Filtered by Subscriptions: UK Housing Use setting UK Housing
The recovery in the mortgage market continued into 2014, with the largest month-on-month rise in approvals for house purchase since September. Mortgage approvals will see further gains over this year, but a slight rise in mortgage rates and new …
25th February 2014
Housing starts are growing rapidly on the back of an improving economy and the Help to Buy scheme. But with builders already facing material and labour shortages, and the demand for new homes partly dependent on a temporary Government subsidy, we doubt …
20th February 2014
After falling for six years in a row, real pay should finally rise this year, providing a more sustainable foundation for further robust growth in real consumer spending. Rising employment and a continued recovery in the housing market should also boost …
18th February 2014
If the share of homes bought using the joint income of a two-earner household has trended up over time, it is possible that a measure of the house price-to earnings ratio that uses average individual earnings data will make housing look more expensive …
17th February 2014
The January RICS survey provides some tentative evidence that housing market activity is no longer accelerating. But with housing market conditions still very tight, house prices will see further gains in the coming months. … RICS Residential Market …
13th February 2014
Data from the CML confirm that first-time buyers have been the driving force behind the recovery in mortgage lending. But buy-to-let lending is also making a steady comeback, with the number of loans advanced in the final quarter of 2013 the highest since …
12th February 2014
Housing market activity and prices are continuing to rise, although there is some tentative evidence that the pace of those gains is now moderating. And with more homes expected to be put on the market this year, the national housing market outlook is …
6th February 2014
The Halifax reported a large rise in house prices of 1.1% in January, more than reversing a slight fall in December. But there is no sign that house price gains are accelerating, which would typically signify the onset of a house price boom. … Halifax …
Mortgage approvals rose in December according to the Bank of England, although the increase was relatively small. Mortgage lending will see further gains as the economy recovers, but there are few signs that a credit boom is in development. … Mortgage …
30th January 2014
The Land Registry reported that house prices ended the year on a strong note, with December seeing the strongest month-on-month gain since July. Nearly all regions saw a rise in prices over 2013, but the gap between the pace of gains in London and the …
29th January 2014
There is no sign that the recovery in the housing market is moderating, with prices rising by 0.7% in January according to the Nationwide. Prices have now risen for 12 consecutive months, a feat last achieved in the year to June 2007. … Nationwide House …
Viewed in isolation and given the wider economic recovery, it seems premature to label the housing market upturn as a bubble. Yet, the recovery has come from a point where prices already appeared too high. So, when the support from ultra low interest …
27th January 2014
The BBA reported another rise in the number of mortgages approved in December, which are now up 42% on a year earlier. While there is no sign yet that this risks turning into a lending boom, it is not surprising that Mark Carney is rumoured to be …
24th January 2014
The growth in mortgage lending seen over the past year will continue into 2014, but we doubt it will develop into a credit boom. Not only are banks unlikely to return to the type of lending practices that triggered the previous boom, but there are now …
21st January 2014
RICS reported another robust set of housing market indicators in December, which may increase fears that a new house price boom is in the making. But there aresome early signs that housing market activity has now stopped gathering speed. … RICS …
16th January 2014
The housing market finished 2013 strongly with prices and transactions both on upward trends. That momentum will continue into this year and, helped by an improving labour market, our central forecast is that transactions will reach 1.26m and house prices …
13th January 2014
There are now signs that the housing market recovery is broadening out to the rest of the country, leading to increased fears that a new house price boom is on the way. That is certainly a risk, but with lenders not about to embark on a rapid expansion of …
9th January 2014
The UK economy has leapt towards the top of the international growth table and there are good reasons to think it can stay there. We now expect the economy to grow by 3% this year and next. … The leader of the …
8th January 2014
The tone of the latest Credit Conditions survey was positive, with the supply of and demand for credit rising in both the residential and commercial property sectors in Q4 last year. But lenders seem to be more circumspect about how activity may pan out …
Halifax report that after rising for every month of the year since February, house prices unexpectedly dipped during December. A further rise in prices in 2014 is likely, but an increase in the number of homes coming onto the market should help prevent …
The economic recovery is still not being accompanied by any marked pick-up in household borrowing. And with borrowing costs likely to increase in coming months, the chances of a credit boom in 2014 soon seem remote. … Nationwide House Prices (Dec …
3rd January 2014
The British Bankers’ Association (BBA) reported that the number of mortgage approvals for house purchase rose to a four-year high in November. However, approvals are still at a low level and we think lenders will remain cautious, meaning that mortgage …
24th December 2013
The recovery in house prices has been accompanied by concerns that an unsustainable bubble is developing. At the moment, the indicators on housing market activity favoured by the Bank of England are not pointing to a housing market that is running out of …
18th December 2013
Current concerns about the pace of house price gains could prove short-lived if a sharp rise in sales instructions helps to rebalance the market in the spring. But with rising house price expectations giving sellers reason to delay and Help to Buy …
11th December 2013
Six months after the launch of Help to Buy, detailed mortgage lending statistics show little evidence of a rise in the share of new mortgages being advanced on the basis of a 5% deposit. But there has been a modest rise in the number of borrowers taking …
