Nottingham Letting Agent Property Blog

According to the Building Societies Association, more people would like to build their own home. At the moment self-build accounts for just one in 10 new homes in the UK, but generates around £3 billion every year. Now the BSA has published a new toolkit aimed at encouraging lenders to offer more self-build mortgages. Self-build homes can either be constructed out of kits, or can be built by developers as a one-off, or can even be an independent community collaboration where a group buys a larger plot of land. Even though this sector is becoming more popular, the UK is well...

According to minister, Grant Shapps, the government is considering drawing up a charter with the aim of simplifying the private rental sector. The charter of requirements would be intended for both tenants and landlords, and could include rules covering antisocial behaviour, and rules covering legal fire safety standards.The question arose in the House of Commons after Liberal Democrat MP Adrian Sanders asked Grant Shapps if the government had thought about simplifying the private rental sector in the same way the planning system has recently been simplified. The intention would be to reduce the regulatory burden on landlords while helping to improve...

Apparently we're all feeling a bit more confident about the property market, as four out of five of us believe property prices won't fall in the next 12 months, and eight out of ten of us think house prices will either be the same or even slightly higher this time next year. Just over a third think property prices will be higher in 12 months’ time, and this is the most optimistic forecast for a year and a half. However one fifth think prices will have dropped in a years’ time, but this is the lowest percentage since the end of...

During the last year borrowing by landlords has increased by 32%, and nearly half of this money has gone towards buying up new properties. During the first three months of this year buy to let lending reached £3.7 billion according to figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders, and 32,300 mortgages were taken out. These figures are an increase of 32% on the same period last year. In spite of this increase the £3.7 billion spent on property was actually 5% less than during the last three months of 2011, and this could be due to the fact that buy to...

The number of professionals looking to cut costs by flat sharing has increased by 33% since the beginning of the year, and those choosing to flat share now number in excess of 50,000, according to data from Easyroommate. They found those looking to flat share had increased by 2,000 over the last three months, following a slight decline in numbers towards the end of last year. Since many people are continuing to rent rather than buy, this trend is likely to continue. Those registered on the website that tend to be professionals with an average age of 27, and this tendency...

A recent survey found a high percentage of homeowners in the UK would need to sell or rent out their property to fund long term care as they age. Partnership, a care annuity provider, found 41% of those surveyed, aged between 45 and 85 would be prepared to fund care in this way. According to the survey, using property to fund care was the third most popular way to purchase long term care, after State funding and using income from pensions. Just 4% would think about using an insurance policy to fund future care needs. In spite of the recent downturn...

Increasing numbers of tenants are asking to see that the landlord does have permission from their lender to rent out the property, and this is beginning to affect those landlords who have been forced to rent out their property until they can sell it. Unfortunately many of these so called ‘reluctant landlords’ have failed to get permission from their lender as this would push up the interest rates on their mortgage.The problem faced by tenants is that they are at risk if the landlord subsequently defaults on their mortgage, and could find themselves homeless. According to the Association of Residential Letting...

According to a report from the Nationwide last week, property prices fell by 0.2% in April, and it’s being predicted that they are likely to remain unchanged for the rest of the year due to continuing weak economic conditions. An average home costs £164,134, with prices 0.9% lower than a year ago, and property prices have fallen for four months out of the last five. Much of the recent price decline is likely to be down to the end of the stamp duty holiday at the end of March. Many people who would have otherwise delayed their property purchases until later...

UK house prices increased for the second consecutive month in April, according to Hometrack, but they are forecasting price declines during the second half of the year. Prices increased by 0.1% last month, following a 0.2% increase in March. As always, London saw the biggest price gains of 0.3%, while Southern England saw gains of 0.1%. In comparison price fell throughout the rest of the country. This means the annual rate of house price inflation is currently -0.9%, which is the best figure seen since October 2010.Over the last three months new buyer registrations have increased by 25%, which is partially...

It looks as if rents in the private sector could be beginning to stabilise, as data from the Association of Residential Letting Agents shows that only half of its member reported increased achievable rent levels, down from 60% nine months ago. The average length of time between lettings is also up to an average of three weeks, and this period has now risen for two consecutive quarters.In addition, ARLA members have reported a decline in the number of contracts for new tenancies. This could be due to decreasing demand from tenants, or it could be due to rents becoming more unaffordable....

Latest statistics from the government show the number of repossessions rose during the last quarter, increasing by more than 5% annually to reach 142,088. Significantly, some 25% of courts processing claims by landlords and letting agents, and which resulted in an order for possession have increased by 20% compared to last year. Areas seeing the highest increases in repossessions include the South East and East. Chelmsford has been the worst affected, with an increase of 65%, with Ilford seeing an increase of 36%. With statistics like these it is hardly surprising that one of the biggest fears of private landlords is...

Housing Minister Grant Shapps was speaking at the Home builders Federation annual lunch last week, and again pledged to help those people who would like to move. He plans to do this through the NewBuy scheme which should help first time buyers as well as homeowners who have outgrown their present property. According to a recent survey, around 40% of homeowners aged under 34 feel their present home is too small for their needs. Another survey by the HSBC found many of the 360,000 home owners who bought property after 2007 were unable to move due to lack of equity.It is...

According to the latest research from the Association of Residential Letting Agents, more tenants are facing difficulty paying their rent on time, with 41.2% of ARLA members saying the number of tenants having trouble paying on time increased in the six months prior to March 2012. Apparently more tenants are attempting to haggle over their rent in an attempt to knock it down when negotiating with landlords and Nottingham letting agents. Just over half the letting agents surveyed said more tenants were trying to get a better deal, especially in the North East of England, and the South-West, while those living...

Increasing numbers of tenants are choosing to share their homes as a way of coping with rising rents, according to property analytics company Hometrack. Although they found demand for rental property is still strong, many people are struggling to cope with the rising cost of living, and certainly cannot cope with increases in rent. This is particularly true in London, and couples who would have previously rented two-bedroom flat and kept a spare bedroom, are now choosing to let it out to another tenant. The rental market in the UK is split into two distinct sections, as rents in London are...

There are a small number of borrowers who have been called mortgage prisoners by the press, as they are likely to face difficulty remortgaging when their current deals come to an end. This is because many are on interest only loans, and have little or no equity, and under today's new stricter lending criteria will find it much trickier to be approved by the major lenders.The Financial Services Authority has put forward transitional arrangements to help borrowers facing these difficulties, and is suggesting that the new rules about mortgage affordability shouldn't apply to existing borrowers needing to remortgage as long as...