Tag Archives: city
Prime property markets in key UK towns set to see continued demand
Price growth for prime properties in key urban markets in the UK is likely to continue this year, driven by growing demand among buyers, new research suggests. In particular demand for properties in key town and city locations such as Oxford, Bath, Bristol and Cheltenham with access to good schools, transport links and amenities is expected to be high. They are attractive to buyers from London, including commuters, as infrastructure improvements make them and their amenities more accessible, according to the research from real estate firm Knight Frank. These include the electrification of the Great Western rail line to London from Bristol and Bath and the new Oxford Parkway railway station just opened to the north of the city. Annual price growth for prime properties in the Oxford city market eased to 1.3% in 2015, but the research suggests that as Oxford’s economy is diverse, led by IT, high tech manufacturing and publishing and the city’s hospitals and two universities are major employers, demand from local buyers is ever present. ‘Activity is expected to remain strong in early 2016, especially as some buyers look to complete purchases ahead of the introduction of new stamp duty rules which have the potential to impact a small section of the market,’ the report says. The report points out that annual price growth for prime properties in the Bath city market was 4.5% in 2015, compared to a 3.1% rise across the wider prime country market and this outperformance reflects the continued demand among buyers for prime properties in city centre locations. Bath is an international tourist destination home to a wealth of museums, Georgian streets and other attractions that mark it out as a desirable place to live and visit, including a compact city centre with a good retail offering. This was underlined by a 6% rise in the number of potential buyers registering their interest in purchasing a home in Bath through Knight Frank year on year, a 15% jump in sales volumes over the same period and a 43% increase in the number of people searching for homes in Bath on Knight Frank’s website. A number of these individuals were relocating or looking to relocate from the capital. Knight Frank data shows that outside of the Home Counties, Bath along with Oxford was the most popular location for Londoners looking to move in 2015. ‘The prospect of more regular services between Bath and London from 2017 as a result of improvements being made to both the track and the trains will make commuting an even more viable option,’ the report explains. Property prices in Bristol rose by 6.6% in 2015 driven by the growing trend among buyers for properties in key town and city markets with access to good schools, transport links and amenities and a lack of available properties for sale has been the biggest driver of the market in Bristol over the last year, according to the report. Stock levels were at… Continue reading
Parking spaces with new properties in London can cost an extra 13%
Less than a fifth of new build properties in London include a parking space in the purchase price, compared to 67% for other major cities, new research has found. And this may because they are unaffordable as a parking space with a new home in London adds to the price for a buyer, which can be up to 13% on the price of the property. However, it appears that restrictions from developers often mean only those purchasing two or more bedroom properties even have the option of buying a parking space. The research from Direct Line’s SELECT Premier Insurance suggests that developers are charging an average of 5% of a new property’s purchase price for an accompanying parking space. It gives as an example a parking bay to accompany a new build property in London’s Battersea was being sold for £65,000, some 13% of the property’s £500,000 listed purchase price. In London, researchers found parking spaces were only available and included in the purchase price of a new property 18% yet in major cities outside London including Leeds, Glasgow and Bristol, parking spaces were included in the purchase price of a new property 67% of the time. Restrictions on building parking spaces for new properties mean they have become a desirable commodity. In many cases, developers were found to impose controls even within new build developments, only allowing buyers of large or expensive properties to purchase a parking bay. A new wharf development in Hammersmith for example, only allows parking spaces to be purchased for properties valued at over £1.5 million, while developers in areas of London such as Stratford, Ealing, Greenwich, Elephant and Castle and Wembley Park are restricting spaces in new developments to those buying a property with at least two bedrooms. The same practice is also applied in cities such as Leeds and Nottingham. Where parking spaces cannot be purchased, some developers offer annual permits to rent out parking bays. Spaces in Brixton accompanying new build apartments costing £577,000 were available for just £104 a year, whereas in Bristol, a parking permit to accompany a £425,000 property was available for £1,400. There are huge variations even within cities, in Brighton’s Marina Village a permit for a £775,000 property clocked in at £250 while elsewhere in the City a space accompanying a £410,000 apartment costs £1,000 a year. ‘Restrictions on the number of parking spaces developers can build to accompany new properties make these slots a hot commodity carrying a premium price point. In many new developments, those purchasing studios or one bedroom homes are denied the opportunity to purchase a space as they are reserved for larger properties,’ said Nick Brabham, head of SELECT Premier Insurance. ‘As larger scale residential developments are built in urban city centres, traffic volumes will become an increasing issue and planners may restrict the construction of new parking bays even further, making it very difficult for homeowners with vehicles,’ he explained. Access… Continue reading
Property market in Cyprus is stabilising but recovery unlikely yet in coming months
Residential property prices in Cyprus appear to be stabilising but experts are divided on how the market will pan out over 2016. The most up to date figures from the Cyprus Central Bank’s index covering the third quarter of 2015 shows that prices fell by 0.3%, consistent with the 0.4% and 1% falls during the previous quarters. Year on year prices are down 3.7%, an improvement on the previous quarterly fall of 5% and a breakdown of the figures suggest that apartment prices in some locations, most notably Limassol, Larnaca and Paphos are rising, a further sign of stability in the market. The biggest fall in prices quarter on quarter was in Famagusta with a decrease of 1.6%, followed by Nicosia down 1.3% and Limassol down 0.1%. While prices in Larnaca and Paphos rose by 1.2% and 0.2% respectively. Apartments are showing signs of more resilience. While quarter on quarter apartment prices fell 1.5% in Famagusta and 0.6% in Nicosia but increased by 2.1% in Limassol, 1.5% in Paphos and 0.3% in Larnaca. According to Daryl Fitzgerald, director of Fitzgerald Estates Agency in Paphos, pointed out that sales are also improving. They increased by 64% in Nicosia, by 30% in Paphos, and by 28% in Limassol in October. But fell by 1% in Larnaca. He pointed out that the statistics show that 96% of total property sales in Nicosia were registered to Cypriot nationals whilst only 4% were bought by overseas buyers, suggesting that international buyers are not yet coming back to the market in the city. But in Paphos, which has the largest number of holiday homes registered to overseas owners in the whole of Cyprus, there has been a 103% increase in sales to Cypriots in October. ‘From the brink of the financial and banking abyss, Cyprus is steadily emerging a stronger economy and a stronger nation. The financial restrictions are but a memory, our banks have been upgraded and almost given a clean bill of health, the title deeds issue is being dealt with and the buyers have more and more tools to fight the good fight to get the deeds,’ said Fitzgerald. He believes that what is happening in Paphos is interesting as it was the centre of the property bubble on the Mediterranean island. ‘The sudden interest by Cypriot buyers signals that the prices have reached bottom and are stabilising. Cypriots know this and are taking advantage of this once in a lifetime opportunity,’ he explained. However, the latest report from Resolute Asset Management in Cyprus suggests that 2016 is not set to see a revival of the real estate market. It says that while sales increased by 9% in the first 11 months of 2015 compared to the same period in 2014, compared to 2007 sales are still down by 79%. The firm believes that sales volumes will remain low in 2016. Its report suggests that foreigners who are tempted to buy in Cyprus will be concentrated on… Continue reading
