Breaking News
Complaints against Purplebricks upheld by ASA
Purplebricks has been ordered to change what is seen as misleading advertising on their website after a set of complaints against it were upheld by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). The ASA action required that the advertisement must not appear again in the form complained of. The ASA stated: We told Purplebricks Group plc to…
Allen Walkey
The May increase in mortgage approvals driven by strong growth in remortgaging according to UK Finance
Latest UK Finance Household Finance Update for May 2018 reveals that estimated gross mortgage lending for the total market in May was £22.2bn, 8.8 per cent higher than the same month a year earlier. Mortgage approvals by the main high street banks in May have also risen, increasing by 3 per cent compared to…
Allen Walkey
Demand from prospective buyer’s increases in April according to NAEA Propertymark.
Latest NAEA Propertymark Housing Report – April 2018 headlines ‘Housing Market Swings Back In The Favour Of Sellers’. The report reveals that demand from prospective buyers grew by nine per cent in April; on average, estate agents had 337 house-hunters registered per branch, compared to 308 in March. Mark Hayward, Chief Executive said: “Last month…
Allen Walkey
Halifax research reveals that average house prices in British seaside towns have increased by 21% in the past decade
Halifax research reveals that average house prices in British seaside towns have increased by 21% in the past decade – over £4,000 a year Sandbanks in Poole is Britain’s most expensive seaside town for the third year running, according to Halifax’s latest research. The second and third spots remain unchanged on last year with average…
Allen Walkey
Average UK asking price is £414,359, but the current sold price is just £226,906!
A very interesting article I read on the Emoov website as I enjoyed a very sunny English Summer afternoon in the garden made me think – Are we still valuing property here in the UK way above what they should be? Emoov explains: Our latest research has highlighted the current reality gap at each end…
Christopher Walkey
Exeter Estate & Letting Agent Expelled from TPO
Bower & Bower (B&B), a sales and lettings agent in Exeter, Devon, has been expelled from The Property Ombudsman (TPO) scheme. The Ombudsman supported two complaints relating to non-payment of rent to two landlords whose property B&B managed and the way the Agent dealt with deposits on the landlords’ behalf. In the first complaint, the…
EAN Content
Coventry agent owing £8.5K to elderly couple is expelled from TPO
Buyers, sellers, tenants and landlords in Coventry are being warned that a local sales and letting agent has been expelled from The Property Ombudsman (TPO) scheme for failing to pay awards totalling £8,583.63. This means the firm, Lawrence Property Consultants Ltd (LPC), is not registered with a redress scheme, which is a requirement of every…
EAN Content
Bank of England announces Bank Rate remains at 0.5%
The Bank of England announced on the 21st June 2018 that Bank Rate remains at 0.5%. At its meeting ending on 20 June 2018, the MPC voted by a majority of 6-3 to maintain Bank Rate at 0.5%. The Committee voted unanimously to maintain the stock of sterling non-financial investment-grade corporate bond purchases, financed by…
Allen Walkey
Government to review licensing and publishes guidance on HMO changes
The Government has announced that they are to conduct a review into licensing schemes, with a view to publishing their findings next year. They have also released guidance on the new HMO rules which will come into effect in October this year. David Cox, Chief Executive, ARLA Propertymark, commented: “Licensing doesn’t work, and it never…
Allen Walkey
NTSEAT LAUNCHES agent SuRVey INTO USE OF referral fees
National Trading Standards Estate Agency Team (NTSEAT), with the support of The Property Ombudsman and the Property Redress Scheme, have today launched a survey <https://secure.crtviewpoint.com/Online/Survey/36c5c07e-d321-4a6f-a5ca-bfd52f6bbc53> to assess the use of referral fees among estate agents. Following the published response to the Government’s Call for Evidence on home buying and selling (8th April 2018), Ministry of…
EAN Content
UK housing market remains resilient according to LSL/Acadata
Latest LSL Property Services/Acadata England & Wales House Price Index – May 2018 headlines ‘New builds bolster London’. Annual growth rates rise for first time in a year, however transactions down by 6% year-to-date according to HPI report. The report reveals that the UK housing market remained resilient showing a very slight rise in the…
Allen Walkey
The RLA responds to the National Audit Office’s report on the roll out of Universal Credit
The RLA responds to the National Audit Office’s report on the roll out of Universal Credit, David Smith, Policy Director for the Residential Landlords Association, commented: “Whilst it is clear that Universal Credit is here to stay, today’s report recognises the difficulties faced by tenants and landlords as a result of rent arrears. The RLA’s…
Allen Walkey
Dwindling stock in north drives prices to new national record
New record in asking price of newly-marketed property for third consecutive month as steady monthly increases continue, with a 0.4% (+£1,364) rise Spring market concludes with stronger number of sales agreed overall in May, just 2.0% down on May 2017, and up 5.4% on May 2016 However, market conditions vary significantly between the north…
Rightmove
Strong growth in remortgaging in April 2018 according to UK Finance
Latest UK Finance Mortgage Trends Update headlines ‘Remortgaging bounces back as borrowers put their house in order.’ UK Finance’s latest Mortgage Trends Update reveals there was strong growth in remortgaging in April 2018, with new homeowner mortgages up 36 per cent and buy-to-let remortgages up 32.4 per cent compared to the same month a year…
Allen Walkey
OnTheMarket achieve their latest milestone of 9,000 contracted offices just three weeks after reaching 8,500 offices
OnTheMarket plc, the agent-backed company which operates the OnTheMarket.com property portal, announced on the 14th June 2018 that as of 13 June it has signed listing agreements with UK estate and letting agents with more than 9,000 offices. This increase of over 3,500 branches since Admission on 9 February represents growth of more than 63%….
Allen Walkey