5 surprising things that will boost the value of your home

Forget good schools, a new bathroom and a south-facing garden, it's the elements you can't control that really affect your house value

When you’re looking to improve a property’s value, there’s a whole heap of accepted wisdom out there. Improve the curb appeal by adding a few flower pots and getting rid of that rusty bath in the front garden. Install a new bathroom and do up the kitchen. Will the local school to get a better Ofsted report next time.

But a new study has shown that simply living near a big-brand supermarket can add £22,000 to the value of a property, or even more depending on the shop. And that’s just one of a number of factors that can have a huge affect on the value of a property, no matter how nice the kitchen is.

Here are five surprising things that will affect the price of your property. Sadly, they’re almost entirely out of your control.

Be near a big supermarket

The research from Lloyds Bank shows that living near a well-known supermarket can add £22,000 to the value of a home, but that rises to an average of almost £40,000 if it’s a Waitrose.

Sainsbury’s adds an average of almost £28,000, while Tesco provides a house price premium of just over £22,000. Sadly, proximity to an Aldi store adds just £1,333 to the average house price.

Mike Songer, Lloyds Bank mortgage director, explains: “There is definitely a correlation between the price of your home and whether it’s close to a major supermarket or not. Our figures show that the amount added to the value of your home can be even greater if located next to a brand which is perceived as upmarket.”

Don’t live on a ‘road’

It’s no surprise that the name of the street affects the value of a property to a degree  – most people would rather live on Primrose Lane than on Bell End (honestly, that’s a place).

But the effect can be even more subtle. Alex Gosling, the chief executive of online estate agents HouseSimple.com, comments: “The name of your street could add thousands to the value of a property. You'll probably pay more to live on a 'Chase' than on a 'Terrace' or 'Close'. And regal-sounding streets – particularly if they have 'King' in the name – can bump up prices.”

That’s borne out by Zoopla analysis, which showed that properties located on "Hills" and "Lanes" are worth 50 per cent more than the national average; while "Streets" and "Terraces" have the lowest average property values.

In fact, the average property on a street named "something Hill" is worth £185,000 more than the average property on a "something Street".

Have smart neighbours

Even if you don’t want to spend your free time shopping at the organic farmers' market or dining out, it’s better for your house price if your neighbours do. If more upmarket businesses open nearby then your house price could soar.

Mark Hayward, managing director of the National Association of Estate Agents says: “Aspirational amenities such as a Michelin-starred restaurant, organic farm shop or a local dining club can have a positive impact on the saleability of nearby homes. In addition, areas with high-value sporting and recreational activities like pony clubs and chess societies for children are also desirable, and when combined with successful local schools can see premiums on house prices of up to 10 per cent. 

“Parental competition is rife and many can regularly be seen battling to ‘keep up with the Joneses’ in order to provide the best possible upbringing for their children. This will in turn differentiate homes in certain areas from others on the market.”

Live near a sporting venue

One historical study by Halifax showed that houses near Premier League football grounds increased faster than average over 10 years. In the decade up to 2012 house prices in the postal districts of 20 clubs rose by an average of 137 per cent, compared to an average hike of 90 per cent across England and Wales.

That’s a finding that estate agents say has been replicated across other sporting arenas. Mr Gosling says: “Living near a top sporting venue can really boost house prices. It's well known that you're likely to pay a premium to live close to Wimbledon.

"But we carried out some research on living next to an Open Championship golf course, and found that golf fans pay a 139 per cent premium. For example, the average property price next to Royal Birkdale, in Southport, was just over £1m, more than 400 per cent higher than the average property price in that postcode.”

Open all hours

Lastly, it’s a very good thing if a decent pub opens within walking distance of your front door. Research from Sarah Beeny’s online estate agency Tepilo shows that a good quality pub is a major selling point for 23 per cent of buyers, adding to demand and competition for nearby homes.

OK, perhaps that one isn’t that surprising.

http://www.independent.co.uk/money/5-surprising-things-that-will-boost-the-value-of-your-home-a7169621.html

Number of homes on the market at record low as Brexit uncertainty hits house prices

TThe number of homes on the market hit a record low in July as house price growth slumped on the uncertainty in the wake of the Brexit referendum.

The level of market activity, such as the amount of new buyer inquiries and the number of agreed sales, continued to fall, according to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics).

July’s residential housing market survey posted the lowest reading in three years for recent house price growth: just 5pc more of those surveyed saw a rise rather than a fall in prices. Predictions for house price growth in the next three months remained negative across the country.

London and East Anglia are the only areas in the UK where prices are expected to fall in the next year. But over the next five years, surveyors have forecast prices will rise 4pc per year in London, and 3pc nationally. The Rics survey is widely seen as a good indicator of future house price changes.

Samuel Tombs, at Pantheon Macroeconomics, said: "A slight moderation in the rate of decline in demand - the new buyer enquiries balance rose to -27pc from -36pc -appears to have lifted surveyors’ spirits. Contracting supply also is helping to prevent sharp price falls."

