Desperate times for house building as starts take a dive
The latest house-building figures for England paint an extremely disturbing picture in the light of the housing strategy launched last year.
Whatever the spin, whatever the weather, the housing market news looks to be getting worse
One thing guaranteed to pull the trigger for even a half-awake journalist is an upbeat spin put on what looks like really duff news. The normal reaction is: “God, things must be bad.” So the “Wet weather fails to deter buyers” headline on the press release for the RICS Housing Market Survey immediately had me worried.
Housing market hits a boggy patch
Most of the recently released housing indicators suggest the market is going through a boggy patch and today’s survey from the surveyors’ body RICS seems to add support to that view.
Renovation and green agenda support weak construction activity across Europe
The Euroconstruct conference held earlier this month in London provided lashings of gloom, but it also provided plenty of food for thought. The twice-yearly conference brings together the thoughts and expectations of construction economic research groups covering 19 European countries. I have not been for many years and forgot how useful it was to look at the similarities and differences between countries. Even if you are not that interested in other European construction markets, seeing how they are performing helps…
New towns, greater homeownership and localism heavy: a possible Labour housing strategy?
Business Secretary Vince Cable has in recent weeks upped the debate on house building and yesterday called together a mix of top folk from across the housing spectrum to chat about ideas for financing more homes. It’s encouraging. It indicates that the Government is eager to improve the wretched state of house building. But it’s also worrying. Last November the Coalition launched a “radical and unashamedly ambitious” housing strategy for England. What of that?
Awful house building figures put the Shapps Gold Standard further in doubt
The latest official house building figures came out today. With the exception of the housing minister Grant Shapps they seem almost universally to have been greeted with great concern. To put it bluntly, they’re awful.
Average house prices may be stable, but the figures hide trouble
Much fuss is made over the monthly ups and downs of housing price indicators. But in reality those released recently suggest the average UK house price remains more or less locked at the steady altitude it has followed for more than a year. Taking a consensus from the plethora of available measures suggests an average home costs you today within 1% (probably 1% less) of what it would have cost a year ago and more or less the same as…
Has the Office for Budget Responsibility misread the housing market?
There seems to be a fair chance the Office for Budget Responsibility’s view of the housing market may be badly awry. Why would that be that bad? 1. Because it potentially supports a complacent attitude among policy makers towards problems within the housing market. 2. Because it may well leave the Chancellor a few billion pounds light on stamp duty in a few years time. But before galumphing into why the OBR may be wrong it’s worth making a couple…
By how many will NewBuy boost house building numbers?
Praised in some quarters and vilified in others, NewBuy appears to have been misunderstood and over-hyped. It’s not, for instance, as some think primarily a way to get first-time buyers (FTBs) on the housing ladder and it will not generate 100,000 “extra” new homes over the next three years. It is in essence an allocation of the overall mortgage pot supported by an indemnity fund that is design to provide high loan-to-value mortgages to buy new-build homes. But while it…
Why calling for housing QE is not special pleading: Part 2
If growing calls to use quantitative easing to directly stimulate weaker parts of the economy lead to a change in approach by the Bank of England it would leave a tricky question. That’s the question Sir Mervyn King, the Bank’s Governor, threw back at Treasury Committee member Andy Love last week. He asked: “Can you give me an example of the asset you think we should be purchasing. I asked the previous Chancellor and got no reply.” Mr Love gave…