Ministers Urged To Create 250,000 New Homes For ‘Heroes’ Of The Pandemic

 The Government is being urged to create 250,000 new homes for key workers as a reward for their efforts during the pandemic. The Centre for Policy Studies (CPS) – a centre-right think tank – has called on ministers to set aside land for a new class of “homes for heroes”. The CPS said the majority of properties should be offered on a rent-to-buy or shared ownership basis, with the rest on long leases, with priority given to local key workers – both public and private sector. Read more on the Belfast Telegraph website.

https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/uk/ministers-urged-to-create-250000-new-homes-for-heroes-of-the-pandemic-40855783.html

300,000 Homes Sold Under Help To Buy Scheme

More than 300,000 households in England have bought a home with the support of the Help to Buy equity loan scheme since it was launched in 2013. Government figures show 313,043 households have bought a home with the support of the scheme. Around eight in 10 were first-time buyers. Purchasers can borrow up to 20% of the cost of a new build or 40% in London, funding the balance with a mortgage and repaying the loan when they sell. One in 20 (5%) of those who have used the scheme had a total household income of more than £100,000. However the most common household income bracket was £40,000 to 50,000, with 21% in this category. Read more on the Belfast Telegraph website.

300,000 homes in England sold under Help to Buy scheme - BelfastTelegraph.co.uk 

One In 12 Private Renters ‘Has Received A No-Fault Eviction Notice In Past Year’

One in 12 private renters in England has been given formal notice to move out without a reason since March 2020, a survey has found. Some 8% of private renters in England said they had received a Section 21 notice to quit during the coronavirus pandemic, which allows landlords to evict tenants without needing a reason. While the initial Section 21 notice is only the first stage of the legal process, many tenants move out before the case reaches court, according to Generation Rent, which campaigns on behalf of tenants and released the findings. Read more on the Belfast Telegraph website.

https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/business/uk-world/one-in-12-private-renters-has-received-a-no-fault-eviction-notice-in-past-year-40314876.html 

Housing Market May See Spike In Overseas Buyers Ahead Of Stamp Duty Surcharge

A stamp duty surcharge for non-UK residents is set to come into force next year – and could spark a scramble among overseas investors to buy properties before it kicks in. From April 1 2021, the Government will introduce a 2% stamp duty surcharge for non-UK residents purchasing homes in England and Northern Ireland. Budget documents said the move will help to control house price inflation and to support UK residents to get on to and move up the housing ladder. The money raised from the surcharge will be used to help tackle rough sleeping. Read more on the Belfast Telegraph website.

https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/uk/housing-market-may-see-spike-in-overseas-buyers-ahead-of-stamp-duty-surcharge-39036394.html

Buying House In UK City At Least Affordable Level Since 2007

City living is at its least affordable levels for home buyers since 2007, a report suggests. The average house price in a UK city in 2018 equated to 7.2 times average annual earnings – making the cost of buying a home the least affordable since 2007 when buyers had to fork out 7.5 times their income typically, Lloyds Bank found. The average home in a city cost £248,233 while average full-time earnings stood at £34,366. Lloyds found seven cities where the average house price tops 10 times earnings -Oxford, Chichester, Winchester, Truro, London, Bath and Cambridge. Read more on the Belfast Telegraph website.

https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/buying-house-in-uk-city-at-least-affordable-level-since-2007-study-suggests-37775722.html

Private Tenants See Rents Surge By Almost £10 Billion Since 2010

Private tenants are paying an average of £166 a month more in than in 2010, analysis by the Labour Party has claimed. Rents in England and Wales are up nearly £2,000 a year since 2010 according to the party’s research. Shadow housing secretary John Healey said the figures were evidence of the Conservative Party’s “failure on housing”. Read more on the Belfast Telegraph website.

https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/uk/private-tenants-see-rents-surge-by-almost-10-billion-since-2010-37211049.html

Homelessness Rise ‘Due To Welfare Reform’

The recent rise in homelessness has its roots in welfare reform and the housing market, almost entirely accounted for by an increase in families losing their privately-rented housing, experts have said. The number of people officially recorded as sleeping on the streets of England rose from 1,768 in 2010 to 4,751 in 2017, but charities estimate the true figure to be more than double this. Read more on the Belfast Telegraph website.

https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/uk/homelessness-rise-due-to-welfare-reform-36545186.html

Remortgage Approvals Hit Record High

The number of remortgage approvals being made jumped to a nine-year high just before the Bank of England base rate was hiked in November, figures show. Some 51,593 remortgage approvals were recorded by the Bank of England in October - the highest figure since October 2008. On November 2, in a move that was widely anticipated, the Bank of England base rate was raised from 0.25% to 0.5%, meaning some variable rate mortgage holders faced the prospect of higher costs. Many homeowners may have been looking to remortgage to a cheaper deal in the weeks leading up to the base rate hike. Read more n the Belfast Telegraph website.

