UK mortgage approvals hit two-year high following Brexit extension May 28, 2019 The number of mortgage approvals for house purchases in the UK reached a two-year high in April, a survey showed today, suggesting the country’s housing market may be recovering from a recent slowdown. Read more: Mortgage approvals fall as lending to businesses also drops UK banks approved 42,989 mortgages in April, the highest figure since [...]
Taking the higher ground rent: How homeowners can stop themselves falling victim to dubious leasehold contracts May 28, 2019 Finally able to buy your first home, you skip away from the rat race that is the rental system, proudly boasting the much-revered title of “homeowner”. And yet, if you’ve bought a leasehold property, it might not be the picket-fenced dream that you’d bargained for. Millions of UK properties, typically flats, are sold as leasehold. This [...]
The tenant fee ban is good news for landlords May 28, 2019 From 1 June, it will be illegal for tenants in England to be charged letting fees, with deposits capped at six weeks’ rent. Anyone who rents their home will see the benefits in the tenant fee ban, with tenants expected to save an average of £400 per move. More importantly, this policy marks the beginning [...]
Galliford Try shares rise as it rebuffs £950m Bovis offer for housebuilding arm May 28, 2019 Home builder Bovis today revealed that talks for a £950m merger deal with Galliford Try’s housing business have collapsed. Read more: Galliford Try rejects takeover bid from rival Bovis Homes Bovs homes said this morning the two firms are "no longer in discussions" after its revised proposal to snap up Galliford Try’s Linden Homes and Partnerships [...]
Galliford Try rejects takeover bid from rival Bovis Homes May 27, 2019 Housebuilder Galliford Try has rejected a takeover bid from rival Bovis Homes, saying the offer undervalued the firm’s business and was not in the interests of shareholders. Read more: Bovis Homes Group in talks with Galliford Try over housebuilding merger Galliford Try confirmed it had received an offer from Bovis for its Linden Homes and [...]
Gaps between tenancies can be a real money sink. Here’s how to avoid them May 24, 2019 Most experienced landlords will know that the biggest real losses come from long periods between tenancies, where they can end up haemorrhaging money if the presentation and marketing of their property isn’t well managed. The areas that are often the cause of these voids are: Difficulty in access for viewings Poor presentation Too high a [...]
London house prices suffer UK’s steepest annual fall ahead of original Brexit deadline May 22, 2019 House prices in London plunged 1.9 per cent in the year to March, the largest annual fall in the country, ahead of the UK’s original Brexit date. UK-wide house prices jumped 1.4 per cent over the twelve months, but in London the average property price fell almost two per cent to £463,000, according to HM [...]
Bovis Homes shares climb as it signals progress on shareholder returns May 22, 2019 Shares in housebuilder Bovis Homes opened higher this morning after it issued an upbeat trading statement ahead of its annual general meeting today. Read more: Housebuilder Bovis's profits reach record high as it keeps customers happy The company said it has seen its average private sales rate rise 17 per cent over the first five months [...]
Property transactions dip in April as political uncertainty weighs on buyers May 21, 2019 Property transactions slipped slightly in April as political uncertainty hampered a traditional spring surge. Read more: How London house prices in every borough have performed in 2019 Residential property transactions fell 0.3 per cent month-on-month in April, but were up 0.8 per cent on last year, according to the latest figures from HMRC. The dip [...]
This new private members’ club is only for successful start-ups May 21, 2019 "I don’t care to belong to any club that will have me as a member,” Groucho Marx famously said, reputedly resigning from the Friars’ Club in the 1940s. The nature of private members’ clubs has adapted considerably since then, and many are now relaxed as to whom they accept. Bucking this trend, however, is Home [...]