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Tag: housing market

2011 is set to be worst year in decades for UK house sales

2011 is set to be worst year in decades for UK house sales

The latest set of residential property transactions figures from HMRC (the Revenue) make for rather gloomy reading. Without a perking up of sales in the final quarter the number of homes sold in 2011 is set be the lower than the slump in 2009. The seasonally adjusted HMRC data show that the number of homes worth more than £40,000 is continuing to slide. And, given the way things seem to work, that means we should not be surprised if fewer…

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The dials are set for a long period of flatlining but high house prices that bodes ill for building

The dials are set for a long period of flatlining but high house prices that bodes ill for building

The latest batch of housing market indicators show no real sign that the UK market overall is either collapsing through concerns over the economy and jobs or rising on lack of supply. The pattern continues of house prices gently sliding nationally. But as the latest report released today by the surveyors’ body RICS shows London remains, in the eyes of estate agents at least, a completely different market to the rest of the UK. In London a positive balance of 25%…

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Housing market seems to be entering a new phase as economic worries grow

Housing market seems to be entering a new phase as economic worries grow

The housing market survey released today by the surveyors’ body RICS adds to other recently released data that all seems to points to a slide in prices everywhere except London – which in housing terms is another country. The RICS data show a negative balance of 23% of those questioned suggesting prices were falling rather over the past three months above those that saw prices rising. This fits with most other house price indicies which suggest that prices are tracking…

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A good planning system is critical, but right now the debate is a massive distraction

A good planning system is critical, but right now the debate is a massive distraction

The battle over planning between the build-more-homes lobby and the forces for countryside conservation is extremely important. It will define, at least in part, where people can live and what our treasured land looks like in the future. It is essential that we have a planning system that efficiently, effectively and more importantly fairly balances the conflicts between development and conservation. But right now the debate over planning is a massive distraction from the real and immediate issue – money. There…

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Don’t read scare stories into the housing figures – we already know things are bad

Don’t read scare stories into the housing figures – we already know things are bad

The latest CLG house building figures for the second quarter of this year seem to be consistent with the view that activity is settling down to a new post-recession lower level. Much has been and is made of the jumps up and down each quarter in the starts and completions figures. But this volatility should be and should have been expected. No more significance should be given to the latest drop in starts than to the buoyancy in the numbers in…

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US foreclosure filings decline in first half of 2011, but the numbers are still scary

US foreclosure filings decline in first half of 2011, but the numbers are still scary

Here are some stats that put the UK housing market plight into perspective. RealtyTrac, an online marketplace for foreclosed properties in the US, yesterday released its mid-year market report. It’s good news of sorts. It shows a 25% drop in foreclosure filing in the first half of 2011 compared with the final half of 2010 and a 29% drop on the first half of 2010. And the graph shows the trend has been down over the past 12 months or…

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Half-term report for the housing market 2011 – fragile and flatlining

Half-term report for the housing market 2011 – fragile and flatlining

The two best words to sum up the picture that emerges from the latest housing market data would probably be fragile and flatlining. The surveys may have slight differences, but they all point to a market in a state of uneasy equilibrium. So, with a steady flow of disappointing economic data of late, this leaves wide open the question of whether the market has the resilience to avoid being tipped again into decline. The graph probably shows you all you…

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Speeding up public land sales by itself will not boost house building

Speeding up public land sales by itself will not boost house building

The Government today announced its plan to release public land with the aim of building 100,000 new homes. In reality the news, if that is what it is, has been dribbling out for some while. Few were opposing the policy of releasing swathes of redundant public land for housing and other development. The previous administration was keen to release land too. But politicians like a good headline. And a sound bite like “I am today announcing plans that will lead…

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Why young folk can’t buy homes

Why young folk can’t buy homes

My patience runs thin when listening to the reasons why young folk can’t buy homes. And today I’ve had to listen to and read various interpretations of why they can’t, prompted by the release of the interesting Halifax sponsored research “The Reality of Generation Rent: Perceptions of the first time buyer market”. Call me unnecessarily reductive, but there is one simple over-riding reason why young folk struggle to buy a home, so simple it seems to be the most often…

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Do the house building figures really show recovery? Well not really

Do the house building figures really show recovery? Well not really

The latest house building statistics published yesterday tell us practically nothing about the prospects for the industry over the year ahead, other than things don’t appear to be getting worse and that we are still a huge distance from where we were three or four years ago. Why then does our housing minister Grant Shapps feel the need to pump up the value of what really are still very flaccid figures for housing starts? He tweeted: “These better house building stats…

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