UK House prices: News & Views

[ologhai]

He means ‘sceptical’ but I’m sure you knew that already!

I have some sympathy for Phil.

I know I know, he was part of the ramping circus but I do think he’s a decent guy as evidenced by the fact he was paying his staff out of his own pocket.

 

If he really did say 'speculative', that's quite a Freudian slip!

[No6]

Lulu the uber bull.

 

Buyer buyers everywhere!

 

Lulu Egerton

 

This last week has been mad. Low interest rates and worsening economy has spurred people to look at property more closely than ever as their preferred investment. Where else to put your money? We have never been busier and are agreeing terms with Vendors serious about selling. Managing Vendor expectation remains the key issue and the difference between agreeing terms and impasse. A reality check needs to take place before trading copmmences with any real snappiness. Truthfully all prices are probably still 10-15% too high, self evident when we analyse offer levels.

 

My buyers this week range from a hilarious Egyptian who wants to buy a flat up to £2m by next Friday. We've found a perfect uber-cool bachelor pad in a garden square which has his name all over it, but he and I are like traders in the souk fighting over the last dinar, I want him to pay more, he wants to pay less! I've spent today with a lovely American who flew in from New York this morning with her interior designer. She wants to see everything between £5m-£20m in Chelsea and South Kensington. She wants to make a decision by Tuesday. There are 47 houses available to view which is staggering amount in such a small area. A lot of these are 'off market' because Vendors want a discreet marketing campaign. No publicity. No brochures. No floorplans. No photos. Yes, its true, the high rollers are selling up to downsize or leave town. A sense of urgency is driving the serious investors to part with their money, i wonder what they know we dont? Answers on a postcard please.

 

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/luluegerton/b...yers_everywhere

 

Bricks & Mortar return to fight another day

 

2009 has started with a whoosh of activity. The bleak autumn a dim and distant memory. We received 51 bids on our clients' houses and flats in January, a further 31 bids thus far in February. While Gordon Brown is busy putting Bank CEOs in the dock, their bonus-friendly staff are busy spending with us.

 

Hooray, the bankers are back after only a short absence.

 

This may annoy some but it delights us. Added to which we have excellent Euro and dollar purchasers licking their lips at the weak pound and favourable exchange rate, giving them a further 25% discount on already depressed prices.

 

They're buying like it's their last day on earth. We have buyers from Monaco, Italy and France as well as those from the Square Mile who are realising value not seen 12 months ago. They're not overpaying by a long mile but cash is king, so if you need to sell, consider any bid you get very seriously. It may be the last one you see for some time.

 

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/luluegerton/b...ght_another_day

[frizzers]

Yes, bull indeed.

[marmite]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7902982.stm

 

Call for new £20bn economy boost

 

A prominent group of Labour members is urging the government to spend an extra £20bn to stimulate the economy through measures to boost the housing market.

 

Progress is calling for a freeze on stamp duty on houses valued under £1m for the rest of 2009 and the offer of a £1,000 tax credit to home buyers.

 

It also wants to see capital gains tax cut and Jobseeker's Allowance raised.

 

Former MP Chris Leslie, who is behind the proposals, argues consumers could help the UK out of the economic slump.

 

Progress, an independent group made up of Labour Party members and trade unionists, promotes modernising ideas and policies.

 

Mr Leslie, a friend of Prime Minister Gordon Brown, says 2009 should be the defining year of the recession and argues prompt activity by investors and consumers could kick-start the economy.

 

As well as a stamp duty holiday for properties worth up to £1m, he recommends cutting the capital gains tax rate on new investments from 18% to 10%.

 

He also wants Jobseeker's Allowance to be increased by £10. Current payments range from £47.95 to £94.95 a week, depending on age and status.

 

The paper by Progress recommends a combination of "£12.5bn of additional support and tax reductions stretching to all sectors across the economy".

 

It also encourages the chancellor to add "a further £7.5bn in capital infrastructure investment in the current spending review period".

