Posts with tag: property

House of the Year Revealed

Published On: November 27, 2015 at 2:17 pm

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The winner of the Royal Institute of British Architects’ (RIBA) House of the Year has been named as Flint House in Buckinghamshire.

Lord Rothschild commissioned the wedge-shaped property, designed by architects Skene Catling De La Pena, for his family.

The house rises out of the ground with step-style roofing that disappears upwards.

Judges described the property as “a marvel of geological evolution and construction… a celebration of location, material and architectural design at its best”.

It is located within the grounds of Lord Rothschild’s estate at Waddesdon Manor. It was built using masonry and flint cladding.

The home is split into a main house and annexe. The RIBA says it is “an intriguing and intelligent mixed application of rooftops, terraces and recesses that combine to deliver a stunning piece of liveable, provoking, modern architecture that marries into the earthly yet beautiful countryside”.

The judges add: “This is a beautiful addition to a beautiful landscape.”1

President of the RIBA, Jane Duncan, says: “The shortlist for the RIBA’s House of the Year represents a remarkable diversity of architectural skills and outcomes.

“I am delighted that Skene Catling De La Pena’s Flint House for Lord Rothschild has won this year’s prize. Although superbly original and unique, it continues a fine tradition of RIBA award-winning houses that provide exemplars for others – architects, clients and developers. Congratulations to all involved.”1

Take a look at some of the runners up in our story on London property: /london-homes-up-for-the-house-of-the-year-prize/

1 https://www.architecture.com/StirlingPrize/Awards2015/House%20of%20the%20Year/RIBAHouseoftheYear2015.aspx

London Help To Buy Scheme Announced

Published On: November 27, 2015 at 10:18 am

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In the Autumn Statement, the Help to Buy scheme was altered slightly to assist first-time buyers looking to purchase property in the capital.

The scheme is very similar to the existing Help to Buy equity loan, but now, those looking to buy in London can borrow up to 40% of the home’s value, instead of the previous 20%.

Changes

London Help To Buy will apply to new properties worth up to £600,000 in any of the capital’s boroughs and the City of London. Applicants have to be eligible for a mortgage in order to qualify for the scheme. In addition, mortgages must be for at least 25% of the overall property value.

Adrian Anderson, director of mortgage broker Anderson Harris, commented that, ‘Help to Buy has been hugely successful across the country but hasn’t had such a big impact in the capital because property prices are that much higher. Offering a 40% interest-free loan to London buyers will make a huge difference, enabling many to get on the housing ladder when they simply couldn’t before.’[1]

London Help To Buy Scheme Announced

London Help To Buy Scheme Announced

‘Take the example of a one-bed flat in Camberwell on the market at £360,000. A 5% deposit works out at £18,000 but if you don’t buy via Help to Buy, you then need to raise a mortgage for the remainder, which requires earnings of circa £85,000, pricing out many buyers,’ Anderson continued. ‘Under London Help To Buy, a 40% interest-free loan would be available, leaving you with a mortgage of just £198,000 to raise. This could be done with an income of £50,000, which is much more achievable in the capital,’ he concluded.[1]

[1] https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2015/11/london-help-to-buy-scheme-launche

 

 

 

Housing group moves to get around tax

Published On: November 24, 2015 at 10:30 am

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A housing group has devised a controversial method in trying to get around paying the Bedroom Tax.

Cobalt Housing, from Liverpool, has started knocking down walls in their properties in order to create ‘smaller’ homes.

Falls

The group says that since the Tax was introduced, demand for many of their properties has dropped.

With 70% of the groups’ 6,000 properties being three-bedroom homes, they are now moving to convert these into two-bedroom houses in order to fill empty properties.

Managing Director of Cobalt, Alan Rogers, told the Liverpool Echo that his firm was struggling as people either couldn’t afford homes or did not qualify, with children under 10 expected to share rooms.

Rogers noted, ‘empty properties in the area present a problem for us as they are open to vandalism and they quickly become uncared for and derelict. If people saw loads of tinned-up properties, they wouldn’t buy and we don’t get income from empty properties.’[1]

Housing group moves to get around tax

Housing group moves to get around tax

Costly

Conversions of the properties cost between £700-£800, with this figure expected to rise to £1,300 next year as other improvements are carried out.

To date, Cobalt has completed conversions on 83 properties, with plans outlined to covert another 120 three-bedrooms properties to more spacious two-bedroom homes.

Mr Rogers said that the tax was unfair, stating, ‘the problem with the Bedroom Tax is that it is retrospective, it isn’t fair as it affects people who didn’t expect it when they signed a tenancy. The rent will be less but it is sustainable outcome as the houses will be let.’[1]

‘We are looking to find other ways to make housing affordable such as doing away with pre-paid meters, ‘ he added.[1]

Short-term

Rogers went on to explain that houses in the Norris Green area were only providing short-term housing for people following the cuts. He stated that, ‘people now have difficult choices to make, like whether to pay their rent, their bills or food. We want to get a better dwelling mix-different sizes of families and backgrounds-to create a community and once people move into their homes, we want them to stay.’[1]

‘We have got demand, we have let our homes, but we have lost money. It is not going to be the solution for everyone but it is about supporting who we can,’ he concluded.[1]

What are your views on this controversial move?

