Breaking Property News – 18/01/24
Daily bite-sized proptech and property news in partnership with Proptech-X.
How long do people live in their houses in England and Scotland?
By analysing historic property ownership data from HM Land Registry from the past 20-years, Online Mortgage Advisor has discovered that London is the region in England and Scotland where homeowners hold on to their properties for the longest. Also they determined which boroughs Londoners are the most likely to sell up and move on after the shortest period of time.
The research found that the average tenure length across the whole of Great Britain is 10-years and two-months, and it is the capital London where homeowners tend to own for an average of 11-years, three-months and 19-days.
The research reveals that residents in the borough of Havering move on the most often in London with people owning their houses for an average of only 10-years, one-month and 23-days. This is in contrast to residents in Westminster, Kensington and Chelsea and City of London stay in their properties longer than anywhere else with an average of over 12-years, making them the forever home hotspots of the capital.
However, we should take into consideration that some of the locals in Westminster are paid to live there for work, for instance, most members of the UK’s Parliament. The capital is seen as a great location to invest in property making it a real hotspot for landlords. This could be one of the driving factors as to why so many people decide to hold onto properties there for so long.
Regarding Scotland, Scottish homeowners move on the most frequently with an average tenure length of 8-years and four-months, which is around two-years less than the British average.
Why are Londoners settling down in certain areas more than others?
When it comes to the capital, the data shows that Westminster, Kensington & Chelsea, and the City of London are some of the most common areas to settle down in. Being some of the more luxurious areas of the city, homeowners tend to look to these boroughs for larger investment properties. But are there any other reasons why these locations are so prevalent?
According to Paula Higgins CEO of Home Owners Alliance SDLT costs may be a factor, keeping these London boroughs full.
“If you’re moving into a £2 million property in one of these boroughs, you’ll be paying approximately 7.56% in stamp duty (£150,000). So, if you decide to move for whatever reason – maybe you want a bigger garden or want to upsize – you’ll be losing £150,000 off the amount of money that you can spend on a new property. It really doesn’t make sense to move, you will actually be eroding your affordability.”
| # | Regions | Average Tenure Length |
| 1 | London | 11 years, 3 months, 19 days |
| 2 | North East | 10 years, 6 months, 7 days |
| 3 | North West | 10 years, 5 months, 25 days |
| 4 | Wales | 10 years, 5 months, 13 days |
| 5 | Yorkshire and The Humber | 10 years, 3 months, 9 days |
| 6 | West Midlands | 10 years, 0 months, 25 days |
| 7 | South West | 9 years, 10 months, 25 days |
| 8 | East Midlands | 9 years, 9 months, 25 days |
| 9 | East of England | 9 years, 9 months, 22 days |
| 10 | South East | 9 years, 9 months, 20 days |
| 11 | Scotland | 8 years, 4 months, 11 days |
Methodology – Data was obtained from HM Land Registry to determine average tenure lengths for property ownership across 322-local authorities and 33-London Boroughs in Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales). There is no detail in the data about the nature of ownership to determine whether the owner lives in the property or not, but for the purpose of this project, the working assumption was that they do.
The data goes back as far as 1995. A total of 662,051 tenures were analysed within 366,608 unique properties throughout Great Britain. Tenure lengths of less than 30-days have been deemed outliers and discarded from the results. Property types include detached, semi-detached, terraced and flats. ‘Average tenure length’ denotes the average length-of-stay by residents within each local authority. Data is correct as of 05/10/2023.
Majority of investors optimistic about UK and European commercial real estate market over the next 12 to 18 months
LONDON, January 2024 – A major survey of 101-global real estate fund managers with an average of $62.5 billion under management has found that 56% of investors feel optimistic towards the outlook for UK and European commercial real estate investments over the next 12 to 18 months, according to a new report from leading global professional services firm Alvarez & Marsal (A&M).
The investors surveyed highlighted cost of capital and investment returns as the areas they are most optimistic about. 62% expect the cost of capital to improve and 59% expect investment returns to improve. In terms of Europe, 75% of investors plan to increase their exposure to the Nordic markets, while 70% plan to increase exposure to the UK.
Over the next 12 to 18 months, the survey found that investors are keenest to back ventures that cater to travel and leisure, work and shopping, with 87% looking to invest in hotel and leisure, 71% in office buildings and 67% in retail. The care home and assisted living sector is set to receive the least interest, with only 23% looking to invest in that sector.
The survey also found that investors are nearly unanimous in their views on ESG, with 97% saying that ESG forms an important part of their investment strategy. Energy efficient upgrades, smart building technology and green building certifications are the key focus areas for ESG-oriented investors.
Kersten Muller, Managing Director at Alvarez & Marsal said: “The growing consensus that interest rates have peaked suggests that the worst of the uncertainty may be behind us. While this could pave the way for a rebound in the real estate sector in 2024, investors should continue to exercise caution when evaluating the types of properties and markets they deem worthy of their capital.”
About the survey, the report is based on data from online surveys conducted by Alvarez & Marsal among 101 real estate fund managers and investment professionals from 15-countries in Europe, North America and Asia. Funds in the survey, which include institutional capital, private capital firms and sovereign wealth funds, have assets under management (AUM ) of $62.5 billion, on average. The survey was conducted in November 2023 and comprised a questionnaire of 19-questions.
Andrew Stanton Executive Editor – moving property and proptech forward. PropTech-X
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