Tag Archives: middle-east
New homes sales in Australia up by over 3% in January, led by detached properties
New home sales in Australia increased by 3.1% in January with detached properties leading the growth, according to the latest report from the Housing Industry Association. Detached house sales were up by 5.8% while the sale of multi-units dropped by the same amount but there was quite considerable regional variation. Detached house sales increased by 7.9% in Queensland, by 7.3% in Western Australia, by 5.5% in Victoria, by 4.2% in New South Wales, and by 1.3% in South Australia. Meanwhile, the latest data from the Australia Bureau of Statistics shows the number of homes approved fell by 1% in January, continuing a 10 month decline. Approvals decreased in January in the Australian Capital Territory by 11.3%, in the Northern Territory by 9.5%, in New South Wales by 3.5%, in Western Australia by 1.8% and in Tasmania by 1.7%. But they increased by 1.3% in Victoria, by 0.3% in South Australia and by 0.1% in Queensland. Also in trend terms, approvals for private sector houses rose 0.1% in January, while approvals for private sector dwellings excluding houses fell 2.3%. The value of total buildings approved fell 1.8% in January, in trend terms, and has fallen for seven months. The value of residential building fell 2% while non-residential building fell 1.3%. According to HIA chief economist Harley Dale once the current pipeline is exhausted, new home construction activity will soften. ‘This year will be another healthy one for detached house and multi-unit construction, but we won’t surpass the heights of 2015,’ he said. ‘The new home building sector is crucial to Australia’s economic prospects in 2016 and should continue as a mainstay of domestic economic activity. That is provided policy considerations and debates underway now don’t have adverse consequences for confidence towards housing,’ he added. Continue reading
Planning permission for new homes in the UK increased by 6% in 2015
The number of planning permissions for homes in the UK have increased by 6% year on year taking approvals in 2015 to the highest level since 2007. The data released by the Department of Communities and Local Government also shows that number of major applications being processed swiftly by local authorities is also at an all-time high with a record 81% decided within the required time. According to an analysis of Glenigan data published at the same time permission was granted for 253,000 homes during 2015. Government figures show that as well as rising numbers of planning permissions for homes, the number of permissions granted overall between October and December 2015 was 4% greater than a year earlier, with councils granting 92,000 decisions. ‘We’ve brought the housing market back from the brink with more than 700,000 new homes delivered since 2010 and a further one million granted planning permission,’ said Planning Minister Brandon Lewis. ‘These figures are further good news for hard working families and first time buyers wanting to achieve their dream of home ownership with constructions rates up and plenty of homes in the pipeline,’ he pointed out. He added that the reformed planning system and National Planning Policy Framework cut more than 1,000 pages of guidance to around just 50, simplifying the process for obtaining planning permission whilst maintaining safeguards for the countryside. The government is currently moving ahead with its landmark Housing and Planning Bill, which will help deliver on its ambition to build a million more homes. Measures include new affordable Starter Homes and a new legal duty will be placed on councils to guarantee the delivery of Starter Homes on all reasonably sized new development sites, and to promote the delivery of Starter Homes in their area. There will also be permission in principle for sites identified in plans and brownfield registers to give certainty around the sites that are suitable for housing, while protecting the green belt while planning reforms to support small builders will require councils to ensure they have permission shovel ready plots to match the local demand for custom build. Figures released recently as part of the English Housing Survey showed that more than a decade long decline, starting in 2003, in the number of people owning their home has been turned around with more than 14 million owner occupiers in the country last year. Continue reading
UK private rented sector sees fewer serious arrears and landlords finances healthy
Tenants in the UK private rented sector are now less likely to suffer from a serious build-up of arrears with just 1.6% of tenancies in this position, the latest research shows. The number who had moved out of series rent arrears improved by 1.5% in the final quarter of 2015 compared to the previous quarter, according to the latest Tenant Arrears Tracker by estate agency chains Your Move and Reeds Rains. This reverses some of a deteriorating trend throughout the earlier parts of 2015. There were 82,900 households behind on more than two months’ rent, down from 84,200 in the third quarter of 2015. However, the latest quarterly improvement still represents a worsening on an annual basis. The number of tenants in serious rent arrears remains 19.5% higher than in the final quarter of 2014. But as a proportion of the entire market, the latest total still represents just 1.6% of tenancies across the UK private rented sector. This compares to a peak proportion of 2.9% of tenants in the first quarter of 2008. The absolute number of tenants in serious arrears is also mild on a historical basis, considerably below the record 116,600 such cases seen in the third quarter of 2012. According to Adrian Gill, director of estate agents Your Move and Reeds Rains, an individual tenant is still extremely unlikely to fall into serious rent arrears. ‘In fact the proportion of renters getting seriously behind on payments has dropped considerably over the longer term. But absolute numbers are now going the right way too. With fewer people at risk from more serious consequences of struggling to pay the rent, this is great news,’ he said. The tracker also shows that eviction rates have dropped in response to healthier tenant finances. In the final quarter of 2015 there were a total of 26,676 court orders issued for the eviction of tenants, on a seasonally adjusted basis. This is down marginally by 0.4% compared to the previous quarter when seasonally adjusted eviction orders stood at 26,775. On an annual basis, downward progress for evictions is more considerable, with 5.3% fewer evictions than 28,167 a year before in the fourth quarter of 2014. The latest figures for evictions represent 32% of the stock of tenants in severe arrears in the fourth quarter, meaning only around one in three such cases translate into evictions each quarter. Landlord finances are the healthiest on record, it also shows. Cases of landlords falling behind on their own financial commitments are diminishing. In the final three months of 2015 there were 5,500 examples of buy to let mortgage arrears, down by 3.5% from 5,700 in the previous quarter and a resumption of downward progress after the figure previously remained the same between the second and third quarter of 2015. On an annual basis, progress for landlords’ finances has been… Continue reading
