Direct Property News

Gross mortgage lending in the UK held steady in October but is being driven more by remortgages than new buyers due to a lack of supply in the current housing market. It reached an estimated £20.6 billion, according to the latest figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders and closely matches September’s gross lending total of £20.5 billion, but is 5% lower than October last year when it was £21.8 billion.

Prices for property in the UK continued their rise in September as interest from new buyers increased slightly whilst the number of homes being listed for sale dropped. On average, a property in the UK was £217,888 in September, with statistics showing a 7.7% increase year-on-year. Property prices increased by 0.2% between August and September, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed. The ONS said the numbers for September “suggested a period of relative stability during the month”. The ONS referred to data by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors stating that there was a modest increase in enquiries from buyers, furthermore, the number of lending approvals also experienced a rise. The ONS also leaned on […]

Property markets around the world could benefit from the election of Donald Trump as the next President of the United States but a lot will depend on how the country’s economy and dollar performs. Experts believe that it could be good news for US investment in the UK property market as London in particular is regarded as a safe haven for real estate investors while the Canadian market could suffer as Americans look to buy elsewhere. The election result saw the value of the dollar immediately fall and a prolonged dip could have a positive effect in that investors might want to move their money to other international markets, but it could also mean property buyers […]

The Bank of England is to receive new powers from the Government in order to regulate mortgages for small-scale buy-to-let landlords, Chancellor Phillip Hammond has announced. From early next year, the Bank will be able to limit loan-to-value ratios on buy-to-let mortgages, alongside the minimum amount by which the predicted rental income from a home will exceed mortgage interest payments. This move has been designed to help protect the financial system from any future risks in the buy-to-let market.

Chinese investors are being asked to pump their leftover cash into four great developments across Manchester as they push their Northern Powerhouse initiative with business and politics from the Far East. Ministers hope to attract more than £5 billion in 13 projects from Chinese and international business leaders and four of those developments are in the Greater Manchester region.

Average house prices in the UK have increased by 7.7% in the year to September 2016, the same as the previous month, and 0.2% month on month, the latest nationwide index shows. This takes the average price of a home to £218,000, some £16,000 higher than in September 2015 but London continues to be the region with the highest average house price at £488,000. Indeed, the index figures from the Office of National Statistics and Land Registry show that London house prices rose 1.4% month on month, the fastest rate of any region and in Croydon house prices have risen from £320,175 to £373,339 year on year, a rise of 16.6%.