Britons are being duped into buying new homes that are too small to live in comfortably, with house builders and estate agents demonstrating a distinct “lack of transparency” over floor space. According to research from the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), thousands of brand new homes are failing to provide the space families need, [...]
The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) has today reported that the UK housing market remained weak in August with house prices falling further. According to the Institution, homeowners remain reluctant to put their properties up for sale, while buyers continue to struggle to secure a mortgage and remain uncertain about the economic climate. The [...]
The Halifax has today revealed UK house prices fell by 1.2% in August on a monthly basis – reversing the gains noted in the previous three months. The latest fall takes the average cost of a UK home to £161,743, the Halifax said. However, on an annual basis, prices are 2.6% lower, said the lender, [...]
The latest house price index from the Nationwide Building Society has revealed prices fell by 0.6% in August on a monthly basis – the fastest pace since October 2010. On an annual basis, house prices are now 0.4% lower than this time last year with the average UK home costing £165,914. The latest figures suggest [...]
The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller composite index of 20 metropolitan areas fell in June on an annual basis, by 4.5% – albeit slower than the 4.6% drop in May. The figure was slightly better than the 4.6% decline expected by the market. The US housing market has remained subdued for some time now and many have [...]
Housebuilder Bovis has today reported profits more than doubled in the six months to the end of June as a result of cost-cutting and rising house prices. The company said pre-tax profits surged to £8.1 million in the six month period compared with £3.5 million in the same period a year earlier, while revenue rose [...]
According to a new report by the National Housing Federation (NHF), the UK housing market is in “crisis” as private rents continue to surge and owner-occupier rates fall. The study suggests that home ownership will decline to around 64% by 2021 – the lowest level since the mid-1980s – as an entire generation is unable [...]
According to the Land Registry, house prices rose by 1.3% in July compared with June, putting the average cost of a home at £163,049 in England and Wales. On an annual basis, the Registry said prices are 2.1% lower. It must be noted that the Land Registry compiles its data from completed transactions and therefore [...]
A survey by LSL Property Services has revealed rents in England and Wales continue to surge, with the average rent hitting a record high last month. July represented the sixth consecutive month that the average rental cost rose. According to LSL, the average rent stands at £705 – an all-time high. However, rental costs vary [...]
US homebuilder confidence remained unchanged in August, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo sentiment index. The index showed a reading of 15 in August, unchanged from July’s reading, suggesting the US housing market remains subdued. However, the reading was in line with forecasts. The index, which first commenced more than 25 [...]
Property website, Rightmove, has today reported a drop in asking prices for the month of August – the second consecutive monthly fall. According to Rightmove, asking prices for residential property in England and Wales fell by 2.1% this month after a 1.6% decline in July. The property website, which claims to advertise 90% of the [...]
The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) has today reported that the UK housing market remained weak in July with house prices falling further. According to the Institution, homeowners remain reluctant to put their properties up for sale, while buyers continue to struggle to secure a mortgage and remain uncertain about the economic climate. The [...]
The Halifax has today revealed UK house prices rose by just 0.3% in July on a monthly basis – the third consecutive monthly rise. The latest rise takes the average cost of a UK home to £163,981, the Halifax said. However, on an annual basis, prices are 2.6% lower. When comparing prices in the three [...]
The latest house price index from the Nationwide Building Society has revealed house prices crept up by 0.2% in July. On an annual basis, house prices are now just 0.4% lower than this time last year with the average UK home costing £168,731. The housing market remains subdued as a lack of buyers, together with [...]
The Commerce Department has revealed sales of new homes in the US fell in June, suggesting the housing market remains depressed. According to the Commerce Department, new single-family home sales fell by 1% in June on a monthly basis to an annual rate of 312,000 units – lower than expectations of 325,000 units. Meanwhile, the [...]
Annual growth in banks’ gross mortgage lending stood at £7.6 billion in June, with the figure 11% lower than a year earlier, according to the British Bankers’ Association (BBA). Early signs of growth in the buy-to-let market were evident but both house purchase and remortgaging approvals continued to be weak, and with repayments still at [...]
