According to a survey by SmartNewHomes, new properties went up by about £1,700 on average over the last month. However, this translated into a slight increase of the annual average price – only 0.3 per cent.
The biggest rises were registered for town houses, which went up by 2.1 per cent, reaching an average price of £239,196. At the same time, prices for detached and semi-detached homes saw moderate rises of up to 0.4 per cent, while apartment prices increased by up to 0.2 per cent.
The region with the highest rises in new property prices was
read users' comments (0)
Although the initial plan was for the home information packs (Hips) to be introduced on
As a result, there will be a gradual implementation of the information packs, with more homes requiring Hips by the end of 2007. Moreover, for an undetermined period, the energy performance certificate which is an integral part of the packs will be valid for one year, instead of only three months. This decision was also influenced by the fact that the number of qualified energy assessors is still very low.
Research shows that the record £8,307 rise in asking prices in April was followed by a slight rise of only £871 this month. Consequently, on average, the asking price in
Real estate specialists state that this decrease is caused by the introduction of home information packs (Hips) on
In the last 12 months fewer new homes were started, which accounted for a 6 percent overall decrease, from 184,906 to 173,369. At the same time, there was a rise in the number of completions, which went from 163,398 to 167,691. This adds up to the 22 percent registered in starts and 26 percent recorded in completions in the last six years. According to surveys, over the last 10 years the majority of homes were completed in the north-east, the east Midlands, Yorkshire And Humber, and east
As for the new homes, with 44 percent flats and maisonettes represent almost half of the new houses started in the first three months of 2007. Terraced houses come in the second place with 20 percent, while detached houses make up 19 percent of new property projects started. With 14 percent of new developments, semi-detached homes are on the fourth position.
Recent surveys show that average rents went up by 6.5 percent in the first four months of the year, reaching £10,591 from their former level of £9,942. It seems that this trend is related to the increase in interest rates and the strong demand for rental accommodation on the market.
With a stable growth above six percent over the last year, rental properties continue to be attractive for the buy-to-let portfolios of current landlords. While 43 percent of them are satisfied with their current status and are not planning to expand, 12 percent of landlords are interested in investing further in buy-to-let properties. The means of financing used are mostly equity and debt, with a common ratio of one third cash and two thirds borrowing.
According to a report by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), house prices continued to increase in April. At the same time, the market continued to register more increases than falls, for the 18th month in a row.
The rise in property prices continues despite the increase in interest rates. With a slowdown unlikely anytime soon, the Bank of England will probably announce another rise in the summer.
In April, the number of properties on the market was high for a second month, a consequence of the upcoming introduction of home information packs (Hips) in June. As owners are looking to avoid paying for the packs, the number of unsold properties went up. However, in April the number of new buyers went down for the fifth month running.
With a rise of only 1.1 percent, April took the annual property price inflation down to 10.9 percent, a significant fall from the 11.1 percent of the previous month. One of the reasons for this is the moderation registered by the market in the past month, as the conditions for buying a home have slightly loosened up. Another factor is the constant increase in interest rates since August 2006, which put additional pressure on buyers’ finances and consequently led to a decline in price inflation. At the same time, people’s earnings did not match the inflation, which also contributed to the current easing in home prices.
However, while the demand remains high, the supply is still tight, which translates into house prices gradually going further up.
Recent research from the government shows that home prices went up by over £2,000 on average in March compared with the previous month. This adds up to an increase of 10.9 percent over the last year.
Detached properties saw a decrease of 0.2 percent in the course of the same month, while semi-detached properties ranked first in terms of price growth with 2.2 percent. The second position was occupied by terraces with a 1.5 percent rise.The first-time buyer paid 1.5 percent more for a property, while current owners closed the deal for one percent more in comparison with February. At the same time,
According to new surveys, buyers over 55 tend to choose a new home further away from their former residence. The average distance chosen is 48 miles, while with younger age groups this significantly decreases to 14 miles for those in their mid-30 and nine miles for those in their early 20’s.
Research also shows that 66 percent of buyers of all ages want to move within maximum ten miles of their current property. At the same time, it is men who want to move further away from their former homes, with an average distance of 30 miles, in comparison with 22.5 miles for women.
One of the reasons behind these numbers is probably the stress factor associated with changing home, which makes this event rank in third after dramatic ones like death and divorce.
According to surveys, 25 percent of the landlords who have sold a home in the last two years have benefited from returns of 30 percent or more. At the same time, it was determined that from the 10 percent of landlords who sold their property within this timeframe, only 2 percent suffered a loss.
Those who take the biggest advantage from selling buy-to-let properties are the first-time buyers, who account for 42 percent of the total number of purchasers. They are followed by other owners at 33 percent, while new and current landlords make up for 29 percent of the buyers.
Although this picture looks optimistic, figures point that buy-to-let property prices will stagnate in the near future, so landlords must plan their next steps carefully.