Latest Property News

July 3, 2009

Property auction rooms hot up

by Gill Montia
New evidence of a revival of the UK property market comes from auctioneers who have seen a rise of almost two-thirds in the proportion of properties attracting successful bids. Countrywide Property Auctions says it sold around 79% of all properties going under the hammer between 28th May and 12th June, compared with 49% during the same period of 2008. In addition, 40% of properties ...

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June 30, 2009

Household running costs down 17%

by David Masters
The cost of running a home in the UK has plummeted to a three year low, according to new research from Halifax. A study by the bank found that the cost of owning and running a household has fallen by nearly a fifth during the past twelve months to the lowest level since 2006. Household running costs to the year ending 30 April 2009 ...

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House prices up 0.9% in June

by Gill Montia
Good news on the UK property market, with Nationwide reporting a 0.9% rise in the average price of a home in June, to £156,442. According to the building society, prices have increased during three of the past four months, easing the annual rate of decline to 9.3%, compared to 11.3% in May. The lender's chief economist, Martin Gahbauer, acknowledges that the improvement seen ...

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House prices stable in June

by Gill Montia
A scarcity of housing is propping up house prices in England and Wales, with growth in demand strongest in southern England. So says housing intelligence firm, Hometrack, as it reports that prices remained stable in June, for the second consecutive month. The market is now showing an annual decline of 8.7%, having eased from 9.6% in May and the percentage of post codes registering ...

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June 28, 2009

Flood Protection Scheme grants now available

by Gill Montia
The Government has announced details of the first round of grants under the £5 million Flood Protection Scheme, which is aimed at helping homeowners reduce the risk of flood damage. Twenty five local authorities in England can call on an initial £3 million under the scheme and 593 properties should benefit. The money is to be spent on practical flood protection solutions, including ...

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June 26, 2009

Official figures show house price slide easing to 0.2%

by Gill Montia
Latest figures from the Land Registry show house prices in England and Wales declining by 0.2% in May, with the average property worth £152,497. While the monthly change remained negative, the rate of fall eased from 0.3% in April and the annual rate of decline fell back to 15.9% compared with 16.2% in April. In May, London saw house prices ...

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Charging Orders - the latest threat to indebted homeowners

by Gill Montia
The Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) claims that lenders are increasingly threatening customers in England and Wales with charging orders, in attempts to intimidate debtors into making unaffordable repayments. A charging order is a means of securing an unsecured loan against equity in the debtor's property. In a new report entitled "Out of order" the charity says evidence from ...

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June 25, 2009

House sales up in May

by Gill Montia
Latest figures from HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) show a rise in the number of homes sold in the UK during May. Transactions involving properties worth over £40,000 increased by 7% last month to 62,000 and were at their highest since October 2008. However, they remained significantly below levels seen at the height of the housing market boom in 2007. The news follows a 40% ...

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June 23, 2009

US home sales experience marginal increase

by Kay Murchie
The National Association of Realtors announced today that sales of previously owned homes in the US rose in May, albeit at a slower-than-expected pace. The organisation said sales rose 2.4% to an annual rate of 4.77 million units, up from the revised 4.66 million reported in April. Analysts had expected a 4.81 million-unit pace for the month of May. However, the rise marks ...

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Taylor Wimpey launches Deposit Matcher

by Gill Montia
Taylor Wimpey claims to have the "perfect solution" for would-be homemovers who are excluded from the best mortgage deals because of they have too small a deposit. According to the developer, 49% of homeowners are in need of more space and many are being forced to put their next move on hold. Taylor Wimpey has therefore launched its "Deposit Match" scheme, currently available ...

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OFT launches online register of dodgy estate agents

by Gill Montia
The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has launched an online version of its register of dodgy estate agents. Firm's listed have been given warnings or been banned from estate agency work and the list can be viewed at www.oft.gov.uk/estateagentregister The register can be browsed alphabetically or by date and also provides information on how to report suspected breaches by a firm ...

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June 22, 2009

Asking prices slide 0.4% in June

by Gill Montia
Rightmove has reported that the average asking price of homes in England and Wales fell 0.4% in the five weeks to 13th June. The decline follows a 2.4% rise in the same period to 9th May, equating to a jump of £5,000 in a typical vendor's ambitions. According to the property website, the average asking price now stands at 226,436, down 5.5% ...

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June 19, 2009

Surge in potential homebuyers as stocks dwindle

by Gill Montia
The National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) has reported a surge in the number of potential house purchasers registering with its members. NAEA firms reported an average 299 househunters signing up in May, the highest level since September 2007. However, last month the number of properties on estate agents' books fell to an average of just 69, down from 76 in April. As ...

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June 18, 2009

Housing market confidence outweighed by unemployment fears

by Gill Montia
The latest Property Tracker Index from the Building Societies Association demonstrates that Britons have become cautiously optimistic about the UK property market. In a survey of 2,242 adults conducted between 4th and 8th June 2009, the average prediction for house price changes in the coming year was for a rise of 1.4%. The result compares refreshingly with an average fall of 6.1% ...

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June 16, 2009

US housing starts recover from record low

by Kay Murchie
The US Commerce Department has today revealed that housing starts and permits rose in May, recovering from record lows in April. According to official figures, new housing starts soared 17.2% (the largest rise in three months) to an annual rate of 532,000 units in May, up from April's figure of 454,000. However, the rate was still down 45.2% compared with May ...

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“Asking” to “selling” price gap narrows to 11%

by Gill Montia
New research from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) shows that house sellers are now achieving a higher proportion of asking prices. A survey of Rics members has revealed that the gap between selling and asking prices has narrowed to 11% in the past three months, whereas in August of last year the discrepancy was widening. The trend shows marked ...

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Million pound home sales slump by 40%

by Gill Montia
A specialist large-loans mortgage broker has reported a dramatic fall in sales of the UK's more prestigious homes. According to largemortgageloans.com, sales of properties costing in excess of one million pounds collapsed by 41% last year. Only 5,302 transactions were completed, compared with 9,003 in 2007. However, using data from the Land Registry, the firm has established that million pound properties actually accounted ...

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June 15, 2009

Home ownership loses pulling power

by Gill Montia
New research from the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) shows how the recession and credit crisis are affecting the British obsession with property ownership. According to the CIH, which represents public and private sector bodies involved in housing and communities, young people who have seen once out-of-reach house prices tumble, are particularly disillusioned. In a survey completed last month, 37% of 18 to 24-year-olds ...

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June 11, 2009

Eight-million percent loan shark jailed

by David Masters
A ruthless loan shark who charged his victims interest at up to eight million percent has been jailed for eight months. Ian Jenkins, 43, targeted homeless people in Gloucester with illegal loans to fund their drug and alcohol habits. Taking personal documents and pin numbers as security, he charged 30% interest per day on the loans - £3 per day for every £10 borrowed. Jenkins ...

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June 9, 2009

Government figures show 1.1% rise in house prices

by Gill Montia
The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) has released housing market statistics for April, showing a 1.1% month-on-month increase in prices. The rise left the average price of a home 13.0% down on April 2008, at £189,215. On a regional basis, annual price falls are as follows: England -13.2%; Wales -10.3%; Scotland -8.6% and Northern Ireland -22.8%. The English region with ...

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