World’s wealthiest take a financial hit, ending seven years of growth
The world’s wealthiest individuals lost 3% of their combined net worth in 2018; Britain’s HNW set lost 6%
Labour pledges ground rent cap
Proposed ‘new deal for leaseholders’ involves a ‘radical’ five-point action plan that would cap ground rents at £250 a year
A ‘sophisticated gang of fraudsters’ is targeting luxury rental flats in London
Estate agents tell of fraudulent tenants targeting luxury rental homes in London, while Benham & Reeves has flagged a 117% “surge in fake applications” in the wake of the recently-enacted Tenant Fee Act 2019
Prime London sees a ‘surprise return of competitive bidding & even a few sealed bids’
But sentiment remains ‘fragile’ as political uncertainty continues to put the brakes on prime residential property markets, says Savills
The prime country house market remains muted, but there are signs of pent-up demand forming
Knight Frank reports the highest number of country house buyer enquiries in five years, but price growth and stock levels are not moving
British home-owners move just once every 21 years
Property inertia is highest in Kensington & Chelsea, according to Zoopla; homeowners in the Royal Borough stay put for an average of 35.5 years
Why our staff are choosing to sell their homes now
Matt Gibberd of design-led estate agency The Modern House explains why four members of the team, including himself, are choosing to sell their homes now, and offers up eight nuggets of advice for ensuring the best chance of a smooth sale…
PCL’s higher price ranges holding up as sub-£2m market suffers
Knight Frank flags up the differing fortunes of the £10m-plus and sub-£2m brackets in the capital’s prime postcodes
Government launches green mortgage strategy to cut household emissions
The Government’s new Green Finance Strategy promises reductions to homeowners mortgage rates, household bills – and emissions.
‘Dramatic’ CGT change could impact the resi market, warns law firm
Second home owners, landlords and property investors will have much less time to pay their tax bills as of April next year, notes Royds Withy King, and many may well be tempted to offload any surplus or underperforming properties in advance…
Online firms lose ground to high street agents
The UK’s top ten online players accounted for less than 4% of all new properties listed in the last fortnight, notes The Advisory
Boris plots emergency Budget to ‘slash stamp duty’
Controversial Prime Ministerial hopeful Boris Johnson would instigate ‘aggressive tax cuts, an overhaul of stamp duty and an assault on regulation’ in a bid to mitigate effects of a no-deal Brexit, reports The Times