Property
18 million could be living with a water leak at home
By Bea Patel, TLE Property Editor and Director of Shop for an Agent 18 million people could currently be living with leaks at home. A study by HomeServe Labs revealed that 19.1 per cent of UK adults currently have a dripping tap at home, and 8.5 per cent are stuck with leaky toilets. The research also revealed 76.9 per cent have experienced a leak at home before. 37 per cent currently report having a leak at home, which rises to...
Property Price Gap Between London and Rest of UK Closes Dramatically
The gap between property prices in England and Wales and London has closed significantly according to a new data set released by Land Registry in conjunction with the Office of National Statistics (ONS). The average price of property in England and Wales reached £221,832 in May, now standing at almost half the price of Greater London (£472,163). This compares to previously released Land Registry data from March when property in London was three times more expensive than the rest of...
Brexit Ends 19-Month House Price Rally
By Bea Patel, TLE Property Editor and Director of Shop for an Agent Confidence among sellers has been dampened by the outcome of the Brexit vote. Figures published by home.co.uk show London prices, which were already looking the most overvalued, have been hit the hardest, falling 1.1 per cent in one month (around £6K less for the average home in the region). The average house price in the South East also slipped 0.2 per cent during the last month, but...
East London flat at £1,000 per month rent is actually a garage
A garage in Clapton, East London was being rented out as a flat at over £1,000 a month, reports the Hackney Citizen. Council officials discovered two people living in the property, which had been advertised as a studio flat, but was not a habitable dwelling. It has now been closed as a residential property after Hackney Council found the inhabitants living in inadequate conditions. Until the deceit was spotted the rental income was over a grand a month, a huge...
New petition urges Government to scrap EPCs
By Bea Patel, TLE Property Editor and Director of Shop for an Agent In 2007 the UK Government introduced EPCs (Energy Performance Certificates). The Housing Act 2004 made it a mandatory requirement that an energy assessment is made on all properties listed for sale in Britain and late also applied to rental properties. This was derived from an EU diktat, European Union Directive 2002/91/EC. Britain was told it must adopt a regime of sending inspectors to all homes marketed for...
The state of Londoners that fly the nest
By Bea Patel, TLE Property Editor and Director of Shop for an Agent The average Londoner is 23 years old when they move out of home for the first time. Perhaps advanced in numerous ways, but new research reveals young Londoners lack basic skills when they fly the nest. From the 1,000 adults surveyed by Weroom, 28 per cent admitted to not knowing how to roast a chicken. A further 31 per cent didn’t know how to operate a boiler,...
Knowing your Rights: How to remove bad tenants
Can I do anything about my bad tenants? According to Simply Business, a recent survey revealed that landlords in the UK are out of pocket to the tune of over £5bn every year because of damage to property and unpaid rent. Broken appliances, damage to carpets and decorating is a big problem, alongside tenants paying late or failing to pay at all. When you’ve invested in a First Urban Group property, the last thing you want to worry about is...
Brexit: What’s next for UK property market?
By Bea Patel, TLE Property Editor and Director of Shop for an Agent On Thursday 23 June 2016 Britain faced its biggest decision for decades. We took to the polls to vote if Britain should leave or remain in the EU. Pre-EU referendum, we saw much uncertainty in the property market, with many people approaching a ‘wait and see’ attitude to buying and selling. Experts predicted house prices could fall up to 18 per cent. Forecasts in sterling weakening opened...
Mayor Sets Out to Boost Confidence in London’s Post-Referendum Housing Industry
By Bea Patel, TLE Property Editor and Director of Shop for an Agent The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has set out his commitment to strengthening confidence in the capital's housing industry in the aftermath of last week's EU referendum result. Sadiq Khan was elected to deliver a step change number of homes built in London – including genuinely affordable housing. Under the previous Mayor, it’s reported only 13 per cent of homes approved were affordable. With concern that last...