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Research from Zoopla.co.uk suggests that renting is more expensive buying across 80% of the cities/towns in Britain, which is up 74% since July 2010. The average tenant pays 9.9% more than an owner with a 5% mortgage, whereas the previous gap was 8.7% in July 2010. The underlying factors behind the widening gap between renting and buying are twofold: 1) The severe shortage in mortgage credit availability in limiting entry into home ownership; 2) The re-financing of existing homes with current low intere

A competitive pricing strategy is key to securing the best price when selling your flat, according to experts at Cluttons. While there is strong support for apartment values, especially in central London and given the shortage of stock, sellers should price competitively in absorbing as much interest and generating a situation where buyers are competing to secure the property. James Hyman, Partner of Residential Sales at Cluttons, argues that buyers are very well informed about prices and if sellers ove

Nigel Page, who was said to have previously run a property maintenance business, won the £56 million jackpot from the pan-European lottery ‘EuroMillions’ in February of this year. Page and partner Justine Laycock, previously a senior sales negotiator at a local estate agent, gave away their home in Park View, Cirencester to their cleaner Denise Kelso and moved into their new eco-friendly home in Bibury, Cirencester. The home is said to be mostly carbon neutral, equipped with 20 solar panels and running on

The large waiting list for housing in Brighton has led the City Council to offer private sector properties, providing strong support for rental demand of one to four bedroom properties. Properties on the ‘private sector leasing (PSL)’ scheme will be managed by Orchard & Shipman, responsible for maintenance and rent collection. Orchard & Shipman will be holding an event at the Preston Park Hotel, Brighton on December 8 to provide more information on the PSL scheme. The event is targeted at potential privat

The UK charity Age UK has retracted its accusations about two property companies and issued an apology after receiving complaints about ‘serious inaccuracies’. Age UK had criticised landlords and managing agents for “unreasonable and unjustifiable charges”, including allegations towards property management company the Peverel Group and the landlord Fairhold. Age UK has since published a correction on its website stating that it had made errors and that the issues covered by the report did not apply on

October house prices were down 0.8% from a month earlier, with the average price now £165,505 in England and Wales. The year-on-year change is still up 3.4%, with London increasing 7.6% from a year earlier. The Eastern region had the greatest monthly rise (1%)  and the North Eastern region had the greatest monthly decline (-0.9%). LSL estate agency stated that because mortgage finance remained difficult to obtain for potential buyers, it has put a drag on house price growth and into negative territory f

Landlords should always protect their deposits within 14 days of receiving them and give the required notification to their tenants. The Court of Appeal has now clarified the date by which a landlord has to protect a tenant’s deposit in order to avoid a penalty. Under a shorthold tenancy the deposit has be protected by lodging it with one of three tenancy deposit schemes.  The landlord then has to notify the tenant of what has been done and provide other key information. And, if this isn’t done, landlor

Data released by both the Ministry of Justice and the Council for Mortgage Lenders suggest the number of properties taken into possession and the level of mortgage arrears continuing to decline. Simon Rubinsohn, RICS Chief Economist said: “We now expect mortgage repossessions to total no more than 37,000 for the whole of this year which compares with 46,000 during 2009. Low interest rates continue to play a key role in preventing the number of repossessions climbing towards levels seen in the early 1990

We received a huge amount of entries for this year's Property Management Awards, demonstrating the dedication and passion (and competitive nature!) of those working in the industry. During a gruelling session, the independent judging panel compared notes, having individually scrutinised all the entries and nominations received.  Eventually, the finalists were selected.  The winners will receive their Awards at a glittering black tie ceremony on 6th December 2010 in Central London. London Property Manage

Cabinet Office Minister Francis Maude has announced this morning the fate of The Leasehold Advisory Service (LEASE) and the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal (which is part of the Residential Property Tribunal Service). The Leasehold Advisory Service remains "under consideration" with the intention that it will be merged in future with a specialist advice service.  A formal decision will be made in April 2011.The Residential Property Tribunal Service will no longer remain a Non-Departmental Public Body and wil

Until The 1990’S insurance policies included damage by terrorism. Following incidents in London, insurers were no longer able to purchase the reinsurance cover they needed to protect themselves against potentially catastrophic losses so were threatening to exclude these risks completely. The Government stepped in to provide the insurers with the reinsurance cover needed to enable them to continue to provide the cover but it now had to be bought as a separate policy. MISCONCEPTION 1 Why don’t the ins

The recent hike in capital gains tax to 28% by the new coalition Government has been met with caution by the property industry, as it will affect many who have invested in ¯ats.