* seasonally adjusted

Commenting on the figures Martin Gahbauer, Nationwide’s Chief Economist, said:

“The price of a typical UK property rose by a seasonally adjusted 0.5% month-on-month (m/m) in May, following a 1.1% increase in April. The smoother 3 month on 3 month rate of increase rose from 1.1% in April to 1.7%, as February’s fall in house prices dropped out of the most recent three month average. The annual rate of house price inflation dropped from 10.5% to 9.8%, which reflects the weaker pace of increase in May 2010 relative to May 2009. Since reaching a trough in February 2009 – following a drop of 19.3% from their October 2007 peak – house prices have risen by 12.2% and are now just 9.5% below the October 2007 peak.

“Housing market conditions remain characterised by thin transaction volumes and a relative scarcity of properties for sale, despite a slow return of more sellers in recent months. The current supply-demand balance on the market is still consistent with relatively stable to modestly upward trending prices.”

Impact of capital gains tax changes on house prices depends on timing of implementation

“The coalition agreement between the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats contains plans to increase the rate of capital gains tax (CGT) charged on the disposal of non-business assets, potentially including second homes and buy-to-let investment properties. Currently the CGT rate on such assets is 18%, and the coalition plans are to raise the rate to a level “similar or close to those applied to income.” Precise details, however, will not be known until the Emergency Budget announcement on 22 June.

“With regard to what the short-term impact will be on the housing market and house prices, the key question is around the timing and implementation of any CGT increase. If there is a significant time lag between the announcement of the increase and its actual implementation, then some second home owners and buy-to-let landlords may decide to sell in advance of the higher rate being introduced. Such a development could lead the supply-demand balance to shift more in favour of buyers and relieve the current upward pressure on house prices. However, it is difficult to know with any precision how many people would bring forward a decision to sell.

“The incentive to try to beat the higher tax rate is most pressing for those who have owned their properties for a relatively long period of time and therefore have relatively large unrealised gains. Conversely, those who bought their second homes or investment property within the last five years have little incentive to sell early in order to beat the tax change. House prices have only risen back to their mid-2006 level and the first £10,100 of capital gains is currently tax free.

“If the new rate comes into effect immediately on 22 June, then supply conditions are unlikely to be affected materially as any potential sellers would not have time to react.

“There are some examples of where tax changes have had a significant short-term impact on the housing market. Most prominent was the March 1988 announcement to end double Mortgage Interest Relief At Source (MIRAS) for cohabiting couples. The implementation of the tax change was postponed until August of that year, which prompted a rush of buyers to try to beat the deadline. The result was a temporary surge in property values, with house prices increasing by 18% between Q1 1988 and Q3 1988 alone.

“However, the most recent change in CGT rates announced in the 2007 Pre-Budget Report did not have any discernable impact on the supply of property on the market. At the time, the existing CGT rates of 24-40% – depending on taper relief and income status – were cut to a flat rate of 18%. New instructions to sell property remained very low even after the tax changes were introduced, although this may also have been due to the very weak market conditions prevailing at the time.”

Monthly UK House Price Statistics

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* seasonally adjusted

Commenting on the figures Martin Gahbauer, Nationwide’s Chief Economist, said:

The price of a typical UK property rose by a seasonally adjusted 1.0% month-on-month (m/m) in April, leaving house prices 10.5% higher than a year earlier. Over the lifetime of the last Parliament (May 2005 to April 2010), house prices have risen by 6.7%. This compares to a 13.5% increase in the consumer price index, the official target measure of inflation.

April’s figures show the first double-digit annual growth in UK house prices since June 2007. The year-on-year rate in this month’s figures, however, received an additional boost from the fact that April 2009 was one of the weaker months last year. Given the very strong performance of house prices from May 2009 onwards, it will take monthly increases in excess of 1% for the annual rate of inflation to be maintained in double digits going forward. The smoother three month on three month rate of inflation edged down further from 1.5% in March to 1.1% in April, which primarily reflects the impact of February’s 1.0% decline in house prices. April’s figures leave UK house prices exactly 10% below the October 2007 peak.

For further information please see  April 2010 report (PDF 64KB).

