Tag Archives: real estate
Property prices up in most towns and cities in France
Property prices have increased in over 80% of towns and cities in France in the last year but there is considerable regional variation, the latest figures show. Prices in Bordeaux have increased the most, up by 7.1%, while Strasbourg and Toulouse have seen values rise by 4% and Nice by 3.9%, according to a study […] The post Property prices up in most towns and cities in France appeared first on PropertyWire . Continue reading
Rental deposits worth over £500,000 not claimed in Scotland
Thousands of private sector tenants in Scotland have failed to collect their deposit when they moved out of their home, it has been discovered. Staff at tenancy deposit scheme SafeDeposits Scotland have calculated that money due to tenants amounts to more than £500,000. Tenancy deposit schemes were introduced in July 2012 and since then more than 156,000 deposits have been repaid by SafeDeposits Scotland. While millions of pounds have been returned to tenants at the end of their leases, a small proportion of people don’t claim back the money that is due to them. It is those people who SafeDeposits Scotland are trying to track down. A large proportion of missing tenants are students, according to the firm. With the start of the academic year, September is the busiest time for deposits being paid both in and out. The busiest day sees almost 90% more deposits being paid in than the average day through the year. Just over 2,000 tenants have ended their leases without claiming back the money due them, totalling more than £500,000. The clock is ticking and if deposits aren’t claimed back within six years, unclaimed funds go to the Crown, a process which will start in 2018. SafeDeposits Scotland’s finance team do everything they can to reunite former tenants with their money including sending letters to forwarding addresses, emailing, calling and texting. While successful in the majority of cases, some people are more elusive. Money cannot be paid directly back into accounts as this isn’t information that tenancy deposit schemes have been given. The Scottish Government introduced the tenancy deposit scheme in 2012 to make deposits safe for tenants. When landlords and agents take a deposit from a tenant they’re required by law to lodge the money with one of three approved schemes who ring fence the money until the end of the lease. SafeDeposits Scotland is the largest of these three approved schemes in the UK, holds an estimated 60% of all private rental deposits and the only scheme to be based in Scotland. ‘It’s extremely surprising that people can leave their rented property and forget to ask for their deposit back. The vast majority of tenants remember to claim their money but there’s a small minority who don’t,’ said Jennifer Paice, chief executive of SafeDeposits Scotland. ‘Our finance team do a great job in tracking most of them down but there are a significant number they can’t get hold of. We don’t think it’s right that people lose out on what’s due to them so we do everything we can to try and get people the money they are owed,’ she added. Continue reading
Research suggests more people in Europe are finding home prices too high
Confidence in European housing market has hit a plateau at a time when unaffordable prices are forcing people to live with parents or put off having children, according to new research. Overall some 56% of people in Europe expect house prices to rise in the next 12 months and as a result 33% are delaying important life decisions, the homes and mortgages 2016 report from ING suggests. But a breakdown of the survey data covering 15 countries shows that there are vast shifts in outlook across Europe and the most dramatic shift has been in the UK, where expectations of rising house prices fell by 13% prior to the referendum on its future in the European Union. Following the Brexit vote the question was repeated and the number who expect house prices to fall grew 16%. It means that 46% of people in the UK now believe house prices will rise in the next year, the lowest proportion since the first survey was conducted in 2012. Falling interest rates are one factor that can typically influence house prices. Across Europe, Luxembourg at 28% and the UK at 26% have the largest share of people who report that low interest rates have pushed up house prices where they live. However, in all but two of the countries included in the study, when asked how the fall in rates has affected house prices where they live, some 39% of respondents say they ‘do not know’, indicating that few actually understand the effect on house prices. Unaffordable housing is having an impact across Europe. Some 60% of people find that house prices where they live are expensive and 33% are putting their lives on hold as a result. Those affected admit to putting the brakes on their futures, with 29% being forced to live with others, 22% saying they feel trapped in their current jobs and 16% delaying having children. High house prices are resulting in 24% of people finding it difficult to pay their mortgage each month, reaching highs of 41% in Poland and 40% in Romania. As a coping mechanism, some 46% are compromising on their housing choices whether they rent or own their home. Of those who have compromised and are unhappy with their situation 39% moved to areas they do not like as much and 39% settled for a smaller home while 37% of those who are unhappy with their housing today say they opted for houses in poor condition. Despite these challenges, 46% want to buy a house in the near future and are willing to make the necessary sacrifices in order to call their place their own. Some 41% of people in Europe admit to curtailing spending a lot in order to buy, although this proportion rises to a survey high of 60% in Turkey. The difficulties facing buyers have also led to a reliance on the… Continue reading