 

Mr Leslie said: "The ideas we suggest are designed to 'define' 2009 as the bottom of the recession.

 

"Doing nothing would cost us all dear in the long run. Injecting money into the economy in 2009 will allow the country to return to growth more quickly than if we let the market continue to spiral downwards, which would lead to even greater budget deficits in the longer term.

 

"We hope that the chancellor will look seriously at these ideas but we are under no illusions about the difficult task he faces in an era of global recession and international credit dysfunction."

 

On Wednesday, the prime minister said Britain was working with world leaders towards a "global deal and grand bargain" to deal with the economic downturn ahead of the G20 economic summit in London in April.

 

I hope this isnt a warm up debate for the Budget, as its not until Wednesday 22nd April.

 

Once the mainstream media get hold of this story the whole housing market will grind to a halt untill Labour confirm that " Stamp Duty " will be stopped and the nice tax man will give you a cool grand for buying a house. Didnt they learn their lesson last time ?? Wasn't Alister Darling forced into confirming the raising of the stamp duty threshold ????

 

I can see current housing chains just collapsing.

 

Maybe they want to crash the market further.

 

 

[drbubb]

REMEMBER WHEN all those immigrants into the UK were going to keep property rising?

 

UK Poles return home

"Friendly team of hard-working Polish builders. Call Jacob", read the flyers that were regularly dropped through the letter boxes of a British suburban town

 

As the country slides deeper into recession, the building trade contracts and the pound plummets against the zloty, there is little reason for many of the estimated 700,000 Poles who flocked to Britain after their country joined the EU in 2004 to remain.

 

The builders and plumbers have packed up their trowels and spanners and are heading east now that the main purpose for moving to the Britain – making money to send back home – has been taken away.

 

There is, however, another inconspicuous contingent that is departing British shores. They are the educated, middle-class Poles who have decided that Britain is no longer a land of opportunity and it is time to return to the country of Copernicus and Pope John Paul II.

 

Teachers, hotel managers, vets and bankers are all among the 200,000 Poles who have gone home in the past year, according to the Federation of Poles in Great Britain.

 

"I think more people will come back if they lose their jobs in the UK or are offered well-paid jobs in Poland," said Andrzej Rynkovski, a market research analyst in Warsaw who returned two months ago.

 

Mr Rynkovski, who has a degree in finance and banking from the Warsaw School of Economics, spent three "enjoyable" years in England working for AC Nielsen, mostly at Tesco's headquarters in Cheshunt, Hertfordshire.

 

"I doubled my pay when I moved to England," he said. "But the pound has fallen from seven zlotys to four, so it's not so good if you want to send money back to Poland."

 

Britain might be struggling with recession, but the Polish economy has performed well since it joined the EU, helped by billions of pounds in EU grants for roads and other big infrastructure projects.

 

The credit crunch has not had anything like the impact it had in the United Kingdom because Poland's mortgage market is still young and banks have not handed out loans as recklessly as their British counterparts.

 

/more: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/...eturn-home.html

[chazza]

There's a bit of bullisheness in todays Sunday Times, Money section I think.

 

A roundtable of economists and estate agents, so its nice and impartial. "Seeing a slowdon in the price falls", "One London solicitor has bought 3 flats and believes he has got in at the bottom"....

[G0ldfinger]

I have been to Ocean Terminal today, a large shopping mall in Edinburgh. I only walked through less than a quarter of the mall. Four shops have gone out of business or are closing down. A branch of Sofaworkshop possibly the most prominent one. Seems people start realizing that you only need a new sofa every 30 year if it is high quality and gets some upholstery done every now and then.

[lowrentyieldmakessense(honest!)]

There's a bit of bullisheness in todays Sunday Times, Money section I think.

 

A roundtable of economists and estate agents, so its nice and impartial. "Seeing a slowdon in the price falls", "One London solicitor has bought 3 flats and believes he has got in at the bottom"....

hes not one of those who ripped off the miners is he

 

and why does he think the market has bottomed?