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24 February 2010

Conference time: 0845hrs – 1630hrs

Background

The CML compile and publish a range of statistics on the UK housing and mortgage markets including key data on mortgage lending, arrears and possessions and market segments such as buy-to-let. This unparalleled knowledge and insight into the important role housing plays in the economy is the basis on which this conference programme is built.

The detailed content will help all organisations, not just lenders, operating within the world of housing. The content discussed will be crucial to understanding current and future housing market conditions.

Chaired by Sue Anderson, head of external affairs, Council of Mortgage Lenders

Expert speakers will include:

• Michael Coogan, Director General, Council of Mortgage Lenders
• Rt. Hon John Healey MP, Minister for Housing and Planning
• Peter Williams, housing consultant and Chairman, IMLA
• Steven Hall, director, KPMG
• Bob Pannell, head of research, Council of Mortgage Lenders
• John Stewart, director of economic affairs, Home Builders Federation
• Rob Thomas, senior policy adviser, Council of Mortgage Lenders

Delegates currently booked on include:

• Technical director, Allied Surveyors
• Head of sales, Halifax Intermediaries
• Head of product delivery, HBOS plc
• Team leader, housing regeneration and third sector team, HM Treasury
• Business project manager, Legal and General Assurance Society

Cost:

£275 for members (VAT exempt)
£325 for non-members (VAT exempt)

Our event fees remain highly competitive with prices for members and associates not having increased since January 2007

Location:

The Westbury Hotel, Bond Street, Mayfair, London, W1S 2YF

This event is open to press

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Surveyors in the West Midlands, East Midlands, Wales and Scotland predict that the end of the holiday will have a “detrimental effect” in areas that are yet to see a recovery from the recession, and widely expect to see a drop in market activity when the threshold reverts back to its previous ways. The temporary stamp duty holiday was implemented in September 2008 and will finish at the end of the year.

The 1% tax will be reintroduced for properties sold over £125,000 compared with the £175,000 currently in operation, with The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors calling for the tax to be restructured. The Council of Mortgage Lenders calculates that 132,500 houses that were bought funded with a mortgage had escaped paying stamp duty in the past year.

“This is one of those situations where we will have to wait and see what the long term affects are to the housing market, but there can be no doubt that the stamp duty holiday has been a huge help to various regions in the UK,” says Laurence Smith of Decision Homebuyers. “People looking to sell a house quick or who are looking to buy a property are now working under different market conditions, and will have to cater their budgets accordingly as a result.”

To find out more about Decision Homebuyers and their services:
Please call 08456 341 456
or visit: http://www.decisionhomebuyers.co.uk/

About Decision Homebuyers:
Established in 2006 and specialising in fast property purchase, Decision Homebuyers are experts in their field. Decision Homebuyers can buy your house fast and guarantee to make cash offers on all types of residential and commercial property, no matter what the condition.

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Six individuals have been charged with offences in connection with a series of high value commercial mortgage frauds.  Following a hearing at City of London Magistrates’ Court the case has been sent to Southwark Crown Court for a preliminary hearing on 4 January 2010.

The investigation was referred to the Serious Fraud Office in March 2006 by West Midlands Police following a complaint from the Cheshire Building Society.

It is alleged that the defendants participated in a series of frauds whereby they dishonestly obtained loans from banks or building societies that were secured on six commercial investment properties. Each property was transferred between companies controlled by one of the defendants and his associates at highly inflated prices in a series of back to back transactions. On the basis of the grossly inflated prices, fraudulent valuations and forged leases, the defendants applied for and obtained mortgage advances totalling nearly £50 million.  The mortgages were quickly defaulted on and the lenders suffered significant losses.

Five individuals, Ian McGarry (d.o.b 10/05/69), Hardeep Sodhi (d.o.b 05/10/76), Fatema Patwa (d.o.b 20/02/62), Saghir Afzal (d.o.b 01/01/62) and Laurence Ferrigan (d.o.b 20/11/61) have been charged with offences of conspiracy to obtain a money transfer by deception and dishonestly obtaining a money transfer. Simon Lawrence (d.o.b 07/04/61) has been charged with conspiracy to obtain a money transfer by deception.

