Property Investment News and Analysis from Dominic Farrell.
Search
This Month
July 2007
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12 13 14
15 16 17 18 19 20 21
22 23 24 25 26 27 28
29 30 31
Year Archive
Login
User name:
Password:
Remember me 
View Article  Average house price £460,000 by 2025

An average house will cost £460,000 in 2025, 2.4 times as much as it does today, according to a report by the centre for economics and business research (cebr).

The Consumer and Housing Prospects report said if the government met its target for building new homes, house price inflation would ...   more »

View Article  Rate rises fail to slow homes market

The housing market slowdown has still not yet arrived, despite fixed-rate mortgages climbing to the highest level since the turn of the millennium, according to new Bank of England figures.

The Bank's own data shows that during June mortgage lending rose at the fastest rate in three months, despite evidence ...   more »

View Article  Economists slash Irish house price forecasts

Irish economists have chopped their forecasts for 2007 house price growth for the second month in a row as the country's property market cools after a decade of jaw-dropping gains, a Reuters survey showed on Thursday.

It also showed a small downward revision in expectations for gross domestic product growth ...   more »

View Article  US economy beats forecasts
The US economy expanded faster than expected in the second quarter, growing by an annual rate of 3.4pc.

The figures showed the economy staging an impressive rebound from the first three months of the year, when GDP grew by just 0.6pc, prompting fears of a recession.

Signs the US economy ...   more »
View Article  House price inflation slips below 10%
House price inflation in the UK slipped below 10% this month as higher interest rates took their toll on the property market, Nationwide building society said today.

Reporting the smallest increase in house prices for more than a year, the Nationwide said the annual rise in the cost of a ...   more »
View Article  Northern Rock predicts house price slowdown

UK's fifth largest mortgage lender says the residential borrowing market is still strong, but pricing will start to cool.

Northern Rock said today that UK mortgage lending was robust but admitted that it expects a slowdown in house prices during the second half of the year.

The bank announced that ...   more »

View Article  Nationwide offers flood advice for homeowners affected by floods

With more flooding expected this weekend, Nationwide Building Society offers tips for homeowners who could be affected.

Nationwide recommends those affected by flood waters should:

• Inform their insurer as soon as possible - some insurers have a 24 hour helpline for policyholders to call if in need of advice
• Carry ...   more »

View Article  Govt unveils £8bn housing plans

The government has announced details of an £8 billion investment in the housing market as it seeks to build tens of thousands of new homes.

Aimed at first-time buyers, the reforms are designed to improve the supply of housing, meaning more people can get on to the property ladder.

Housing ...   more »

View Article  Bank of England Governor ‘wants house prices in inflation’

The Governor of the Bank of England has admitted he is 'surprised' that rising house prices are not included in the official inflation figures, according the BBC.

Mervyn King told Radio 4's Money Box programme that he wished the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) – the measure that tracks the cost ...   more »

View Article  Bank must not 'squeeze economy'

The Bank of England's monetary policy committee (MPC) faces a balancing act, an influential forecast group says.

The Ernst & Young Item Club says the strong housing market must be closely watched, but the MPC must not rush into "damaging" interest rate rises.

It is predicting strong GDP growth of ...   more »

View Article  Halifax ups house price forecast

Halifax, the UK's biggest mortgage lender, has raised its house price inflation forecast for the year from 4% to 6%, despite higher interest rates.

Halifax is part of the HBOS group and made the change after house prices rose faster in the first six months of the year than it ...   more »

View Article  Invest 50% Below Market Value, only in the next 5 minutes – Hurry!

Dear Investor

Yes I thought you would open this one!

I often come across property sales companies offering me and their clients properties 20% or 30% or 40% and indeed 50% discount to market value.

I must admit that this sales and marketing technique, which in the main is what ...   more »

View Article  Annual Property Investment Conference to be held in London

Jet to Let Magazine’s Annual Property Investment Conference will be held on Saturday 8th September 2007, at The Hilton London Metropole.

