Is the title of an article in The Times’ Bricks and mortar today.
It talks about a lack of supply in new-builds as developers have to pick and choose which developments they build and which they bail out of. With a continuing high demand for property in the UK we have seen a mini boom in some areas in the new-build sector. Bristol is one area which they highlighted as having avoided the new-build ‘over-supply’ and where they are still selling in great numbers week after week.
Smartnewhomes.com also reported that the price of new homes across the UK has increased by 2.1% over the past 12 months.
I hear so many people talking about the depressed property market – particularly on the new-build front, but this goes to show that most of the doom and gloom is, as usual, utter rubbish.
Its been a great week for the UK market with a couple of new 80% Loan-to-value, Buy-To-Let mortgage products becoming available.
This is fantastic for investors and for the market in general as it restores confidence and shows the banks growing confidence.
Lets hope this is one step up the (steep) ladder to recovery… The boom could be just round the corner….
Mortgage lending jumped to £11.5bn in March, a 24% rise from February the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) said.
The figure was also 3% up on March last year, when the market had reached its nadir in the wake of the credit crunch.
Good to hear.
Source: BBC News
Turkey has maintained stability during the financial crisis and is in the throes of a well-regulated property boom, according to Standard and Poor’s.
For Turkey to receive a credit rating upgrade amongst almost 100 downgrades from Standard & Poor’s is something to be proud of. Careful Government policy has steered Turkey calmly through a turbulent 2009 and decreased its debt levels.
The nation can be confident of a solid financial sector, in spite of external pressures, and according to Standard & Poor’s credit analyst “Turkey’s banking system will be one of the strongest and least-leveraged in Eastern Europe.” The agency even expects to upgrade the country again over the next one to two years should it continue to weather the global turmoil and reduce its dependence on external funding.
Spain meanwhile is the last large world economy to find itself still mired in recession. Its GDP continues to shrink prompting Standard & Poor’s to put the country on a negative outlook in December last year. The agency has little confidence in Spain reducing its Government deficit from 11.4% of GDP to the eurozone limit of 3% and could even apply further downward pressure to its ratings should the authorities not take aggressive action to tackle its weak economic growth and near 20% unemployment.
Daniel Dias for developer Signature International, commented: “At the moment Turkey is certainly in good shape and all of this bodes well for Turkey’s constant endeavour to become part of the EU.”
Source: www.signatureinternational.co.uk www.themovechannel.com
Having just got back from a visit to Turkey I have to say I am very impressed with what they are doing there in terms of tourism. I have heard that Turkey now receives more UK visitors than Spain and I can see why… Even though it was during the winter it was still a compelling place. My first surprise was on the fantastic drive from Milas-Bodrum airport to Altinkum, where I passed a fantastic lake and mountains – which reminded me of Scotland!… This wasn’t what I expected of Turkey at all. Then you pass the Temple of Apollo and come to the beach resort of Altinkum, much larger and more developed than I had expected. The bay of Akbuk is stunning and no brochure can do its tranquility justice, I just cannot wait to go back in the summer!
On the investment front I met the governor of Didim and the mayor of Akbuk to find out what they had planned in terms of commercial and touristic investment and it was great to hear that they appreciate (without my prompting) that it is not just about building apartments and hotels. They grasp the concept of growing their towns into tourist hubs whilst maintaining the essence of peace and natural beauty. Some great ideas were put forward in terms of what they want to do and I am staying in touch with them personally to see how it pans out….
Buy-to-let tourist rentals in Turkey are thriving thanks to a surge of British visitors caused by the favourable exchange rate, an investor has noted.
Libby Garside told the Daily Mail that she and her husband Ted rent out their villa in the Mediterranean coastal resort of Kalkan when they are not holidaying there with their daughters.
Observing a rise in demand from Britons for its use, she said: “More consumers seem to be looking to Turkey as a holiday destination due to rising costs in more traditional European resorts and also because of the terrible sterling to euro exchange rate.”
The paper stated that foreign exchange firms have also seen a rise in the trading of sterling for Turkish lira and Egyptian pounds as tourists look for cheaper alternatives to the eurozone.
In contrast, it observed, the poor return on UK pounds converted into euros is making travel to many traditional destinations more expensive.
Turkish lira could be even less expensive soon as the value is expected to drop with an anticipated cut in the country’s interest rates, overseas investor magazine BuyAssociation has noted.
It said this could effectively make Turkish homes seven per cent cheaper.
Source: Propertyshowrooms.com
So 2009 was an interesting year with the credit crunch still lingering… will 2010 bring even more positive news to the property sector in the form on stable, sensible growth? What do you think? (please comment below…)
Personally I think it will stay stable and growth for the next couple of years will be relatively small and sensible. Then I see larger growth starting to happen, nothing crazy but sustainable, solid economic growth. I don’t think there will be a “double bounce” that some doom and gloomers predict which is why I’m personally buying more property this year as I think any serious investor should be!
I’ve so far bought a 1 bed apartment in Makadi, Egypt (available on our website here: www.colourinvestments.com/makadi/introduction) and also a 7 bedroom HMO property in Reading, Berkshire UK. What have you bought if anything? (again please comment below and share you views with us)
Good luck in 2010 and I hope we can help you achieve some of your investment goals in 2010
Take care
Nick
House prices rose by 1.6% during September, the third successive monthly increase, according to Halifax.
The mortgage lender says typical values are still down by 7.4% compared to this time last year, though they are up 2.8% over the previous three months. The average home now costs £163,533.
Halifax’s figures contrast with the recent Land Registry index which showed a 0.1% drop in August. The official body said house prices are now flat.
Mortgage lender Nationwide reported a 0.9% rise in typical property values during September, the fifth successive rise.
The Land Registry data lags behind both lenders, yet is seen by a number of people as more representative as it takes into consideration all property sales.
Nationwide and Halifax just measure their latest lending data.
Do you think property prices will increase by much this year and if not when do you think they’ll start moving again?
thanks for reading
Nick
Figures released by Nationwide today show that UK property prices have risen for the 5th consecutive month. This means prices have now recovered to the same level as they were in September 2008.
As usual everyone (or at least most people) are still predicting doom and gloom but it is difficult to argue against the fact that the worst times are over and property is back on the up. Properties with a real discount from RICS are being snapped up at an incredible rate when they come to market, and normal properties are also moving quickly when they come on for sale. Hold on to your hats we could be on the verge of some incredible price lifts over the comking 12 months!
“The number of new mortgages for home purchases rose in July for the first time in over two years.
Data released today by the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) show the first annual growth in lending to home buyers since early 2007.
A total of 56,000 homebuyer mortgages went through in July – a rise of 19 per cent on a year ago and 24 per cent on June.” – Source: The Times
We have seen a pick up in the housing market over the past few months and a pick up in some sectors of the economy but due to supply and demand the housing market is the strongest sector and most likely to bounce back. Some people claim it is just a blip on the continued downward spiral but I am currently house hunting and that does not seem the case to me as I can’t find any bargains! Prices in my area (Surrey) have increased since last year and the year before.
Obviously this could be a blip but do you want to take the chance and miss out if it isn’t?? Thats what most people did after the last recession… Only time will tell, but I for one, will be snapping up any bargains I see from now on.