Notes

At the relevant time:

• Ian McGarry was a chartered surveyor at Dunlop Haywards Lorenz;
• Fatema Patwa was the sole principal of her own firm, Patwa Solicitors, based in Birmingham.
• Hardeep Sodhi was a solicitor employed at Patwa Solicitors in Birmingham.
• Laurence Ferrigan was a partner at The CFB Partnership, Wanstead, East London.
• Saghir Afzal was a company director and property owner.
• Simon Lawrence was a partner of Darlingtons Solicitors in, Edgware

Serious Fraud Office, Elm House, 10-16 Elm Street, London, WC1X 0BJ

Press Office tel: 020 7239 7001/7004 or mobile: 0781 807 6688

Main switchboard tel: 020 7239 7272

press.office@sfo.gsi.gov.uk – or via – www.sfo.gov.uk

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A recent study of more than 3,000 potential first time buyers reveals that 28 per cent feel they will need to save for at least five years before finally getting the keys to their own home.

One in 10 respondents have been saving for more than five years and still do not have enough deposit, while 30 per cent have no savings to put towards a deposit at all.

However, there is still help at hand, with new homes builder Stamford Homes offering its own incentives as well as Government shared equity schemes to get first time buyers onto the housing ladder.

These include;
Easystart where customers can own 100 per cent of a brand-new home for 80 per cent of the price with just five per deposit required.

HomeBuy Direct a Government home purchase scheme to help first time buyers onto the property ladder where you own 100 per cent of your home for just 70 per cent of the price, and just five per cent deposit required. This offer was to come to an end in March 2010 but has now been extended until September 2010 and has limited availability.

Stamp duty exemption on homes under £175,000. However, the Government’s exemption holiday ends on December 31.
Stamford Homes regional sales and marketing director Peter Bond said: “While the statistics by themselves do make fairly depressing reading, it is still encouraging that so many people are thinking about buying a home.

“There is evidence that many of our first time buyers have been able to afford their dream home through one of our many incentives schemes available across our developments.

“We recognise that raising a deposit does have its difficulties, but there are other scheme which can take away that pressure of the house buying process.”

For details of new homes around the region, visit www.stamford-homes.co.uk

- ENDS -

Notes to the Editor:
Stamford Homes operates throughout the East Midlands and Lincolnshire and forms a part of Galliford Try’s Housebuilding Division: Galliford Try Homes.
www.stamford-homes.co.uk

Galliford Try Homes operates through four strong regional brands: Linden Homes, Stamford Homes, Midas Homes, and Gerald Wood Homes specialising in brownfield development. The business is capable of developing over 3,000 homes per year, covering the entire region from the West Country to Lincolnshire and the South-East.
www.gallifordtryhomes.co.uk

For further information please contact:

Cetti Long
Media Matters PR
Stamford Homes
Tel: 01733 371363.
E-mail: cetti@mediamatters-pr.co.uk

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However, for potential buyers who are putting off moving until after Christmas, buying a brand new dream home is now easier, and less expensive, than you think.

Stamford Homes can help curb the cost of moving to many of its developments in and around the region – with savings and incentives to help customers make their money travel further.

Among the most popular are Stamford Homes’ own EasyStart scheme, and the Government’s shared equity HomeBuy Direct incentive.

Both of these are currently available on selected homes across the Midlands’ developments. However, as the HomeBuy Direct initiative – which has already helped numbers Stamford Homes customers to afford their dream home – comes to and end next September but has limited availability, so now is the time to act.

These include;
- Easystart where customers can own 100 per cent of a brand-new home for 80 per cent of the price with just five per deposit required.

- HomeBuy Direct a Government home purchase scheme to help first time buyers onto the property ladder where you own 100 per cent of your home for just 70 per cent of the price, and just five per cent deposit required. This offer has limited availability.

Stamford Homes regional sales and marketing director Peter Bond said: “The housing market doesn’t seem to be following tradition of late – whereby all goes quite at the start of December until the New Year.

“We are experiencing high levels of interest and sustained reservations as serious buyers who recognise just what amazing incentives are on offer to help them move efficiently and cost-effectively.”

For details of new homes around the region, visit www.stamford-homes.co.uk

Pic cap
There is still time to put a Stamford home on your Christmas wish list.