 

Attendance to the inaugural conference is open to anyone, and is aimed at investors wanting to take advantage of the strong returns available from well-targeted overseas property investments. ...   more »

View Article  Brokers predict strong growth for 100% LTV mortgage

Research by Alliance & Leicester Mortgages reveals that more than three quarters (78%) of brokers predict the 100% plus LTV mortgage and personal loan market will grow within the next two years.

Overall, brokers expect business volumes in the combined mortgage and personal loan market to grow by 9.4 per ...   more »

View Article  Think before you sign – Government issues flood insurance warning

Floods Recovery Minister John Healey has urged people in flood-hit communities to seek free and impartial insurance advice before signing up with third parties who offer to help settle insurance claims.

Publishing information setting out how people can access free insurance advice he warned that accepting help from third parties ...   more »

View Article  UK economy grows for 60 consecutive quarters

The Office of National Statistics will NS will this week publish its preliminary GDP estimate for 2007 Quarter 2. These figures are expected to confirm that the UK economy has grown for an unprecedented 60th successive quarter. 

No other OECD economy can match the UK's unbroken 15 years of positive ...   more »

View Article  CML reports highest mortgage lending on record

Gross mortgage lending reached a new record of £34.2 billion in June - up from £31.4 billion in May - according to data from the Council of Mortgage Lenders. This is due to seasonal effects and borrowers’ response to higher interest rates. Although lending in June was up by 9% ...   more »

View Article  Fed raises stagflation fears

Ben Bernanke, the chairman of the US Federal Reserve, has painted a gloomy picture of slowing growth and rising inflation, causing a sharp sell-off on Wall Street as investors sniff a nasty whiff of stagflation.
  
Ben Bernanke cut his 2007 growth forecast from an upper ceiling of 3pc to ...   more »

View Article  Agents report subdued housing market

The National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) released figures from its latest housing market survey today, revealing a slightly subdued residential housing market in June, as consumers demonstrated apprehension about the coming month’s economic developments.

Both registered buyers and the number of properties on estate agents’ books decreased slightly in ...   more »

View Article  House price inflation ‘more than halves’

House price growth eased in June to half the pace of the previous month and demand weakened due to the impact of rate hikes, says the RICS UK Housing Market Survey.

House prices rose for the 20th consecutive month in June but the rate of growth more than halved, falling ...   more »

View Article  Buy to Let investors hail profits increase

New research from Birmingham Midshires shows that the average total return for a buy to let (BTL) investor was 13.0% over the past year to June 2007 (exclusive of fees and mortgage interest costs). This is up slightly from a total return of 11.9% for the year to June 2006. ...   more »

View Article  Survey shows a market full of dissatisfied householders

Savills research has today released findings from its UK Housing Market Survey, which shows a market full of dissatisfied householders wanting bigger, better homes who are constrained by high prices and a lack of supply. The survey was sent to a random sample of nearly 500 households across the UK ...   more »

View Article  Torrential rain causes acute shortage of rental properties in flood affected areas

The aftermath of the recent weeks nationwide flooding can now be seen in full pelt with an estimated 27,000 homes and 5,000 businesses* having been affected by the torrential rains that swept across the UK. Additionally, it is believed that the cost of damage to homes in the UK could ...   more »

View Article  CIH to Lead Research on Management of Land Supply

New research will contribute to meeting the target of 3 million new homes by 2020, announced by Gordon Brown last week. The work will help key players in delivery of new affordable housing to increase the speed and output of development by better managing the supply of land.

The Housing ...   more »

View Article  Homeowners warned: more mortgage rate rises are on the way
Millions of homeowners are facing further mortgage misery. Economists said today another increase in the cost of borrowing is almost certain and could come next month.

It would be the sixth since last August and take the Bank of England's base rate from its present 5.75 per cent to six ...   more »
View Article  Inflation dips but stays in the danger zone

UK inflation eased lower last month, thanks to a fall in utility bills. But price pressures in the underlying data mean the Bank of England is still likely to raise interest rates in the coming months, analysts said, with another rate hike possible as early as next month.

