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Research reveals UK house hunters like a more personal service from estate agents
Some 58% of UK house hunters want life long, personal relationships with estate agents with an accumulative understanding of their property needs, new research suggests. The study from cloud based estate agency software provider Dezrez, looks at the attitudes, perceptions and expectations that UK home buyers have towards estate agents and online tools. It found that the majority of respondents, 93%, search for properties online, while 54% said that they would use a mixture of online tools and estate agents to deal with the entire property buying process. Some of home buyers said they would actually prefer to have a personal agent who can deal with the whole management of the home buying process. Those surveyed also admitted to relying heavily on estate agents’ expertise for key parts of the home buying process including with 72% for conveyancing, 62% to arrange viewings and inspect properties, 53% to make an offer and 42% for financial negotiations. ‘Buying or selling a home can be an extremely stressful and daunting process and good quality customer service still carries a huge amount of weight. Estate agents are well placed to offer sound, expert advice. They can help to alleviate some of the pressures and concerns that consumers have with managing the process themselves,’ said Justin Morris, chief executive officer of Dezrez. ‘What we are experiencing in the property market is some interesting trends that are mirroring consumer activity on the high street. Whilst many people like to be able to search online, they clearly value the customer experience and human touch of face to face interactions. However, without the personal touch online only services aren’t necessarily going to be in the position to replace traditional agents,’ he explained. The research also highlights consumer frustration with agents who are slower to adopt newer digital technologies. Some 67% of respondents believe that estate agents are not fully using technology to their advantage and 44% strongly agree that estate agents need to adopt, and embrace technology, in order to survive in the future. ‘There is a real appetite for change from both estate agents and consumers, especially when it comes to the use of technology. Advancements in technology, from mobile devices to cloud based software offer some amazing opportunities for the estate agent of the future. It gives them greater accessibility and freedom, and helps them to alleviate some of the pressures experienced by home buyers and sellers,’ Dezrez pointed out. ‘ There’s a breadth of technology that can help transform the property industry and enable agents to deliver a professional and personal service across human and digital touchpoints. In order to survive, and thrive, estate agents must recognise and remain confident, that they too have the tools available to remain competitive and keep customers satisfied,’ he added. Continue reading
Commercial property lending market in UK seeing renewed confidence
Confidence has returned to the commercial property lending market in the UK as new loan originations hit a post crisis high, new figures shows. Indeed, the value of outstanding loan books saw its first increase since 2008, according to the most comprehensive study of the UK’s commercial property lending market from De Montfort. The total amount of outstanding debt at the year end in 2015 was £168.4 billion, representing a 1.9% increase from £165.2 billion at the year-end in 2014, and the first increase recorded since 2008. Overall some £53.7 billion of loan originations were recorded during the whole of 2015, compared to £45.2 billion in 2014 and while new lending volumes rose, the proportionate increase moderated to 18.8% in 2014/2015, compared to a post-crisis record of 51.2% in 2013/2014. The report says that further evidence that the market has recovered can be seen in the decline of almost 50% in the value of distressed loans, that is those in default and in breach of financial covenant. At the year-end in 2015, the value of distressed loans reported to the research was £12.1 billion, compared to £23.2 billion a year earlier and £47.6 billion at the end of 2009. Loan to value (LTV) ratios on existing loans continue to fall, reflecting the rise in commercial property values and banks continuing to lend on similar terms to recent years. At the year-end in 2015, some 87.5% or £123.5 billion of outstanding debt had a LTV ratio of 70% or less, compared to 77% or £107 billion at the year-end in 2014 and 63% or £99 billion at year end in 2013. Outstanding debt with a LTV between 71% and 100% represented 7.5% or £10.6 billion of the market, and just 5% or 6.9 billion had a LTV greater than 101%. Notably, average lending LTVs fell during the course of 2015 for all sub-sectors, suggesting good lender discipline despite the strength of the market. Although they still dominate the market, UK banks and building societies saw their market share continue to decline. They represented 34% of new loan originations at year end in 2015, the lowest level ever recorded by the research, compared to 39% the previous year. The proportion of outstanding debt held on their books also fell, from 49% of the total at year end in 2014 to 45.5% in 2015. For the first time, insurance companies were the second largest category of new loan originators, representing 16% or £8.57 billion of the total in 2015. The exposures of insurance companies now account for 15.1% or £25.4 billion of the market, compared to 12.7% or £21 billion in 2014. Regional distribution of outstanding loans showed a strong bias in favour of central London; 43% of the total outstanding debt is secured against real estate in the capital city, the highest result ever recorded by the research, and a dramatic increase from the 26% recorded in 2010. This indicates… Continue reading
Residential rents falling across much of Scotland, latest index shows
Scottish rents increased just 0.6% year on year and were down 0.4% month on month in April, marking the smallest annual rise seen since the start of 2013, the latest index shows. Across Scotland the average rent now stands at £542, but Edinburgh and the Lothians shun the wider slowdown with a record 10.5% jump in rents since last year. The data from the Your Move index also shows that tenant arrears are escalating as the level of late rent climbed for the second consecutive month, up to 11.6%. The annual rise represents a significant downturn in rates of year on year growth from 1.1% recorded in March, and 2.1% in February and average rents are at their lowest since April 2015. Brian Moran, lettings director at Your Move Scotland, pointed out that overall rents haven’t risen at such a leisurely place for three years but the market is seeing many price fluctuations and also isn’t uniform across the country. ‘The lettings market is always at the mercy of local supply and demand, and in Edinburgh and the surrounding areas we’re seeing extraordinarily fast rent rises, as tenant competition shines brightest around the glow of the jobs market. Supply and demand need to strike a lasting equilibrium to prevent rent growth taking off and leaving tenants by the wayside and that’s a tall order in today’s regulatory environment,’ he explained. He also pointed out that landlords are up against a considerable number of hurdles, including a higher rate of stamp duty on property purchases, reductions in tax relief, and the Private Tenancies Bill. ‘While levied at landlords, these measures could soon hurt thousands of tenants too if buy to let investment retreats as a result and there are less houses and flats to rent,’ he added. On a monthly basis, rents were cheaper in all but one region of Scotland in April. The Highlands and Islands had the fastest drop in average rents in April, falling 1.7% on March, reducing typical rents in the region to £537 per month, the lowest level seen since December 2014. Rents in Glasgow and Clyde fell on a monthly basis for the fourth consecutive month, down by 1% in April to £538 while in the East of Scotland rents were 0.6% lower in April than in March, while the South experienced the smallest month on month reduction, down by 0.1%. Edinburgh and the Lothians is the only region to experience an increase in rents since March, up a solid 0.8% month on month following on from rises of 0.2% in March and 0.3% in February. In the longer term, rents also fell across the majority of Scotland year on year in April. Of the three regions to see rents decrease on an annual basis, Glasgow and the Clyde had the steepest drop with average rents 3.9% lower than in April 2015. Rents… Continue reading