- ENDS -

Notes to the Editor:
Stamford Homes operates throughout the East Midlands and Lincolnshire and forms a part of Galliford Try’s Housebuilding Division: Galliford Try Homes.
www.stamford-homes.co.uk

Galliford Try Homes operates through four strong regional brands: Linden Homes, Stamford Homes, Midas Homes, and Gerald Wood Homes specialising in brownfield development. The business is capable of developing over 3,000 homes per year, covering the entire region from the West Country to Lincolnshire and the South-East.
www.gallifordtryhomes.co.uk

For further information please contact:

Cetti Long
Media Matters PR
Stamford Homes
Tel: 01733 371363.
E-mail: cetti@mediamatters-pr.co.uk

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LONDON, ENGLAND, December 02, 2009
Customers taking out Sainsbury’s Home Insurance qualify for Double Nectar points on their Sainsbury’s shopping for two years

Over the past year in order to save money, one in four people have cancelled or not renewed their home insurance. Sainsbury’s Home Insurance is warning people not to go without home insurance as it could have disastrous consequences leaving them in further financial dire straits. To help pay for their home insurance, Sainsbury’s Finance is urging people to spread the cost of cover over a year, something it does not charge customers for doing. However, its research reveals that 68% of policies do.

Ben Tyte, Sainsbury’s Home Insurance Manager, said:
“In the current economic environment many people are looking to dumb down on their insurance or do away with it completely in order to save money. However, this is a false economy because if disaster strikes they could be left in ruin. Rather than risk inadequate cover, they should shop around for better deals – it is possible to find quality cover at a competitive price – and find a policy that does not penalise them for paying on a monthly basis.”

However, when reviewing policies, Sainsbury’s home insurance warns that it is very important to look closely at the quality of cover being offered. For example, its research reveals that only 8% of home insurance policies offer unlimited buildings cover and only 12% offer a no claims discount of up to 30% or more. Furthermore, less than one in ten (8%) policies provide no claims discount protection. These are all features offered by Sainsbury’s Home Insurance.

Sainsbury’s shoppers are rewarded with double Nectar points on their shopping in store, online and in petrol filling stations for two years when taking out Sainsbury’s Home Insurance. For example, customers who spend GBP50 a week with Sainsbury’s and have Sainsbury’s Home Insurance as well as a Nectar card would receive GBP52 worth of Nectar points a year.

About Sainsbury’s Home Insurance:
As well as being competitively priced, the bank also offers an extensive range of cover and benefits. This includes:

Unlimited buildings cover
Unlike some home insurers, Sainsbury’s Bank does not apply charges for customers paying their premiums by direct debit
Maximum no-claims discount of up to 30%
No-claims discount protection
Cover for accidental damage – even by pets
Sainsbury’s provide a wide range of financial services including credit cards, loans, personal loans, savings account, pet insurance, life insurance, home insurance and car insurance, visit www.sainsburysbank.co.uk now to find out more

For further information, please contact:
Phil Anderson / Ian Morris
Citigate Dewe Rogerson
020 7282 1031/1037

Notes:
(1) Defaqto research commissioned by Sainsbury’s Finance, September 2009
(2) ABI, June 2009
(3) Dependent on the number of years you have remained claimed free
(4) Terms and conditions apply – additional premium required
Sainsbury’s Home Insurance is underwritten by St Andrews Insurance ltd.

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Martin Gahbauer

Commenting on the figures Martin Gahbauer, Nationwide’s Chief Economist, said:
“The monthly rate of house price inflation was unchanged in November at a seasonally adjusted 0.5%, leaving the average price of a typical property 2.7% higher than a year earlier.

At £162,764, the average house price is at a similar level to where it was in early 2006. The 3 month on 3 month rate of change – generally a smoother indicator of the near term trend – dropped to 2.8% from 3.5% in October and 3.8% in September.
This suggests that house prices are now rising at a more moderate pace than in the spring and summer months, when they experienced a very strong bounce from the early 2009 lows.

Labour market has held up better than expected but uncertainties remain.

“The outlook for the housing market remains crucially dependent on labour market conditions, and here recent developments have been somewhat more encouraging than might have been expected. With the UK experiencing its longest and deepest recession since WWII, most economists expected unemployment to increase very sharply in 2009, perhaps breaching the psychologically important three million mark by
the end of the year.
While unemployment has indeed increased noticeably, the rise has not been as rapid and pronounced as previously feared.
Based on the latest labour market figures from September, it now looks unlikely that the jobless total will reach three million before the year is up.

