The Market
Osborne ‘has done more for the rental market than any other Chancellor in history’
According to the - pretty roasting - heat map below, virtually every borough in Zones 1 and 2 turned in a 4%+ annual increase in average rental values last year.
Buy-to-let rush drives an ‘unusually buoyant’ market – RICS
Demand for residential properties rose in December to a three-month high, with anecdotal evidence suggesting that a buy-to-let rush ahead of April's 3% SDLT levy is at least partly to blame, says the Royal…
Countrywide confident on profits after ‘encouraging’ Q4
Britain's biggest estate agency Countrywide has reported an "encouraging" Q4, despite the general slowdown in transaction volumes and uncertainty around buy-to-let stamp duty and mortgage interest relief
Transactions surge with December deal numbers up by 11.6%
108,710 residential deals went down in December, according to seasonally-adjusted numbers from HMRC.
That's a 1.9% increase on November's number, and a chunky 11
‘Now is not yet the time to raise interest rates’ – Carney
Bank of England Governor Mark Carney has ruled out an imminent interest rate rise
Paper Fail: ‘If tax doesn’t kill the market, red tape will’
"If tax doesn't kill the market, red tape will," growls Alan Page, as a deal becomes mired in an absurd paperwork swamp
PCL Winners & Losers 2015: Knightsbridge top of the flops as Islington outperforms
Average values in prime central London ended 2015 up 1% after a flat December, according to Knight Frank's year-end tallies.
McCloud’s HAB debuts ‘custom built’ Oxford scheme
Kevin McCloud's development firm HAB Housing has launched an interesting high-end project on a hillside site near Oxford.
Cambridge, London and Bristol outperform as investors drive house price growth
The rate of house price growth across 20 of the UK's top cities has pepped up t0 +11.4%, from +10.2% the previous month and +8.9% twelve months ago, as property investors make a serious impact on the market
Savills strengthens London Resi Development team
Jeremy James has returned to the fold after a three-year absence
London’s ultra-prime lettings market prospers as buyers weigh up the options
"Unless somebody is committed to London in the long term, there is a much more compelling case for renting", says PCL agency Tunstall Property of the post-SDLT reform landscape.
Waiting Game: April ‘will be a good month to be negotiating’
Buy-to-live purchasers can't be blamed for sitting it out at the moment, says buying agent Sara Ransom, but there should be some decent discounts on the table come the Spring...