The Market
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 11.6% above last December's tally;
‘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.
Online agent lists £24m Westminster townhouse
A 12,642 square foot French Renaissance belter on Grosvenor Gardens has become the biggest instruction ever listed with a UK online estate agency.
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...
BoJo backs British Land’s Norton Folgate scheme
A controversial plan to redevelop a swathe of historic Spitalfields warehouses has been given the go-ahead by Mayor BoJo after a long-running battle.