Consumer Price ...   more »

View Article  RIBA in call for ‘bigger and better’ homes

The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is calling for the introduction of minimum space standards for all new homes in England and Wales – a crucial anomaly which sees England and Wales lagging behind the rest of the EU and even Japan. The proposal is a significant element of ...   more »

View Article  Buy-to-let delivers 13% annual return

Buy-to-let investors made healthy returns of 13% in the past year thanks to rising house prices bolstering falling rental returns, according to a new report.

Landlords saw their properties' value rise by an average of 7.3%, while receiving an average of 5.5% of its value in rent in the year ...   more »

View Article  House price growth 'slowing down'

The brakes are still on in the Northern Ireland housing market, the latest study has indicated.

Houses are no longer being sold in a matter of days with prices 25% over the asking price, the report suggests.

The RICS (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors) and Ulster Bank housing survey suggests ...   more »

View Article  Dominic Farrell - Jet-to-Let Conference

Dear Investor,

I hope you had a great weekend and managed to catch the up with the sun when it made its annual appearance for 5 minutes at precisely 1.25pm. Alas, the British weather!

We had a tremendous response to the e-newsletter last week promoting the Jet-to-Let Magazine Conference Saturday 8th ...   more »

View Article  Housing is the ‘Major Polluter’
With over a quarter of all UK CO2 emissions (27%) coming from houses, the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) has challenged the Government to take action to help people make changes to their homes.

Following environmentalist and broadcaster Dick Strawbridge’s keynote presentation at the CIH’s Annual UK Conference and Exhibition, ...   more »
View Article  House price inflation more than halves
House price growth eased in June to half the pace of the previous month and demand weakened due to the impact of rate hikes, says the RICS UK Housing Market Survey.

House prices rose for the 20th consecutive month in June but the rate of growth more than halved, falling ...   more »
View Article  ‘1 in 5’ chance of house price crash

There is a one in five chance the housing market will crash in the next two years, according to new research by a leading bank.

Bank of America reckons house prices are 20 percent overvalued and there are now signs that the market is peaking.

"Leading indicators and our own ...   more »

View Article  Bank of Japan votes against interest rate rise

The Bank of Japan on Thursday voted 8-1 to leave interest rates unchanged.

Analysts were divided as to whether the vote meant the bank was less likely to lift rates to 0.75 per cent at its next meeting in August. Bond and currency markets barely budged after the meeting while ...   more »

View Article  Dollar falls again amid growing US fears

The dollar remained under strong pressure on the foreign exchange markets last night as fresh concerns were raised about the vulnerability of Wall Street to the crumbling American housing market.
With the pound trading at its highest level against the dollar since 1981, the credit rating agency Moody's said it ...   more »

View Article  Lender answers 25-year loan call

Nationwide has relaunched its 25-year fixed-rate mortgage, after the government said it wanted to see more long-term mortgages on offer.

Borrowers will be able to fix their interest rate at 6.39% for the full 25-year term.

The Nationwide said the mortgages provided a mixture of "stability and flexibility" for borrowers. ...   more »

View Article  Empty homes exacerbate housing supply issue

420,000 dwellings stand empty in a state of disrepair – equivalent to more than the number of households in Birmingham – according to the most recent research by propertyfinder.com. Meanwhile, the recent Barker report states that there is a shortfall of 600,000 homes for England’s current needs, let alone predicted ...   more »

View Article  Barratt upbeat despite tight market

Barratt Developments has warned that the property market will "tighten" but remains confident, reporting a 15pc rise in reservations and predicting "robust" pre-tax profits.

The housebuilder, which acquired rival Wilson Bowden earlier this year, has joined some of its peers in admitting that, "going forward it would be prudent to ...   more »

View Article  Yen slips after BoJ holds rates

The yen struggled on Thursday after the Bank of Japan voted 8-1 in favour of leaving interest rates on hold at 0.5 per cent.

