Tax Break Extension Revives Housing Market Boom

The unexpected extension of a tax break for property purchases in Rishi Sunak’s budget last month has revived a fading boom in housing market activity, a survey shows. The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors said its monthly gauge of house prices - based on the reports of surveyors across the country - rose in March to +59 from +52 in February. Other measures of Britain’s housing market have suggested that activity in the housing market was fading before the planned expiry of a temporary cut to property purchase tax, known as stamp duty, at the end of March. Read more on the Reuters website.

https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-economy-houseprices/tax-break-extension-revives-uk-housing-market-boom-rics-idUSKBN2BU3K4

Housing Market Boom Loses Steam

The boom in Britain’s housing market cooled sharply in January as the country went back into coronavirus lockdown and a tax break for buyers neared its expiry. House price growth slowed more than expected by economists polled by Reuters and prices in London fell for the first time since July. A measure of properties hitting the market was the second-weakest on record, excluding a slump during the first lockdown last year when the sector was closed along with much of the rest of the economy. Near-term sales expectations were close to a pre-pandemic record low. New buyer enquires and agreed sales also fell. Read more on the Reuters website.

https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-economy-houseprices/uk-housing-market-boom-loses-steam-rics-idUSKBN2AB00O 

UK House Prices Fall For First Time Since June

British house prices fell in January for the first time in seven months, before the scheduled March 31 end of a tax cut for buyers, according to mortgage lender Nationwide, adding that the market could weaken sharply in the months ahead. House prices fell by a monthly 0.3%, slowing the pace of their annual increase to 6.4% from 7.3% in December, which was their biggest jump in six years. Economists had expected a monthly increase of 0.3% and a 6.9% rise in annual terms. Read more on the Reuters website.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-economy-houseprices-idUSKBN2A20PB

Escape To The Countryside To Drive UK Housing Activity

British house prices will flatline this year as a property sales tax cut is due to expire and unemployment is expected to rise, according to property market analysts polled by Reuters who said activity would be driven by a desire for more living space. Like much of the world, Britons have endured months of tough lockdown restrictions to try to stop the coronavirus from spreading and having been cooped up indoors, with many working from home. Some of those who can afford to now wish to move. Read more on the Reuters website.

https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-property-poll/an-escape-to-the-countryside-to-drive-uk-housing-activity-reuters-poll-idUSKBN2A206B 

House Prices Dip As Sellers Seek Deals Before Tax Break Ends

Rightmove said asking prices for residential property fell in December and early January ahead of the expiry of a tax cut for buyers, but the country’s booming housing market remained busy. Prices for houses and apartments advertised between Dec. 6 and Jan. 9 were down by 0.9% from the previous month, slowing the annual pace of growth to 3.3% from 6.6% a month earlier, Rightmove said. But the number of buyers contacting agents was up by 12% and the sales agreed were up by 9% in January so far compared with the same period a year earlier, when the market was also strong. Read more on the Reuters website.

https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-economy-houseprices/uk-house-prices-dip-as-sellers-seek-deals-before-tax-break-ends-rightmove-idUSKBN29N006 

Mortgages Hit 13-Year High, But Consumers Wary About Borrowing

Lenders approved the most mortgages in more than 13 years in October, Bank of England data shows, suggesting no let-up yet in a post-coronavirus lockdown bounce-back in the country’s housing market. But the figures also underscored a broader wariness about day-to-day borrowing among many consumers - whose spending helps drive the economy - as the country was hit by a second wave of COVID-19 cases. Mortgage approvals for house purchase hit 97,532, up from 92,091 in September and higher than all forecasts in a Reuters poll of economists. Read more on the Reuters website.

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-health-coronavirus-britain-economy/uk-mortgages-hit-13-year-high-but-consumers-wary-about-borrowing-idUKKBN28A127

UK Mortgage Approvals Hit 13-Year High

British lenders approved the highest number of mortgages since September 2007 last month, unexpectedly extending a post-lockdown surge, but there was a record drop in unsecured lending to consumers, Bank of England data shows. Mortgage approvals for house purchase jumped to 91,454 in September from August’s already-high reading of 85,530, exceeding all forecasts in a Reuters poll of economists that had instead pointed to a decline. Activity in Britain’s housing market has rebounded sharply since the end of lockdown restrictions and was further fuelled when finance minister Rishi Sunak temporarily suspended property purchase taxes in July. Read more on the Reuters website.