[1] http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/housing-association-beats-bedroom-tax-6878308

 

 

UK house prices rise 6.1% in year

Published On: November 17, 2015 at 2:21 pm

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Property prices increased by 6.1% in the twelve months to September 2015, according to the latest data released by the Office for National Statistics.

This represented a rise from the 5.5% recorded in August and 5.2% in July, bringing the average house price in the UK to £286,000.

Slowdown

However, this is still much slower than one year ago, when prices were rising by in excess of 12%. What’s more, the results differ from those revealed in a recent survey from the Halifax and the Nationwide respectively, with these surveys indicating prices rose by just 8.6% and 3.8% respectively.[1]

The Office for National Statistics figures indicate that prices rose mostly in Northern Ireland (10.2%) and the East of England (8.4%).

By region, house prices were found to have risen by the following amounts over the course of the year:

Regional House Prices
Region Annual % change Average house price
UK 6.1% £286,000
England 6.4% £299,000
Wales 1.1% £175,000
Scotland 1.1% £199,000
Northern Ireland 10.2% £162,000
North East England 1.8% £158,000
North West 4.2% £184,000
Yorks and Humber 4.6% £186,000
East Midlands 3.6% £196,000
West Midlands 4.5% £207,000
East 8.4% £309,000
London 7.2% £531,000
South East 7.4% £359,000
South West 6% £263,000

[1]

UK house prices rise 6.1% in year

UK house prices rise 6.1% in year

Uncertain future

John Hawksworth, chief economist of PricewaterhouseCoopers, noted that house price inflation is now running at twice the pace of average earnings. He said, ‘the ongoing rise in house prices reinforces our projections that, by 2025, only around a quarter of 20-39 year olds in England may be owner occupiers, compared to around three quarters of over-55 year olds.’[1]

In addition, former chairman of RICS, Jeremy Leaf, believes that the housing market is in the process of re-energising itself. Leaf commented that, ‘with the average property price in London now £531,000, unless you earn way above the national average salary, you have precious little hope of being in a position to buy.’[1]

‘Generation Rent is being left out in the cold: they have aspirations to buy but are being pushed further away from their goal,’ he added.[1]

[1] http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-34842248

 

Most-common property deal breakers

Published On: November 17, 2015 at 12:14 pm

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Aggressive sellers. Lousy letting agents. Nightmare neighbours. These are just some of the biggest deal-breakers highlighted in a new survey.

Data from a poll of UK adults by property guide website SellingUp.com reveals that 42% of potential home buyers would pull out of a deal due to a rude seller. 28% said that they would punish the vendor by reducing their original offer.

Costly cause

An unpleasant or annoying estate agent was found to be as costly for sellers, with 35% considering this a reason to call-off a deal, with 19% this represented grounds for making a lower offer.

The stereotypical neighbour from hell was a large for making would-be buyers pull out of a deal, with 70% citing this as the case.

However, this was not top of the list. 77% said poor security was the main potential deal-breaker.

The top-ten reasons by percentage for potential deals falling through were found to be:

  • Poor security (77%)
  • A bad energy rating (75%)
  • Noisy neighbours (70%)
  • Bad mobile phone signal (53%)
  • Pests (44%)
  • Messy garden (42%)
  • Rude seller (42%)
  • Aeroplane noise (41%)
  • Being next door to a cemetery (31%)
  • Located on an embarrassing street name (25%)
Most-common property deal breakers

Most-common property deal breakers

Informed decisions

‘The aim of the survey was to remind sellers to think like a buyer when marketing their property and try to sort out as many flaws as they can,’ remarked Oliver Lewis, SellingUp.com’s research manager ‘Also, we wanted to help buyers make better informed decisions when purchasing, especially for investment and think about the less high profile issues that could affect resale value.’[1]

‘When sellers are getting ready to put their property on the market, they are always being told to tidy up and make the place presentable, but there are many more factors they need to consider if they want to attract the widest number of buyers,’ he continued.[1]

Lewis also said that, ‘clearly with some ingrained issues like aereoplane noise and a bad mobile signal there is little or nothing the vendor can do. They simply have to hope that the buyer doesn’t notice or care.’[1]

‘On other points like evidence of mice, badly overgrown gardens or poor home security there is much greater scope to take action in advance. Hiring a pest control company, a gardening firm or a security specialist to resolve any problems might cost a few hundred pounds but could save them thousands when selling.’[1]

[1] http://www.propertyreporter.co.uk/household/could-noisy-neighbours-be-a-property-deal-breaker.html

 

 

Perfect Quiz for All Property Lovers

Published On: November 14, 2015 at 2:19 pm

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Would you call yourself a property expert? Or maybe you’re just interested in British homes?

Either way, this quiz is perfect for you. With just a picture and a few details about the home – how many bedrooms it has, the style of property, where it is and its price – you’ll have to decide when the house was built.

Think it’ll be easy? Give it a go here: https://fineandcountry.wordpress.com/2015/11/05/property-quiz-can-you-guess-when-these-homes-were-built/

Perfect Quiz for All Property Lovers

Perfect Quiz for All Property Lovers