That only one member of the rate-setting committee voted for a 25 basis points increase came as a surprise, and raised doubts over widely-held expectations of ...   more »

View Article  The iron currency

Sterling yesterday hit a new high against the dollar of $2.03, having managed for two weeks to stay above $2 - a level it had breached for the first time since 1981. The recent rise, though eye-catching, is small in the context of the pound's vigour over the past decade, ...   more »

View Article  Brown pledges 3m new homes

Gordon Brown today put housing at the heart of his first legislative programme as he promised 3m additional homes by 2020.

The new premier broke with tradition by outlining his plans for the next parliamentary session ahead of the Queen's speech, with a Commons statement that increased the government's existing ...   more »

View Article  Britons 'clueless' on overseas property laws

Britons considering buying a second home abroad are largely oblivious of the local housing laws that would affect them, a survey has shown.

New research claims that 51% of 35 to 44-year-olds would not consider local planning regulations when in the market for an overseas property.

Foreign Currency Direct, which ...   more »

View Article  Overall house price growth to ‘slow’ in 2007

According to Nationwide’s quarterly index, all regions of the UK have witnessed growth in the second quarter of 2007.

House prices in parts of Northern Ireland are now on a par with London, but growth has dropped from the all-time record high of the first quarter.  As illustrated in the ...   more »

View Article  UK sub-prime mortgage market set to grow

The sub-prime mortgage market is set to grow as an increasing number of borrowers struggle with making payments in the mainstream credit market, a report says.

Gross advances in sub-prime lending -- sums lent to individuals at the least creditworthy end of the credit spectrum -- rose 28 percent to ...   more »

View Article  Fixed rates more popular as affordability worsens

With the issue of long-term fixed-rate mortgages high on the political agenda, new data from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) shows that the appetite for short-term fixed-rate deals is still strong among first-time buyers and home movers. The survey revealed that 89% of first-time buyers and 73% of home ...   more »

View Article  Effective planning system ‘essential’

An effective planning system is vital in order to respond to the current housing crisis in the UK, according to Galliford Homes.

Whilst John Prescott may have only been giving permission to developers for green belt land to be built under special circumstances, Chris Coates, a Managing Director of Galliford ...   more »

View Article  House prices stagnate in Northern England

Nationwide’s quarterly assessment of housing market illustrates stark regional differences in price growth.

The North-South divide in house prices continues to widen, according to a report published today, as buoyant conditions in London and the South East drive prices ever higher while property values stagnate in northern cities such as ...   more »

View Article  Mortgage shake-up to tackle homes crisis

Ministers plan to shake-up Britain's mortgage market as part of a three-pronged approach to tackle the crisis in affordable housing that is posing a threat to the economy and triggering a political backlash, the chancellor, Alistair Darling, said last night.

Mr Darling said Labour would issue proposals shortly to boost ...   more »

View Article  Rate hike hits homeowners hard

Homeowners will find it harder to make ends meet after the latest interest rate rise.

Homeowners with a typical £100,000 mortgage will have to pay £80 more on monthly repayments than they did last summer because of the latest interest rate hike.

The Bank of England's move will - if ...   more »

View Article  New jobs hint at US recovery

The United States added 132,000 new jobs last month, suggesting the economy is continuing to bounce back after weakness earlier in the year and despite the current housing market doldrums.

The gains in previous months were also revised sharply higher, but in welcome news, average hourly earnings rose just $0.06 ...   more »

View Article  Cost of fixed rate mortgages set to rise sharply

The cost of fixed rate mortgages looks set to rise sharply next week after banks and building societies started withdrawing products in response to Thursday's bank rate rise.

Mortgage brokers were today reporting that several big-name lenders including Abbey and Alliance & Leicester had withdrawn all or some of their ...   more »

View Article  Dominic Farrell - Robert Kiyosaki & South Larnaca Golf and Spa Resort

Dear Investor,

It’s been a few weeks since the last e-newsletter. Over that time I have been on and off aeroplanes, had an enjoyable day with a wealth club I speak to and also, with my staff and a couple of friends, ran a 3 day investment seminar in London ...   more »

View Article  Migration of money to projects overseas

Investors who feel the UK property market is running out of steam can tap into an increasing number of overseas funds, which are springing up to offer exposure to property markets as diverse as Vietnam and Cambodia, Macedonia and Malta.

