Pennington

Broken housing market not being fixed

NewsBot — Fri, 18 May 2012 08:27:57 +0000

The Government is falling well short in tackling the country’s burgeoning housing crisis, leading housing groups have warned.

In their second Housing Report, the National Housing Federation, Shelter and the Chartered Institute of Housing say the Government is failing to deliver on five out of ten key housing indicators.These include housing supply, affordability of the private rented sector and homelessness.

Housing Hub promotes wider access to home ownership

NewsBot — Fri, 18 May 2012 08:26:48 +0000

It is no surprise that 64% of people who do not own their own home, but would like to do so, report that the biggest barrier they face is the need to raise a large enough deposit.

The Building Societies Association, launching a new housing initiative called The Housing Hub, believes that there is an opportunity for lenders and housing associations to co-operate more closely to bring alternative home ownership models into the mainstream to help consumers jump this hurdle.

Stamp duty effect felt well beyond first-time buyer market

NewsBot — Fri, 18 May 2012 08:25:51 +0000

The end of the stamp duty concession led to a surge in activity in the mortgage market in March, according to Council of Mortgage Lenders data.

The largest increase was in lending to first-time buyers, who took out 24,000 loans in March.

Cost of household energy grows five times faster than income

NewsBot — Fri, 18 May 2012 08:24:26 +0000

The rise in the cost of household energy has significantly outpaced the growth in household incomes since 2004, according to new research from uSwitch.com.

While household incomes in the UK have increased by 20%, from £32,812 in 2004 to £39,468 today, the average household energy bill has shot up by an eye-watering 140%. This means that energy bills have increased more than five times faster than income.

‘Safe’ letting about more than just money

NewsBot — Fri, 18 May 2012 08:23:09 +0000

SAFEagent Awareness Week is a national campaign running through this week to highlight the importance of Client Money Protection Schemes.

It appeals to landlords and tenants to only use an agent that has a Client Money Protection Scheme in place.

Henry needs a home too!

NewsBot — Thu, 17 May 2012 06:27:47 +0000

New research reveals extreme measures some Brits take to squeeze into their homes and highlights what people really want and need from their homes

The vacuum cleaner stored at Mum’s house a 20 minute drive away; BOGOF supermarket food deals kept in the boot of the car; these are just two of the real-life examples of how some British households are constrained by the design of their homes.

Residential rent rises are the big ‘world city’ story

NewsBot — Thu, 17 May 2012 06:26:07 +0000

Rental values are rising faster than underlying house prices in many of the world’s leading cities as demand from domestic and international corporate tenants in an increasingly supply-constrained global residential real estate market, with Paris now the most expensive city for tenants.

The Savills World Class Cities Index recorded an average rental rise of 2.3 per cent in the second half of 2011, compared to a rise of just 1% for capital values, with values in the ‘old world’ markets outperforming the ‘new world’ destinations with a 2.8 per cent increase compared to 1.8 per cent.

Top Tips on achieving a swift home sale!

NewsBot — Thu, 17 May 2012 06:24:48 +0000

When it comes to selling a home, there are few do’s and don’t's that will significantly increase the chances of a quick sale.

Harrison Murray have some easy to follow tips, which have been tried and tested among its customers – not least the recent sellers of a Home Counties property that attracted 18 viewings leading to eight offers in just several days!

UK commercial property returns increase marginally

NewsBot — Thu, 17 May 2012 06:22:48 +0000

UK commercial property performance improved in April with a marginal increase in headline total returns, as capital value declines slowed allowing All Property total returns to increase to 0.2%, up from 0.1% in March, according to CBRE’s latest UK Monthly Index.

This improved performance was again due to the continued strength of Central London offices, which maintained their lead on other property markets.

Spanish property fire sale offers investment opportunity

NewsBot — Thu, 17 May 2012 06:20:55 +0000

Discontent is spreading in Europe, there is open revolt against austerity. First Greece and now even France, one of the founding members, have fought elections promising to lessen the blow on their beleaguered populations.

Nobody wants austerity, the problem is austerity is essential to the European single currency as we know it, yet governments remain powerless to convince people to take the medicine of cuts to living standards.