D_Property

There’s good and bad news for the UK housing market, with short-term struggles offset by long-term recovery. How will the economic backdrop affect the sector? National estate agency Savills, which annually publishes comprehensive five-year housing market predictions, has revised its outlook in light of the coronavirus pandemic. The new research shows several changes compared to its original November 2019 forecast. One of the main factors affecting housing market recovery is, of course, the speed of the country’s economic recovery. Savills’s latest report takes this into account, with GDP set to fall 8.3% in 2020 before a rebound in 2021. On an economic level, income growth is also expected to play a part in both house price […]

The collapse of bond yields over the past decade, coupled with the more recent spate of companies cutting their dividends, means investors’ hunt for income has become a tougher task. The persistently low bond yields of recent times prompted many investors to invest in alternative income assets, including a number of investment trusts that invest in niche sectors of the property market, as alternatives to bonds and traditional equities. Among the sectors to have found favour with investors are student property, health centres and infrastructure. The income from assets such as student property and some infrastructure investments is ultimately derived from the government, potentially placing some of those income streams into the very low risk category […]

PROPERTY sales in England’s housing market are almost back to normal following the reopening of estate agents last month. New figures from RightMove reveal record levels of interest as well as higher asking prices compared to pre-lockdown. Homeowners were fretting about a property market crash due to the coronavirus pandemic, but new figures suggest that it is already bouncing back. Though there was a 94 percent drop in sales while estate agents and viewings were put on hold, the housing market has made an impressive recovery in just over one month. The market reopened on May 13 and has already sparked thousands of sales to go through as the nation gets back on the move, with […]

Buy-to-let is currently a stable investment choice compared to commercial, offering a typical yield of 5%, research from Sourced Capital shows. The peer-to-peer lending platform looked at the average annual return on £500,000 across buy-to-let and commercial markets – a typical buy-to-let would return you £153,480 over five years based on its calculations. The North East of England is said to be the best area to buy, with a yield of 5.5%, followed by the North East (5.0%) and Yorkshire and the Humber (4.8%). On average commercial property is expected to net a return of 2.2%, though the average is skewed own by commercial retail, which is expected to lose you 6.2% per year. Elsewhere commercial […]

On May 12, the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government Robert Jenrick announced the re-opening of England’s real estate market, after seven weeks of it being effectively on hold due to social distancing measures. Certain lockdown measures were lifted, ensuring onsite valuations and viewings could once again take place. Almost immediately, estate agents and listing websites recorded a significant spike in interest coming from prospective buyers, eager to consider a residential purchase now that restrictions had been eased. But, does this renewed activity symbolise the beginning of a house price recovery? A short-term drop Let’s be realistic—a short-term dip in property prices as a consequence of COVID-19 is unavoidable. COVID-19 has brought the […]

Investment in student property has surged by 8% in the North West, Mistoria Group research shows. The largest increase in investment came from Turkey which accounted for 20% of the growth, followed by UAE (14%) and Hong Kong (11%). Mish Liyanage, managing director of The Mistoria Group, said: “Over the last 12 months, we have seen a sizeable increase in international investors’ appetite for student accommodation. “They are attracted to the UK because of the relatively low-cost student property on offer and the excellent net yields that range between 12% and 15% in the North West. “Higher education is a worldwide demand and universities in the UK offer some of the best courses. Towns and cities […]