Comments made by many of the surveyors indicated that the responses in July were partly due to a seasonal slowdown, as well as uncertainty caused by Brexit.

Part of the problem is that stock levels are at record low levels in many parts of the UK, and there is a lack of properties coming on to the market to replace those sold. The amount of new properties coming on to the market contracted at the fastest pace on record in the last three months.

John Frost, an estate agent with the Frost Partnership in Slough, said: “Since the Brexit [vote] the market seems to be stabilising, although buyers are cautious with their offers. The market, due to the time of year, will quieten and therefore September will be a good test of the strength of the marketplace.”

Hansen Lu, of Capital Economics, said: "If these measures had fallen sharply again this month, it could have indicated a belief that house prices were set for a sustained correction – a belief that could have become self-fulfilling. So the fact that expectations have, at least for now, stabilised is of some relief."

Zoopla, the online property portal, said that in July 32.6pc of properties listed had their prices slashed, but despite uncertainty over Brexit this was an increase of just 1.5pc on the previous month. 17 of the 20 areas with the most reduced properties were in the north of England.

Simon Rubinsohn, chief economist at Rics, said: “The housing market is currently balancing a raft of somewhat mixed economic news alongside the latest policy measures announced by the Bank of England, which have already begun to lower cost of mortgage finance."

“Against this backdrop, it is not altogether surprising that near-term activity measures remain relatively flat. However the rebound in the key twelve-month indicators in the July survey suggest that confidence remains more resilient than might have been anticipated," he said.

“Critically, it is hard to escape the stark message regarding supply that is evident in the latest set of results with Rics data showing inventories on agents’ books around historic lows on average. This is a long-running story that may have been exacerbated by recent events but clearly needs urgent action from the new government.”

This survey took place before the Bank of England announced the cut in interest rate.

Moody’s, the rating agency, said that uncertainty as a result of the referendum will slow mortgage lending, particularly in the buy-to-let sector.

It said that this was due to the uncertainty of levels of growth of rental income and house prices. The buy-to-let sector was already depressed after it was hit with a 3pc stamp duty hike in the beginning of April.

Meanwhile, the Financial Conduct Authority is planning to tighten its scrutiny of buy-to-let mortgages given by those lenders which are not banks and so are not already facing tougher rules from the Bank of England's Prudential Regulation Authority. The market for this kind of lending is worth £200bn per year.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/house-prices/number-of-homes-on-the-market-at-record-low-as-brexit-uncertaint/

Research shows just 18% of UK mortgage holders overpay to reduce their loan

Mortgage holders in the UK could save over £1,800 in interest alone through regular overpayments, according to new research.

Some 18% overpay on their mortgage every time a payment is due and 11% have even delayed buying a new car to make the extra payment, however 58% never overpay.

Overall UK mortgage holders could save over £14 billion over the next two decades by regularly overpaying, the research from Comparethemarket shows.

Overpaying each month by as little as £59, or around 10% of an average monthly payment, means mortgage holders could reduce their mortgage term by approximately one year and four months and possibly save £1,842 on interest alone.

For first time buyers the potential savings are even greater. Mortgage holders between 25 and 34 years old could reduce their mortgage term by approximately two years and eight months and save roughly £6,553 on interest by overpaying by 10%.

Many home owners are already aware of the benefits of overpayment. The survey found that 52% said that contributing more towards their mortgage each month would make them feel more financially secure, with 19% agreeing that it would make them feel much more secure.

Those who do regularly contribute extra to their mortgage overpay by an average of 4.7%. Nearly a fifth said that they overpay every time a payment is due and 15% admitted to overpaying by more than 10% in the last 12 months.

Many mortgage holders are willing to give up day to day luxuries in order to afford overpayments. To pay off more of their mortgage, over one in ten people delayed buying a new car, 18% had not taken a holiday abroad and over a fifth put off buying a luxury item such as expensive clothes or a new gadget such as an iPad.

However the majority of people still hesitate to put more money towards their mortgage every month, with 58% admitting to never overpaying. Of those who don’t overpay, a fifth think they have too many other outgoings such as household bills, and one in 10 were not aware they could overpay on their mortgage or thought it seemed too complicated.

Of those who do not overpay, 44% thought they couldn’t afford the extra payments, yet respondents also said they spent on average £167 each month on non-necessity items, with nearly one in 10 admitting to more than £300. The research also shows that 25 to 34 year olds admitted to spending closer to £210 on luxuries such as going out for dinner or attending the theatre.

‘As a nation we are getting more proactive in searching for the best deals, whether on energy providers or insurance. Whilst committing more of your pay cheque towards your mortgage can seem financially daunting, making small contributions each month, or even a one-off lump sum overpayment, could save mortgage holders thousands of pounds in the long term,’ said Jody Baker, head of money at the comparison website.