[chazza]

and why does he think the market has bottomed?

 

Yes, this bit was good. Because he went back to see them after buying the first lot to try and buy another. He bought the first 3 for £275, however they are now priced at £350k. So he thinks he may have got in at the bottom.

 

No comment required....

[lowrentyieldmakessense(honest!)]

Yes, this bit was good. Because he went back to see them after buying the first lot to try and buy another. He bought the first 3 for £275, however they are now priced at £350k. So he thinks he may have got in at the bottom.

 

No comment required....

hmm maybe they were mispriced originally

 

if 350k IS todays price then at 21% off he will probably be ok in £'s

[G0ldfinger]

Nice headline.

 

Why is the Government using our money to bribe a bank to puff up a new house price bubble?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-...ice-bubble.html

[Concrete Jungle]

Early 2009 bullishness killed off by this mornings Nationwide figures?

House prices 'fall another 1.8%'

House prices fell by 1.8% in February as confidence in the UK property market failed to pick up, according to the Nationwide building society.

 

The lender said that the average UK property had fallen in value by 17.6% over the past 12 months, to £147,746.

 

Although cuts in interest rates have made mortgage repayments cheaper for some, this has yet to be seen in increased sales, it said.

 

 

Also the BBC ran an article on falling rents in the UK

'Rents down' amid flooded market

The cost of renting a home has dropped as frustrated property sellers have been flooding the market, according to two separate surveys.

 

Owners were choosing to let rather than sell, having accepted that property prices were likely to stay low for some time, said property website Globrix.

 

Cities such as Manchester continue to have an oversupply of new-build apartments, said Findaproperty.com.

 

Its research chief said landlords were adding perks to attract tenants.

 

Extras such as satellite television or cleaners were being included in the rental agreement to make properties more appealing, said Andrew Smith, of Findaproperty.com.

 

Some good news for those of us who just want a home to live in.

[drbubb]

Why is the Government using our money to bribe a bank to puff up a new house price bubble?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-...ice-bubble.html

 

"The quid pro quo is that Lloyds will stump up some extra mortgage funding and small-business loans.

Quite apart from anything else - such as how to identify what counts as ‘new’ lending that would not have happened without this Government generosity - houses are still overvalued and ought to be allowed to find their proper level.

Why on earth is the Government using taxpayers’ money to bribe a large bank to puff up the house-price bubble once more?

This is all a terrible mess. This Government’s economic policy has proved a one-trick pony - the only ‘success’ Ministers understand is a debt-fuelled consumer and housing boom, and to return to that land of lost content they will throw around any amount of our money."

 

The Obvious Reason:

 

To save GoNowGordon's backside, and to preserve Labour's hold on power.

What else could it be?

House orices are too high. Propping them, just delays the inevitable, and wastes money

 

[lupercal]

Anecdotal: I've spoke to two people this week who have recently bought. All first time buyers. No one has said they are trying to sell and struggling. The price falls have attracted buyers.

 

Another two are looking and want to buy soon. I think there will be a bounce.

[frizzers]

My observation of London SW :

 

- transactions are down hugely

- properties are sitting unsold ; when they don't sell they're letting them out

- sellers still believe that 2007 prices or similar will come back in a couple of years

- buyers are unsure what to believe so they're watching and waiting. Some still think this is not a major collapse

- there are very few forced sellers as yet (will these come as interest rates sky rocket - 1 year or so away?)

- a lot of people on tracker mortgages feel quite well off because their monthly payments are down. (For how long?)

- there is fear and lack of understanding everywhere

- estate agents are not earning any commission

- family homes - once the invulnerable sector - have been hit

- prices are down but not have collapsed - we are the road down to the cliff but have not fallen off

 

More when I think of mre

[lupercal]

My sample set is first time buyer properties around 100k in the North West. 2-3 bedrooms on a culdesac in a nice estate but not posh.

