Time to build homes on the green belt, Sadiq Khan says in major strategy pivot Politics Sir Sadiq Khan is to call for homes to be built on London’s green belt in a major strategic shift on housing policy. In a speech on Friday, the mayor of London is to announce that City Hall will “actively explore” releasing parts of the green belt in a bid to bring an end to [...]
Purplebricks boss: Rental market is ‘completely broken’ and is a ‘disaster for first-time buyers’ Property The rental market is "completely broken" and is a "disaster for first-time buyers", the boss of Purplebricks has said.
Renters set for more tough times as house sales strengthen Property The latest RICS Residential Survey has provided a lot of optimism for house buyers and sellers, but less for tenants, who are set to contend with an even tougher market. The survey, which asks estate agents for their opinion on the housing market, found a “sustained improvement in market activity”, with measures of demand, sales and [...]
Zoopla: Property portal returns to the black after cutting almost 100 jobs September 20, 2024 Online property portal Zoopla returned to profit during its latest financial year as its sales passed the £90m mark. Newly-filed accounts with Companies House have revealed that the business swung to a pre-tax profit of £18.7m in 2023, having reported a pre-tax loss of £6.2m in the prior 12 months. The results also show that [...]
UK property equity surges to new record as house prices recover with falling rates September 4, 2024 The value of the UK’s property equity is higher than ever before having surged to almost £6 trillion, new research has revealed. The study by the Equity Release Council calculated that recovering house prices helped to increase the figure to an “unprecedented” £5.7 trillion in the three months ending June 30, 2024. This was up [...]
London gets even worse for first-time buyers as UK cities ranked September 2, 2024 London has become an even worse city for first-time buyers, according to new figures, but the situation has now stopped people flocking to the capital for the social and career opportunities. The capital has moved down one place to 44th out of 50 in the latest ranking from mortgage provider Aldermore. The study compared cities [...]
House prices dip unexpectedly as interest rates continue to dampen demand August 30, 2024 House prices dipped unexpectedly for the first time since April this month, but a closely watched survey today suggests that the outlook for the property market is likely to strengthen as interest rates are reined in. In its closely watched house price index today, mortgage lender Nationwide said British house prices slipped by 0.2 per [...]
Price of the average London home on the rise as UK demand rockets August 28, 2024 The ‘average’ London home will now set you back more than £530,000 after house prices in the capital increased for the first time since April 2023, according to figures released today. Data from Zoopla’s latest house price index revealed that London property prices were up 0.2 per cent year on year in the first seven [...]
UK’s largest pension fund agrees £405m homes deal with Blackstone August 13, 2024 The UK’s largest pension fund has acquired 3,000 homes from Blackstone for more than £400m. The Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS) has snapped up the portfolio of shared ownership homes from affordable housing company, Sage. Sage is majority-owned by Blackstone alongside real estate investor Regis and was formed in 2017. The £405m deal is the first [...]
Travis Perkins lowers profit forecast on housing market slowdown August 6, 2024 Travis Perkins said its restructuring measures and tightened controls have helped cut overheads by £19m compared to the previous year, with cost inflation absorbed.