Music
Bath tops list of most desirable urban location for buyers outside of London
Town and city living is becoming more popular in the England with Bath, Exeter and Bournemouth named as the top locations for urban living. Bath is popular with buyers because of its sophistication and easy access to beautiful countryside, Exeter for its location close to the moors and coastline and Bournemouth for its beach and contemporary architecture. Next on the list, compiled by agency Stacks Property Search, is Cheltenham, Truro, Milton Keynes, Oxford, Marlowe, Wells, Brighton and Winchester. ‘Urban property is becoming more and more sought after, and towns and cities that can offer sophistication, culture, great shopping, schooling and facilities, yet remain relatively small and contained with a clear personality are becoming increasingly popular,’ said James Greenwood of Stacks Property Search. Cheltenham is signalled out for its shopping and desirable suburbs, Truro for being just 30 minutes from some great surfing beaches, Milton Keynes for its lovely old houses within walking distance of the centre, Oxford for its university and culture, Marlowe for being a market town on the River Thames, Wells for being a safe city with a music culture, Brighton as a buzzing and bohemian place to live and Winchester for its quiet riverside walks but just an hour by train from London. ‘What makes these towns and cities so attractive is that they're small enough to be friendly with low crime figures, yet large enough to offer everything that residents want. They're like a hybrid between a market town and London. They don't have sprawling suburbs, so everywhere is fairly accessible on foot and they're surrounded by attractive countryside or seaside,’ explained Greenwood. ‘Urban life on this scale is attractive to numerous types of buyers, including families with older children who don't want to be hidden away in the middle of the country, retirees who want entertainment and company on their doorstep and the younger generation, many of whom find that large city living is too impersonal,’ he added. According to Nick Wooldridge of Stacks Property Search towns within commuting distance of London can be the first stop for city leavers who think that the culture shock of London to country is too severe. But many who arrive in Marlowe, for example, never move on as they enjoy the lifestyle so much. ‘Buyers are looking for a mini-London, and these towns all meet that brief. There are bucket loads of culture, fantastic shopping, a really buzzing atmosphere, restaurants and bars at all levels of the spectrum, good state and private schools, but everything's virtually on the doorstep,’ said colleague Jo Aldridge. While, according to Nicola Oddy it is the location of many of these towns that makes them so special. ‘Truro is an amazing city offering everything an urbanite could possibly want; but being equidistant between north and south Cornish coasts, there are 20 places within half an hour to keep a yacht, go surfing, or picnic on the beach. Bournemouth has seven miles of blue… Continue reading
Most tenants fail to get all of their deposit back, new survey finds
The majority of people who’ve rented a property in the UK in the past five years have failed to get their full deposit back after vacating, new research has found. Some 52% of deposits were fully or partially withheld over the past five years, equivalent to more than 400,000 deposits per year and overall 80% of tenants had some degree of trouble getting their deposit back. The survey by London removals company Kiwi Movers also found that cleaning and minor repairs are the most common reasons for withheld deposits, however, 28% of respondents said their landlord delayed returning their deposit despite not making any deductions. Of those who said they experienced difficulties with their landlord when it came to the return of the deposit, 6% lost their entire deposit, the equivalent to 252,000 deposits being fully withheld over the past five years, and 46% lost part of their deposit. Some 20% said they got their full deposit back without any problems while 28% said they managed to get their deposit back in full only after a dispute with the landlord or letting agency. London is the deposit dispute hotspot, with residents in the capital almost twice as likely (11%) as the survey average (6%) to lose their whole deposit, while tenants aged between 18 and 24 living with friends, as opposed to living with a partner or spouse, living alone or with people they didn’t know prior to moving in, are most likely to lose their full deposit. ‘We've seen an increase in customers hiring professional cleaners before checking out of a rented property. It seems to be the only way to counter what they see as the inevitable attempts to withhold part of their deposit,’ said Kiwi Movers director Regan McMillan. ‘Our customers tell us they feel vulnerable unless they have paperwork to prove that they left the property in an acceptable state. Moving is stressful enough without having to worry about having your deposit unfairly withheld,’ he added. Amy Williams, a digital producer from Southampton took her London landlord to court and won after he withheld her deposit. ‘It was only a six month contract and the landlord tried to make us pay for problems that were in the flat when we moved in,’ she explained. ‘The court said it was wear and tear, ordered the landlord to return our deposit and told him that wear and tear was something he’d have to get used to. The landlord also choose to hold the court session not in London but on the south coast. But luckily because we won he had to pay for our train tickets too,’ she added. Daniel Zambas, a Manchester based musician, also took successful legal action against a former landlord. ‘The agent told us the landlord wasn’t going to return our deposit. We successfully challenged this and once we’d had our money… Continue reading
Asking prices rise across the UK apart from in Scotland
Asking prices have increased across England and Wales but not in Scotland, according to the latest index to be published. Prices rises increased by 0.9% overall in England and Wales during the last month but the average annual appreciation for England and Wales is down to 6.5%, the Home.co.uk index shows. The firm says that this reflects increasing demand across most of the UK and although Scottish prices nudged down slightly they remain 4.1% higher than last year. The data also shows that the typical time on market for England and Wales has improved considerably. At 88 days, this already matches last year's post-crisis low and looks set to fall further despite the slower Greater London market. Supply of property for sale in London has risen considerably over the course of the last year, up19%. Correspondingly, marketing times have increased and the typical marketing time is now 60 days which is 13 days longer than in April 2014. Despite this, prices continue to rise at a rate of 13% per annum. Supply rises in other regions are either small or negligible and this is stimulating great price growth, the index report says. Prices are higher in East England, where the typical time on market has fallen to a new post-crisis low of 64 days. East England, the South East, West Midlands and the South West all showed higher monthly price rises than Greater London this month. Further north, marketing times are also improving and prices are nudging up as spring increases the market momentum. Overall, the current mix-adjusted average asking price for England and Wales shows that properties on the market are valued 6.5% higher than they were in April 2014. Homes might be taking longer to sell this year than last, but London’s property values have soared to new all-time highs and this month’s rise takes the average home to over £500,000. Also, the mix adjusted average price has risen by 44% in just three years, which equates to an increase of around £150,000. However, the market dynamic in London is changing and the same vigour that yielded such price growth is moving out to the regions via the Home Counties, according to Doug Shephard, Home.co.uk director. ‘The immediate future looks rosy for all of the UK, but much of this growth is based on debt at historic low rates of interest. And the music won’t stop until it appears that the debt cannot be repaid, although that moment seems a long way off,’ he said. ‘Leveraged property investors can take comfort in the fact that the Bank of England doesn’t look keen on increasing interest rates any time soon. In fact, inflation is falling to new lows and the Bank ‘stands ready’ to cut IRs should this deflationary trend continue for too long. So, for the time being, the sky’s the limit,’ he added. Continue reading