The last two years have seen around £7bn of equity ...   more »

View Article  Third of FTB income goes on mortgage

First-time buyers (FTBs) are now paying almost a third of their total household take-home income on their mortgages, according to Woolwich.

In some parts of London the mortgage burden for people in their 20s has risen to almost 50 per cent of take-home income.

The huge cost of borrowing to ...   more »

View Article  Parliament to discuss licensing of estate agents

An Early Day Motion calling for all estate agents to be licensed has been tabled by Sheffield MP Clive Betts.

‘Whilst I welcome that the Consumers, Estate Agents and Redress Bill will provide a mandatory redress scheme, I feel it would be far better if we had a mandatory licensing ...   more »

View Article  London house prices flat in June

London house prices remained muted in June due to the rise in interest rates, with average house prices increasing by only 0.7% from £264,801 to £266,710.

The latest data from Haart estate agents revealed that buyers have become increasingly price sensitive in anticipation of further interest rise.

Year on year ...   more »

View Article  Rates 'boost' for buy-to-let sector

Rising interest rates are boosting the buy-to-let sector as first-time buyers are priced out of the market, says a new report.

Five interest rate hikes in the past year, combined with rising property prices, are making it easier for landlords to let their properties, as would-be buyers have to settle ...   more »

View Article  UK interest rates raised to 5.75%
The Bank of England has raised UK interest rates from 5.5% to 5.75%, its fifth rate rise since last August.

Its Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) warned that inflation remains a danger, saying "most indicators of pricing pressure remain elevated".

Some analysts have taken that to mean there may be a ...   more »
View Article  CAB report is ‘unrepresentative’

The Residential Landlords Association - one of the UK's leading professional organisations for private sector landlords - has hit back at an "unrepresentative" new report from the Citizens' Advice Bureau.

The CAB argues that many private tenants put up with poor housing through fear because some landlords evict tenants in ...   more »

View Article  UK economy still growing strongly

Consumer spending remained strong during the first quarter of the year. The UK economy grew at an annual rate of 3% in the first quarter of the year, higher than most other major economies.

Gross domestic product (GDP) grew at 0.7% during the period from the previous quarter, the Office ...   more »

View Article  New law will ‘clean up Spanish property industry’

A new Spanish law brought into force on the 1st July has been designed to bring greater transparency to the planning system and increase confidence in the Spanish property industry.

This new Spanish law, which covers the Land Legal System, Property Valuation, and Citizens Rights and Duties, will address the ...   more »

View Article  Housing market sentiment may be turning, survey warns
House prices in June grew at the slowest rate since December as rising interest rates caused the booming London market to steady slightly, according to a survey released this morning.

Hometrack, the property research company, said that June house prices rose by 0.3pc month-on-month, which is half the increase seen ...   more »
View Article  Housing is the Major Polluter
With over a quarter of all UK CO2 emissions (27%) coming from houses, the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) has challenged the Government to take action to help people make changes to their homes.

Following environmentalist and broadcaster Dick Strawbridge’s keynote presentation at the CIH’s Annual UK Conference and Exhibition, ...   more »
View Article  Lenders 'taking advantage of first-time-buyers'

First-time buyers are being caught out by mortgage lenders' propensities to offer valuation-free deals - only to re-coup their losses by upping the rate of interest on the products in question.

According to price comparison website Moneyfacts, lenders are taking advantage of the fact that many first-time buyers are unable ...   more »

View Article  Bank of England set to raise rates

The Bank of England is expected to raise interest rates this week for the fifth time in a year as it battles to curb price pressures in the fast-growing economy.

A Reuters poll shows 56 of 70 economists expect rates to rise to 5.75 percent on Thursday and almost half ...   more »