“Part of the explanation for why unemployment has not risen to the levels implied by the recession’s depth is that in many cases employers have opted to reduce working hours and pay rather than make employees redundant. This is reflected in rising part-time employment at the expense of full-time employment , and record low growth in average earnings.

The strategy of cutting hours and pay rather than headcount probably reflects a fear among many employers that they could find themselves short of labour when the economy recovers, thus leaving them less competitive in the longer term. Whether this strategy is sustainable will depend on how quickly the economy recovers.
If output is too slow to recover, then firms may find it necessary to reduce their payrolls further in order to improve productivity and profitability.
Another reason to remain cautious about the future outlook for employment is that the public sector has not yet experienced any significant job losses, but presumably will begin to do so when fiscal policy is tightened from next year onwards.

“Despite continued uncertainties about the future, the better than expected performance of the labour market has probably contributed to the surprise rebound in house prices this year. Even though workers who have been forced from full-time employment into part-time work will have experienced a reduction in income, the impact has been less severe than it would have been if they had lost their jobs completely.

Together with the fact that mortgage rates have fallen sharply as a result of base rate cuts, this has meant that far fewer borrowers have
fallen into arrears than would normally be the case in such a deep recession. In fact, the percentage of borrowers in arrears across the mortgage
industry has even edged down slightly in the most recent quarterly figures (chart 3). As such, the downward pressure on house prices from distressed sales has so far been significantly lower than expected.”

Martin Gahbauer,
Chief Economist
Tel: 01793 655434
martin.gahbauer@nationwide.co.uk

CFA Roy Beale
External Communications Officer
Tel: 01793 655689
roy.beale@nationwide.co.uk

More information

Notes:
Indices and average prices are produced using Nationwide’s updated mix adjusted House Price Methodology which was introduced with effect from the first quarter of 1995. The data are drawn from Nationwide’s house purchase mortgage lending at the post survey approvals stage. Price indices are seasonally adjusted using the US Bureau of the Census X12 method. Currently the calculations are based on a monthly data series starting from January 1991. Figures are recalculated each month which may result in revisions to historical data.

The Nationwide Monthly House Price Index is prepared from information which we believe is collated with care, but no representation is made as to its accuracy or completeness.
We reserve the right to vary our methodology and to edit or discontinue the whole or any part of the Index at any time, for regulatory or other reasons.
Persons seeking to place reliance on the Index for their own or third party commercial purposes do so entirely at their own risk. All changes are nominal and do not allow for inflation.

More information on the house price index methodology along with time series data and archives of housing research can be found at www.nationwide.co.uk/hpi

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“We have seen thousands of people in need of the best relocation services. People out there used to relocate because of many reasons which are good or bad. Either way, relocation is a common part of life that cannot be avoided in this modern planet” says Yossarian Smythe of Beemoved removals.
They said it right, relocation is an indispensable part of everyone’s life and there are many relocation service providers out there who take advantage of this demand. Some of the service providers demand huge cash for providing the service and some others just swindle the people’s money and provide very poor quality relocation services.
Thankfully there are at least a few professionals like Beemovedremovals to do the job right.

Speaking about the special offer provided at Beemovedremovals, Yossarian Smythe said,
“People around the planet are really having a hard time now because of the Global recession. People are looking for savings in anything and everything. The relocation services are no exemption. In fact people are in desperate need of the relocation services now because of the job cuts and the need to shift to new places to find a job. These people will be in need of temporary storage of there belongings till they settle down again. We understand that the financial condition of our clients won’t be good at this time and that is the reason why we offer extra discounts for the storage needs contracted for more than 6 months.”

Speaking on the move, Yossarian Smythe said,
“Though we have announced this offer, there will be no degradation in the quality of our service. The 24 hour package monitoring system and temperature control will still be provided for the storage solutions. We hope that there are many people out there who can get greatly benefited with this discount. ”

About Beemovedremovals

Beemoved Removals is a local removal firm catering for the south of England. They have been offering the state of the art storage solutions for the people on the move. For more information, visit http://www.beemovedremovals.com

Press Release Contact Details:

Contact:
BeeMoved
2-16 Coombe Road,
Brighton,
BN2 4EA
01273 20 40 98

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