The housing market in England and Wales is “in broad equilibrium” despite prices continuing to edge lower, according to Hometrack, which recorded a 0.1% fall in the value of the typical dwelling in July, compared with June. However, there are wide regional variations: prices moved higher across 8% of postcodes (primarily in London) and were [...]
HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has today revealed a marginal rise in the number of homes sold in June in the UK. According to HMRC, 73,000 homes worth at least £40,000 or more were sold in the month – 5,000 higher than May’s level of 68,000. However, it is 12,000 lower than June 2010’s figure. [...]
The US housing market remains depressed after figures have revealed sales of previously owned homes fell 0.8% on a monthly basis to a 7-month low, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). The industry body said the fall in sales was attributed to contract cancellations with sales running at an annual rate of 4.77 [...]
Property website, Rightmove, has today reported a drop in asking prices for the month of July – the first fall this year. According to Rightmove, asking prices for residential property in England and Wales fell by 1.6% in July. The property website, which claims to advertise 90% of the properties on the market, said the [...]
M&S Money launches 3% cash ISA
M&S Money has launched an Advantage Cash ISA paying 3 per cent, and which allows transfers in from other ISAs. It can be opened with a minimum deposit of £100 lump sum followed by minimum monthly deposits of £25. The 3% rate is variable, but there is no short-term bonus so the return won’t plummet [...]
Google suspends UK Compare Mortgages site
Google has closed its UK mortgage comparison site which it launched in July last year, after it proved to be less popular than expected. Mortgage comparison sites are designed to allow visitors to compare mortgages quickly and easily without having to visit each lender’s individual site. Google was competing with several well-established comparison sites, including [...]
AA launches ‘black-box’ policy for young drivers
The AA is launching an innovative car insurance policy called Drivesafe which could help younger drivers save up to £850 a year. Younger drivers already pay substantially higher premiums than other motorists and these costs are increasing. A new study by Confused.com suggests insurance costs for younger driver have gone up by 5.7 per cent [...]
ATOL scheme updated to protect online bookers
ATOL, a financial protection scheme managed by the Civil Aviation Authority, is being extended to protect up to six million more holidays a year. The scheme ensures that holiday makers do not lose out financially if a travel company collapses, and that they are not stranded abroad. An increase in the number of holidays booked [...]
Home repossessions lowest for four years
The number of UK homes repossessed fell to 36,200 in 2011, significantly below the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ forecast of 40,000, and lower than 2010 when 37,100 homes were repossessed. With interest rates remaining low and lenders adopting a sympathetic attitude to customers in financial difficulty, repossessions fell to their lowest level since 2007. However, [...]
Monthly pay lasting just 17 days
Workers are running out of money just 17 days after receiving their monthly pay, according to new research by the Halifax bank. This means that the average UK worker spends half the month worrying about money. The study, based on the responses of more than 2,000 adults, found that 10 per cent of workers start [...]
Women disadvantaged by auto-enrolment changes
Government proposals to increase the auto-enrolment threshold to £10,000 could put 1.8 million women at risk of missing out on a pension, the TUC has warned. Under the auto-enrolment scheme, which will be phased in from October, private sector employers will automatically enrol workers between the age of 22 years and the state pension age, [...]
Emergency household repairs company Homeserve is taking longer than expected to get back on track after its operations were suspended last October. The company expected customer numbers to fall by 5% this year but it has increased this estimate to 8% and announced the loss of 200 jobs. It estimates that renewal revenue in 2013 [...]
Sale rumoured for Yorkshire and Clydesdale banks
There is growing speculation that National Australia Bank (NAB) may sell Yorkshire Bank and Clydesdale Bank after the Australian parent company announced a strategic review of the two banks’ operations. The Australian economy is performing well and NAB reported strong profits for the final quarter of 2011 but with the UK economy at a virtual [...]
More women experiencing debt difficulties
Women in Debt, which offers female-focused debt advice, has warned that the number of UK women facing serious debt has grown significantly over recent years. The organisation believes that more women will need advice on solving debt problems in the future because they are building up an unsustainable level of indebtedness. Women in Debt’s director, [...]
About | Privacy | Disclaimer | Resources | XML Feeds | Press Releases | Directory | Contact us
