from the figure of £195,221 a year ago.
 
As has been the case for much of the last two years, smaller properties within the Capital typically saw larger decreases in value whilst the average price of larger, family homes showed slight growth. Continue reading →