Posts by EAN Breaking News
Landlords Respond to Government’s Energy Efficiency Plans
Responding to the publication of the Government’s consultation on the energy efficiency of privately rented housing, Ben Beadle, Chief Executive of the National Residential Landlords Association, said: “We all want to see rented homes as energy efficient as possible, but that will require a realistic plan to achieve this. “The chronic shortage of tradespeople to…
Read MoreComment on the Bank of England’s Decision to Lower Interest Rates
Following the Bank of England’s announcement that it is reducing interest rates by 25 basis points from 4.75% to 4.5% here are some thoughts from the industry. Nathan Emerson, CEO of Propertymark: “Despite widespread uncertainty and the Bank of England expecting inflation rates to increase to 2.8% by the third quarter of 2025 before easing again,…
Read MoreUK house sales up 19% year on year for December
The latest UK monthly property transaction report from the HMRC. The provisional seasonally adjusted estimate of the number of UK residential transactions in December 2024 is 96,330, 19% higher than December 2023 and 3% higher than November 2024 The provisional non-seasonally adjusted estimate of the number of UK residential transactions in December 2024 is 98,120, 15%…
Read MoreHouse price growth softens at the start of 2025
Annual rate of house price growth slowed to 4.1% in January, compared with 4.7% in December House prices up 0.1% month on month Little change in overall rate of home ownership in recent years despite affordability pressures Commenting on the figures, Robert Gardner, Nationwide’s Chief Economist, said: “The price of a typical UK home rose…
Read MoreLeaseholders To Benefit Significantly from the removal of Two-Year Rule
Residential property transactions could become easier following the removal of the two-year rule for leasehold property extensions which comes into force today (31 January 2025) but lawyers have warned the necessity of proving ownership could be challenging due to Land Registry backlogs. This significant change means leaseholders no longer need to own their leasehold property…
Read MoreHousing market gets off to its strongest start in three years, with new sales agreed up 12 per cent on 2024
The 2025 sales market has got off to a stronger start than in 2024 or 2023 with buyer demand up 13 per cent and 10 per cent more homes for sale Rising sales are supporting UK house price inflation which is +2.0 per cent in the year to December 2024, compared to -0.9 per cent…
Read MoreBank of England Money and Credit – December 2024
These monthly statistics on the amount of, and interest rates on, borrowing and deposits by households and businesses are used by the Bank’s policy committees to understand economic trends and developments in the UK banking system. Key points: Net borrowing of mortgage debt by individuals rose by £1.0 billion, to £3.6 billion in December. Net…
Read MoreWestminster council must outline how their proposals on property boards will not hinder market
Westminster City Council must explain how their proposals to renew the existing Regulation 7 Direction and expand it to the whole borough will not hinder the sales and lettings markets, Propertymark argues. At present, some areas of Westminster are subject to a Regulation 7 Direction, which means consent from the Council is needed to display…
Read MoreNational Federation of Builders View on Chancellor’s Speech
At the Autumn Budget 2024, Chancellor Reeves scaled back her interference in the planning process. However, in her speech today, she returned to the position that a well-functioning planning system is crucial to not only enabling growth but, more importantly, sustaining it. Richard Beresford, Chief Executive of the National Federation of Builders (NFB), commented: “The…
Read MoreProperty expert issues warning ahead of stamp duty changes – this is how YOU could avoid paying more
New stamp duty rules are set to come in from April which could catch out many homebuyers and leave them paying thousands more than planned. Currently, first-time buyers do not pay any stamp duty on homes costing up to £425,000, while the threshold for other buyers is £250,000. But from 1 April 2025, the threshold…
Read MoreBooming UK property market demand from Trump’s US
Commenting on how the UK property market is now experiencing a boom in demand from Trump’s US as well as the East, Daniel Austin, CEO and co-founder at ASK Partners, said: “The UK property market is experiencing a surge in demand from US buyers, driven by Donald Trump’s return to the White House, a stronger dollar,…
Read MoreNationwide Housing Affordability Report
Affordability stretched, but gradually improving Modest improvement over past year, but affordability remains stretched by historic standards Considerable variation in affordability across occupational groups Affordability most stretched in London and South of England, with North of England & Scotland the most affordable Commenting on the figures, Andrew Harvey, Senior Economist, said: “There has been a…
Read MoreZoopla: Over a quarter of parents ‘lie or break rules’ to get children into their preferred school
Admission Impossible: Over a quarter of parents admit to ‘lying or bending’ rules to get their children into preferred schools Over a quarter (27 per cent) of UK parents admit to flouting the rules to get their children into schools, rising to 38 per cent in London The number who admit lying is on the…
Read MoreGovernment planning reforms to protect nature
News that the Government has warned that the planning system must protect nature, as it unveils reforms Partner Alison Ogley, Freeths commented: “This is a potential game changer addressing the current inertia in the system, providing a solution that is more effective than individual developers trying to address environmental improvements on a project by project…
Read MoreZoopla identifies housing markets with best prospects for house price growth in 2025
New analysis from Zoopla, one of the UK’s leading property websites, reveals that housing markets in Scotland and Northern England have the best prospects for house price growth in 2025, as Southern England continues to adjust to the impact of higher mortgage rates. Housing markets in Scotland and Northern England have the best prospects for…
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