Mortgage Approvals Fall To Three-Month Low In September

The number of mortgage approvals being made to home buyers dropped to a three-month low in September, according to Bank of England figures. Some 66,232 loans for house purchase were given the green light in September, marking the lowest monthly figure since June 2017. It is the second month in a row that mortgage approvals have fallen and comes after a six-month high of 69,360 in July. However, the Bank’s Money and Credit report showed re-mortgage loans picked up in September to 47,598, rising from 46,270 the month before. Read more on the Belfast Telegraph website.

Mortgage Arrears Numbers Drop To Lowest Level Since 1994

Cases of mortgage arrears have fallen to their lowest levels in at least 23 years, banks and building societies have reported. The number of mortgages in arrears amounting to 2.5% or more of the outstanding balance declined to 88,200 in the second quarter of 2017, trade body UK Finance reported. This was the lowest level since at least 1994, when records started. The total was 5% lower than in the first quarter and amounted to 0.8% of the more than 11 million mortgages outstanding in the UK. Read more on the Belfast Telegraph website.

Lowest Number Of New Home Mortgages Approved For Nine Months

Banks approved the lowest number of new home mortgages for nine months in June. Banks gave the greenlight to 40,200 house purchases in June, down from 40,287 in May. That is the lowest level for new home mortgage approvals since September - when approvals slumped to 38,893. Gross mortgage borrowing was for June was relatively in line with the previous month at £13 billion, versus £13.2 billion in May, but marked a 6% jump from levels tracked for June 2016. Analysts are now expecting a further slowdown in the housing market, which has already shown signs of cooling.  Read more on the Belfast Telegraph website.

Confidence In Housing Market Declines After Election Result

Consumer confidence in the housing market dipped in the days following the General Election, a survey has found. Just over one in five (21%) people think now is a good time to buy a home, down from 29% in March, according to research from the Building Societies Association (BSA). The survey took place four days after the election. Nearly a third (30%) of people in the survey disagree that now is a good time to buy a home - the highest figure since 37% of people felt this way in December 2008. Nearly a quarter (23%) said they expect prices to fall, up from 10% in March. Read more on the Belfast Telegraph website.

51% Of Recent First-Time Home Purchasers Regret Not Negotiating

Just over half of recent first-time buyers regret not negotiating with the seller before buying their home, a survey has found. Some 51% of those who had bought their first property in the last five years regretted not trying to hammer out a better deal, Barclays Mortgages found. Two-thirds (66%) of those surveyed said they would like to learn more about negotiation skills. A fast-moving market in some areas may be putting buyers off trying to negotiate, with 85% of those surveyed describing the current property market as "extremely competitive. Read more on the Belfast Telegraph website.

Low-Paid Must Cover Rent By Working Equivalent Of Morning Per Day

Low-paid workers are slogging for the equivalent of a morning per day just to cover the cost of their rent, according to Shelter. The housing charity's analysis of Office for National Statistics (ONS) earnings figures suggests people in this income group in the UK would have to work for 15 hours of their working week just to cover their rent costs - equating to a morning a day. It said that with private rents "sky high", full-time workers on a low wage face shelling out 44% of their income to live in a typical one-bedroom home. People in this group tend to earn between £16,000 and £23,000 a year. Read more on the Belfast Telegraph website.

Landlords Fined After Roll-Out Of New Right To Rent Checks

Dozens of landlords have been fined under a crackdown on illegal immigration. Financial penalties totalling £37,000 were handed out in the first eight months after the Right to Rent scheme was rolled out across England, figures obtained by the Press Association reveal. The fines were issued to 62 landlords between the start of February and end of September last year - a rate of around one every four days. Read more on the Belfast Telegraph.

UK Urged To Relax Green Belt Restrictions To Tackle Housing Crisis

Britain should relax planning restrictions in green belt areas to help deal with its housing crisis, an international economic think tank has recommended. Shortage of housing was one of a number of factors identified by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) as holding back UK growth, alongside poor skills and a lack of investment in infrastructure and research. Among its other recommendations were more toll roads, an expansion in vocational education and lifelong learning and better provision of social housing. Read more on the Belfast Telegraph website.

New Home-Buyers Could Need £23,000 To Get Onto Property Ladder

People aspiring to get on the property ladder across England and Wales could find themselves needing more than £23,000 for a deposit and moving costs, according to Office for National Statistics (ONS) data. The ONS has placed a new affordability calculator on its website, which allows would-be home-buyers to see what level of household income they might expect to need to get a mortgage on an "entry-level" property in their neighbourhood. The ONS said that with the average cost of an entry-level home in England and Wales being £140,000, prospective buyers could require £300 stamp duty, an estimated £2,000 for legal and moving costs and £21,000 for a 15% deposit, coming to £23,300 in total. Read more on the Belfast Telegraph website.

Rents 'Rose At Slowest Rate For Seven Years’

Rents increased at their slowest pace in seven years in 2016, according to an index. Lettings network Countrywide said rents increased by 1.6% across Britain in 2016 to reach an average of £927 per month. The annual increase was around half that seen in 2015, when rents recorded a 3.1% uplift. last year also marked the slowest annual increase seen since 2009, when rents increased by 0.9%. The slowdown has been driven by an increase in the number of homes available to rent, with London seeing a particular increase in the choice of properties for tenants, Countrywide said. Read more on the Belfast Telegraph.