This is an excellent interview with a cunning buy to let investor, his main points being:
– Buy-to-let is a viable option if done correctly
– The ability to obtain finance is crucial
– You have to take a 10 year view on your investment, buy-to-let is not about flipping properties!
– Avoid illusionary discounted deals on new developments
Ta dah!
Hackney Council has designated a new conservation area along Hackney Road.
Following consultation with residents, the council designated the conservation area to protect the area’s special architectural and historic interest.
Hackney Road
Primelocation.com – Market Report
In the Prime London market there was an insignificant increase (0.33%) in asking prices, but a significant reduction in stock levels, down 1.43% in June, or -2.53% in the Central London area.
Prime London lettings stock increased, leaving them an astonishing 96% higher than a year ago, resulting in a 15th successive fall in average rent.
Source: Rat & Mouse
An end to the recession is now “in sight”, after the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) said that “a clear picture” was beginning to emerge of the likely extent of the economy’s troubles.
For the first time in more than two years, the institute has not lowered its quarterly forecast for Ireland’s economic prospects for the year ahead.
It now expects the Irish economy to shrink by 8.9 per cent in terms of its gross national product (GNP) this year, which is a slightly more modest contraction than it expected at the time of its previous forecast in April.
ESRI economist Alan Barrett, one of the authors of the report, said the stability of its forecasts, after a succession of regular and often sharp downward revisions, was “in itself a noteworthy factor”.
Read more: Irish Times Business
The Bank of England keeps interest rates on hold at 0.5% and decides not pump any more new money into the economy.
Bank of England, 1816
Read more: BBC Economy
– Central London rents have stabilised, with marginal falls of 1.0 per cent in Q2 2009, compared to considerable falls in the previous two quarters (-6.2 per cent and -6.1 per cent respectively).
– Annually, rents are down -14.1 per cent and have fallen -14.5 per cent from peak values.
– Some of the excess supply in the rental market is dissipating as the sales market improves.
– Landlords have become more confident following improvement in the economic outlook – they are now less willing to accept large discounts on rent.
Source: Cluttons Summer Rental Report
Yesterday David Miles – author of a Government-commissioned report on the mortgage market in 2004 and a new member of the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee – said that “expectations are crucial in the housing market and they look a bit better now than a few months ago … My hunch – and I put it no stronger than that – is that we have seen most of the overall aggregate house price falls.”
The Bank, meanwhile, said that the availability of mortgage credit was expected to rise over the next few months. Earlier this week the Nationwide Building Society’s house price index registered a 0.9 per cent rise in prices during May – three out of the last four months’ figures have shown an increase; the Halifax and other indices agree.
Source: The Independent
Familes are letting out their London home to live in the country, while young executives abandon buying altogether in favour of a more flexible lifestyle.
“There is a definite move towards renting,” says Liam Bailey, head of research at Knight Frank. “It is becoming more middle class. The hiatus in the market has caused people with bigger properties who can’t sell, to rent. There is a lot of it going on with bigger, better-quality family houses available to let.” Thrusting professionals and creatives are opting for it, too.
“If the mortgage market is difficult to access without a big 10 per cent to 25 per cent deposit, buying is only possible for those with large amounts of cash.” He anticipates the rented sector could grow from nine per cent to 25 to 30 per cent of the market.
Source: Daily Telegraph