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-economy-consumercredit/uk-mortgage-approvals-hit-13-year-high-consumer-lending-slides-idUKKBN27E1G3

UK House Prices Rise At Fastest Annual Pace Since 2016

 British house prices rose last month at the fastest annual pace since June 2016 in the latest sign of a post-coronavirus lockdown surge in the housing market, data from mortgage lender Halifax shows. House prices were 7.3% higher than in September last year, accelerating from annual growth of 5.2% in August. Read more on the Reuters website.

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-economy-houseprices/uk-house-prices-rise-at-fastest-annual-pace-since-2016-halifax-idUKKBN26S122

UK Mortgage Approvals Jump As Housing Market Bounces Back

Mortgage lending accelerated in July, a latest sign of a post-lockdown bounce-back in the housing market, and consumers returned to borrowing, data from the Bank of England shows. Mortgage approvals jumped to 66,300 from just under 40,000 in June and seven times higher than their coronavirus pandemic low of barely more than 9,000 in May, the data showed. Economists polled by Reuters had expected about 55,000 approvals in July. Read more on the Reuters website.

https://uk.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-britain-boe/uk-mortgage-approvals-jump-as-housing-market-bounces-back-idUKKBN25S4CV

British Home Sales Hit Record After Lockdown

Britons bought and sold a record number of homes between mid July and early August as pent-up demand from the coronavirus lockdown and a desire to leave London bucked the usual summer slowdown, industry data shows.  Property website Rightmove, which says it is used by 90% of British estate agents, reported the highest number of home sales agreed since it began tracking the data more than 10 years ago, with transactions more than 20% higher than the previous record. Read more on the Reuters website.

https://uk.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-britain-houseprice/british-home-sales-hit-record-after-lockdown-rightmove-says-idUKKCN25C0WO

UK Housing Boom Gathers Pace, But Fears Of A Bust Grow Too

The rebound in Britain’s housing market gathered more pace in July with a measure of property prices turning positive for the first time since the coronavirus crisis engulfed the country. But the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) said its members were worried the mini-boom could turn into a bust once the government’s jobs subsidy programme closes and a tax cut expires at the end of March. The RICS monthly house price balance rose to +12 from June’s -13, above all forecasts. RICS said surveyors were more cautious about the outlook in the medium term. Read more on the Reuters website.

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-economy-houseprices/uk-housing-boom-gathers-pace-but-fears-of-a-bust-grow-too-rics-idUKKCN25830Y 

UK Home Prices To Lag Inflation On Brexit Uncertainty

Annual home price rises in Britain won’t keep pace with already-low inflation until 2021, a Reuters poll found, and will fall in the capital London this year as uncertainty around the country’s departure from the European Union continues to deter buyers. Uncertainty is likely to continue even if Britain leaves by Jan. 31 as is currently scheduled as there is another tight deadline - by the end of 2020 - for both parties to hammer out a new trade deal, though many doubt that target can be met. Prices in London, for decades a magnet for foreign investors and speculators, will fall 1.5% this year and only hold steady in 2020. Read more on the Reuters website.

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-property-poll/uk-home-prices-to-lag-inflation-on-brexit-uncertainty-reuters-poll-idUKKBN1XU03V

Fewest UK Homes Being Put On Sale Since 2016 As Brexit Nears

Britons are holding off from trying to sell their homes due to uncertainty about when and how Britain will leave the European Union, according to a survey which adds to signs of a slowdown in the housing market. The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) said new sales instructions fell last month at the fastest pace since June 2016, when Britain voted to leave the EU in a referendum. New buyer inquiries were down by the most since April, and sales fell by the most since February. Read more on the Reuters website.

