The UK’s leading housing groups have warned that the Government is failing to tackle the country’s growing housing crisis. In a collaborative report, the National Housing Federation, Shelter and The Chartered Institute of Housing highlight five key areas in need of urgent as follows: Affordability of the private rented sector; help with housing costs; homelessness; [...]
affordability
“Timid” planning reforms fail to address affordability
The Government’s “timid” planning reforms will not solve affordability problems in the UK housing market, according to the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA). In a new report entitled “Abundance of land, shortage of housing”, the right-wing think tank claims that not enough is being done to reduce the “extraordinarily” high cost of housing in Britain. [...]
“Timid” planning reforms fail to address affordability
The Government’s “timid” planning reforms will not solve affordability problems in the UK housing market, according to the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA). In a new report entitled “Abundance of land, shortage of housing”, the right-wing think tank claims that not enough is being done to reduce the “extraordinarily” high cost of housing in Britain. [...]
Mortgage payments most affordable in 14 years
Mortgage payments for new borrowers have almost halved as a proportion of disposable income, down from a peak of 48% in the third quarter of 2007 to 27% at the end of 2011. According to new Halifax research, repayments for both first-time buyers and home movers are swallowing up the smallest proportion of disposable income [...]
UK housing challenges on red
Government ministers have been presented with a “traffic light” system to help them engage with the UK’s housing challenges. The National Housing Federation (NHF), housing charity, Shelter, and the Chartered Institute of Housing say they are holding ministers to account on broken promises over housing supply, homelessness and affordability in the private rented sector. In [...]
Nationwide: February house prices up 0.3%
In the first of the house price indices for February, Nationwide reports a monthly increase of 0.3%, prices having dipped by 0.1% during January.
The annual rate of decline improved slightly to minus 0.1% (January: -0.4%), with the value of the typical home standing at £161,183.
Commenting on the figures, the lender’s chief economist, Robert Gardner, says [...]
Cebr: UK house prices to fall in 2011
A fragile economic recovery looks set to disrupt the UK housing market this year, despite affordability hitting an 8-year high.
According to the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr), the value of the typical home will drop 1.7% in 2011, having gained 6.4% in 2010.
The consultancy expects “anaemic” growth in disposable incomes and higher unemployment [...]
Increase in mortgages offset by affordability issues
The number of mortgages available from UK lenders has more than doubled in the last two years, but other factors continue to keep buyers out of the housing market.
Research by Moneyfacts.co.uk shows choice falling to an all-time low two years ago, when only 1,097 residential mortgage products were available.
Since then, the number of home loans [...]
Halifax: house prices end 2010 down 1.6%
UK house prices fell 0.9% during the three months to December, compared with the previous quarter, and were down 1.6% on an annual basis, according to Halifax.
At £163,435, the value of the average home actually lost 3.4% compared with December 2009, although the lender points out that its quarterly figures provide a better picture of [...]