 

The city centre flats and BTL flats are getting hammered.

 

The only people I know buying those are newly divorced and want somewhere cheap, easy to keep clean and close to singles bars.

 

London is a different world. Prices there went up far higher for longer.

[tinecu]

My observation of London SW :

 

- transactions are down hugely

- properties are sitting unsold ; when they don't sell they're letting them out

- sellers still believe that 2007 prices or similar will come back in a couple of years

- buyers are unsure what to believe so they're watching and waiting. Some still think this is not a major collapse

- there are very few forced sellers as yet (will these come as interest rates sky rocket - 1 year or so away?)

- a lot of people on tracker mortgages feel quite well off because their monthly payments are down. (For how long?)

- there is fear and lack of understanding everywhere

- estate agents are not earning any commission

- family homes - once the invulnerable sector - have been hit

- prices are down but not have collapsed - we are the road down to the cliff but have not fallen off

 

More when I think of mre

 

you're not kidding:

http://www.home.co.uk/company/press/time_o...or_uk_homes.htm

[id5]

...

Also the BBC ran an article on falling rents in the UK

...

 

Just about to sign a new rental deal for a better quality, larger house +15% sq ft increase, off a private drive, country views, etc. At current house prices it is effectively moving 200K GBP upwards in price to a house that I could not afford the mortgage on. 8% overall increase in rental price from our last centre of village rental but the Landlord has dropped 13.3% from the price that he was previously getting. The agent informed me of another very large property in the nearest town which has just had a decreased of 30% to get someone in to rent it.

 

Look out below

[G0ldfinger]

...

- there are very few forced sellers as yet (will these come as interest rates sky rocket - 1 year or so away?)

- a lot of people on tracker mortgages feel quite well off because their monthly payments are down. (For how long?)

...

Yes, some still feel very smug. I wonder what they will choose to sacrifice: Sterling or the homeowners? So far it seems to be Sterling, but let's wait and see.

[signofthetimes]

Just about to sign a new rental deal for a better quality, larger house +15% sq ft increase, off a private drive, country views, etc. At current house prices it is effectively moving 200K GBP upwards in price to a house that I could not afford the mortgage on. 8% overall increase in rental price from our last centre of village rental but the Landlord has dropped 13.3% from the price that he was previously getting. The agent informed me of another very large property in the nearest town which has just had a decreased of 30% to get someone in to rent it.

 

Look out below

 

I can vouch for falling rents - re-negociated mine down 25% from this month, landlord has other properties vacant and all reduced by similar amount, so he didn't have a leg to stand on !

[G0ldfinger]

My rent went up this month. But for the last 4.5 years I have paid so little, I felt ashamed anyway.

[chazza]

My rent went up this month. But for the last 4.5 years I have paid so little, I felt ashamed anyway.

 

Very ballsy of your landlord, did you not let him know what you thought you could get elsewhere?

[id5]

My rent went up this month. But for the last 4.5 years I have paid so little, I felt ashamed anyway.

 

Bet you told him at sometime that you were heavily into gold, he's noticed just how much your investment has gone up and thought 'He can afford it'!

 

P.S. They always say that you should give a % of your investment to charity, house owners could become a new charity

[G0ldfinger]

Very ballsy of your landlord, did you not let him know what you thought you could get elsewhere?

I seriously think we have the best priced flat in town anyway, even now with the rent increase. I think I got lucky becaused the flat came unfurnished, and most people only would have furniture when they owned a flat, i.e. there was NO demand for this type of flat. If I moved out, in order to really improve, I would almost have to pay double.

[Harvey]

I don’t think falling rents are universal. We’ve had 5 tenancy renewals so far this year and all except one have accepted a rent increase. The one exception had only been in the house for 6 months and they were paying a fair market rent anyway, so we didn't ask for an increase.

 

We’ve also had some tenants who have chosen to move on and on average we have been able to charge a (fractionally) higher rent to the incoming tenant.