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-economy-houseprices/fewest-uk-homes-being-put-on-sale-since-2016-as-brexit-nears-rics-idUKKBN1WO2WA

UK House Prices Fall Amid No-Deal Brexit Fears

House prices in Britain unexpectedly fell last month amid mounting fears over the impact of no-deal Brexit on the property market. According to the latest snapshot from the Nationwide building society, prices fell in September by 0.2%, pulling down the average price of a home to £215,352 from £216,096 in August. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast a 0.1% rise on the month. With just 30 days until Britain’s scheduled departure date from the EU with little sign of a breakthrough in the deadlock with Brussels, analysts said property buyers and sellers were delaying their decisions amid the uncertainty. Read more on the Guardian website.

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2019/oct/01/uk-house-pricesno-deal-brexit-nationwide-london

Brexit Jitters Cause Rare September Fall In UK House Prices

Asking prices for houses in Britain have suffered their first September fall in nine years as worries about Brexit caused buyers to hesitate and sellers to keep properties off the market, according to property website Rightmove. The average price of property being put up for sale fell by 0.2%, or £730, from August, breaking the pattern of consistent monthly price rises for the month of September since 2010, Rightmove said. Read more on the Reuters website.

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-eu-housing/brexit-jitters-cause-rare-september-fall-in-uk-house-prices-rightmove-idUKKBN1W00VL

Brexit Casts Shadow Over UK Housing Market Outlook

Brexit uncertainty is likely to press down on house prices and the volume of property sales over the next three months, a closely watched industry survey shows. The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors said its headline price balance for August rose to -4 from -9 in July, bucking economists’ average expectation in a Reuters poll for a further decline to -11. But RICS members’ outlook for the next three months - during which period Britain is scheduled to leave the European Union - grew darker. Sales volumes expectations for the next three months dropped to -23 from -4, while short-term expectations for prices declined to -24 from -13. Read more on the Reuters website.

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-economy-houseprices/brexit-casts-shadow-over-uk-housing-market-outlook-rics-idUKKCN1VW2W1

House Prices Would Flounder In Six Months After No-Deal Brexit

Britain’s drifting property market would probably take a hit from a disorderly Brexit, with average prices slipping about 3% nationally in the ensuing six months and as much as 10% in London, a Reuters poll of housing experts found. Roughly 85% of respondents said both UK and London house prices would fall in the six months subsequent to leaving the European Union without an agreement. But if Britain departs the EU with a transition deal - the scheduled leave date is Oct. 31 - house prices are due a mild 1.5% lift over the following two quarters. They would rise 1.4% in the capital. Read more on the Reuters website.

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-property-poll/house-prices-would-flounder-in-six-months-after-no-deal-brexit-reuters-poll-idUKKCN1VB03U

UK House Sales Stronger Than Normal In August

August, normally a quiet month for Britain’s property market, has seen a surge in sales, possibly due to buyers seeking to conclude transactions before the country leaves the European Union on Oct. 31, property website Rightmove said. Rightmove said sales in the August period, which cover the four weeks to Aug. 10, were 6.1% higher than a year earlier and their strongest for the month since 2015, bucking a generally sluggish trend since June 2016’s referendum on leaving the European Union. Read more on the Reuters website.

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-economy-houseprices/uk-house-sales-stronger-than-normal-in-august-rightmove-idUKKCN1V80QB

Home Repossession Claims Highest In More Than Four Years

Mortgage lenders’ claims for home repossession in England and Wales rose to the highest since late 2014 during the three months to June, according to official data that add to concern about households’ finances. The Ministry of Justice recorded 6,179 claims in county courts for repossession, a 39% rise compared with a year ago and the biggest annual increase since the financial crisis. Read more on the Reuters website.

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-economy-repossessions/home-repossession-claims-in-england-wales-highest-in-more-than-four-years-idUKKCN1UY1BU

UK House Prices Unexpectedly Fall In July

British house prices unexpectedly dropped for a second month in a row in July, figures from mortgage lender Halifax show, adding to signs that households are growing warier of making major financial decisions ahead of Brexit. Halifax said house prices fell 0.2% on the month, compared with economists’ forecasts in a Reuters poll for a 0.3% rise, while the annual growth rate for the three months to July dropped to 4.1% from 5.7%, also a sharper decline than expected. Read more on the Reuters website.

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-economy-houseprices/uk-house-prices-unexpectedly-fall-in-july-halifax-idUKKCN1UX0Q3