10th December 2013
While buyer interest continues to build, sellers are reluctant to return to the market. A growing disparity between the number of active buyers and sellers does not seem a healthy basis for the upturn in house prices or house price expectations. … RICS …
Yesterday’s announcement that foreign owners of property will be liable for CGT from April 2015 is unlikely to encourage those owners to sell up, as it will only apply to future gains. But the move to tighten CGT rules aimed at investors and second home …
6th December 2013
There is no sign that the housing market is losing momentum as the year draws to a close, with prices up a substantial 1.1% during November. That will add to the pressure on the Bank of England to do more to calm the market. … Halifax House Prices (Nov …
The housing market is still some way off boom territory, with mortgage approvals 40% below pre- crisis levels and annual house price inflation under 5% in most regions. But with market conditions becoming ever tighter the risk of a new housing market …
5th December 2013
The Bank of England has started the slow process of withdrawing support to the mortgage market. In our view, the acceleration of the review into the introduction of an industry-wide leverage ratio is the most significant change, and could prove …
2nd December 2013
The Bank of England reported that mortgage approvals for house purchase continued to grow in October, although at a slower pace than in the recent past. Rigorous affordability tests appear to be preventing a more rapid surge in lending. … Mortgage …
29th November 2013
There is no sign that the gains to house prices are losing any momentum, with a rise of 0.6% in November according to the Nationwide. But we still doubt this will develop into a widespread house price boom, particularly now that the Bank of England has …
Alongside the release of its Financial Stability Report, the Bank of England has unveiled new measures to blunt the incentives for banks to make new mortgage loans. While these initiatives may do little directly to cool the housing market, the Financial …
28th November 2013
The Land Registry posted a surpise fall in house prices during October of 0.2%, and revised down September’s gain. But overall the evidence is that house price rises are becoming more widespread, explaining why the Bank of England took action this morning …
The BBA reported a slight fall in mortgage approvals for house purchase in October, ending a seven month run of expansion. While we expect that approvals will continue to grow over the coming months, this is a useful reminder that banks are still being …
25th November 2013
A sizeable boost in new-build demand from the Help to Buy equity loan scheme has helped stimulate a recovery in housebuilding. But capacity constraints will prevent a rapid return to pre-crisis building levels. … Housebuilding (Q3 …
21st November 2013
With the economy and labour market recovering at the same time as mortgage rates have seen further falls, it is not surprising that arrears and possessions have declined. But household finances are still vulnerable to potential shocks. … Mortgage …
14th November 2013
Increased housing transactions and a decline in the stock of interest-only mortgages have boosted mortgage principal repayments, and allowed lenders to advance more mortgages without having to increase net lending. Those factors are likely to continue, …
13th November 2013
The latest RICS survey shows that housing market conditions are continuing to tighten, as expectations of another house price boom - fanned by Government schemes - keeps housing demand high, but the supply of homes for sale low. … RICS Residential …
12th November 2013
By bringing forward the launch of the Help to Buy guarantee scheme, the Government has given a further boost to expectations that house prices must rise. That has led to very tight market conditions, and sellers have taken the opportunity to boost their …
7th November 2013
While real pay looks set to continue to fall until mid-2014, rising wealth, further modest gains in employment, income tax cuts and looser credit conditions should all help to sustain the recovery in consumer spending in the meantime. … Spending …
Halifax reported another strong rise in house prices in October. Widespread expectations that house prices will rise in the future, fanned by ill-conceived Government interventions, have led to a surge in buyer enquiries. And with the number of homes for …
6th November 2013
House price gains gathered pace in October, with another strong rise over the month. The risk that these gains trigger a self-fulfilling house price boom in more areas of the country is growing, but is not yet a foregone conclusion. … Nationwide House …
31st October 2013
The number of mortgage approvals for house purchase jumped again in September, as banks recycle a steady rise in mortgage repayments to new borrowers. While still historically low, 2013 will see the highest number of mortgage approvals since the onset of …
29th October 2013
With a hefty 1.5% rise in house prices during September, the Land Registry is now in agreement with other measures that prices are coming under continued upwards pressure. But, parts of central London aside, talk of a house price boom is overdone. … …
28th October 2013
According to the BBA, mortgage approvals in September jumped by the largest amount in a single month since the end of 2008. Even so, net mortgage lending was once again negative, and banks appear to have little appetite to substantially increase the size …
23rd October 2013
Despite some of yesterday's headlines, London aside, October's jump in asking prices was not exceptional. But the data highlight the risk that, even if Help to Buy fails to boost transactions, it may trigger a self-fulfilling rise in house price …
22nd October 2013
The authorities are taking comfort from the fall in mortgage debt as a share of disposable income in recent years. But that primarily reflects a rise in benefit payments and net interest income, as well as lower taxes. The more relevant indicator for …
18th October 2013
With much fanfare, the Government has brought forward by three months the launch of the controversial Help to Buy mortgage guarantee scheme. We remain unconvinced that it will generate a large number of additional sales, but what impact it does have will …
15th October 2013
We have been more sceptical than most that the Help to Buy mortgage guarantee will spark a new house price boom. Although the complexity of the scheme makes it difficult to draw firm conclusions, nothing in yesterday’s launch documentation has altered our …
9th October 2013