‘Sacrificing one meal out at a restaurant or regularly bringing lunch in from home could make all the difference. Now that interest rates have been lowered to 0.25%, overpaying on your mortgage could be seen as a savvy alternative to traditional saving and could result in some huge savings in the long term for home owners,’ she explained.

She pointed out that many lenders will restrict the amount you can overpay, usually to 10% of your outstanding amount each year. ‘If your bank imposes significant penalties for overpaying, depending on your circumstances it could be worth considering reducing the term of your mortgage instead. This will increase the monthly payments so in effect you will be permanently overpaying, though some lenders may charge an admin fee for altering your term,’ she added.

http://www.propertywire.com/news/europe/uk-mortgage-holders-payments-2016081012244.html

Pace of rental growth slows across UK, says HomeLet

Rents on new tenancies continued to increase across most parts of the UK over the three months to July, albeit at a slower pace, according to new figures.

Fresh data from the HomeLet Rental Index shows that the cost of a new tenancy in the private rentals market in the UK, excluding Greater London, rose by 2.3% to £779pcm in the three months to July 2016. However, the figures represent a fall from the 3.5% annual rise recorded over the three months to June.

According to the Index, rental prices rose in almost every area of the country, with 10 out of the 12 regions surveyed seeing an increase over the three months to the end of July.

Rental price growth in the UK was led by East Anglia and the East Midlands, where rents on an annual basis rose by 9.7% and 5.4% respectively.

London remains by far the most expensive place in the UK to rent property, with the average rent on a new tenancy now stood at £1,599, up 4% year-on-year.

The North East, South West and North West of England all saw annual rents fall, down -5%, -2.1% and -0.5% respectively.

The data suggests that the rental market remains robust despite impending tax changes and uncertainties around the UK’s vote to leave the European Union in June.

Martin Totty, chief executive of Barbon Insurance Group, HomeLet’s parent company, said: “Ultimately, rents will be determined by supply and demand in the private rental sector; what we know here is that population growth will continue to increase demand, and that the housing stock isn’t growing quickly enough to meet that demand. However, with rents ultimately limited to a tenant’s ability to pay, rents are likely to continue to climb, albeit at the slowing pace noted most recently.

“We won’t know exactly how Brexit is impacting the private rental sector and it will be several months yet until we see some clearly established trends in the marketplace. Expect to see some interesting insights from the HomeLet index in the months ahead. It seems likely that with lenders concerned about the prospect of falling house prices, loans to value in the mortgage market are going to become less generous, which may see more people turn to the rental sector rather than buying a property.

“However, it’s possible we may also see renewed interest in the London rental market as foreign investors seek to pick up investment property to make the most of the big exchange rate advantage following the fall in the pound. We may also see foreign investment increase outside the capital, in other cities across the UK.  This coupled with recent figures showing that the number of people becoming homeowners is falling across the country, the demand for rental accommodation is likely to remain strong.”

https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2016/8/pace-of-rental-growth-slows-across-uk-says-homelet

Where can you achieve the most expensive rents in England?

Renters now spend more than a third of their disposable income on rent across large parts of England, new research has revealed.

The investigation, conducted by the BBC, uncovered the most expensive rental hotspots across England, with London unsurprisingly coming out on top.

BBC England's data unit, which analysed the average rents for different types of property in each local authority area and the median weekly wage for those areas, using figures published by the Office for National Statistics, revealed that a one-bedroom property would now consume more than half a renter’s disposable income in 24 London boroughs and the City of London.

Most of the 142 areas where the average rent for a one bedroom property was higher than 30% of take-home wage were located in London and the South East, with only Manchester, Salford and York featured in the north of England.

The rental cost of a one-bedroom property also exceeds 30% of disposable income in Nottingham, Northampton, Warwickshire, Stratford upon Avon, Redditch, Warwick and Birmingham

Even the cost of renting a room does not come cheap in many areas, with the average cost of a room in a flat or a house in London now stood at £607 a month, compared to £424 across the South East.

Outside of London, the most expensive places to rent a room in the South East are large parts of Surrey, Oxfordshire and Tunbridge Wells in Kent

“Across London and the South East, the only option for average earners is to squeeze themselves into ever more crowded flat shares,” said Dan Wilson Craw, a policy manager at Generation Rent.

“This might work for some, but it's a completely unsustainable situation for anyone who wants to settle down. Unless rents start coming down, the capital and its hinterland will start losing workers and that will weaken the national economy,” he added. 

https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2016/8/where-can-you-achieve-the-most-expensive-rents-in-england

Rents continue to rise across the UK

Rents on new tenancies rose across most parts of the UK over the three months to June, albeit at a slower pace, new figures show. 

The latest data from the HomeLet Rental Index reveals that the cost of a new tenancy in the private rentals market in the UK, excluding Greater London, rose by 3.5% to an average of £773 per month in the three months to June 2016 compared with the corresponding period 12 months earlier. But the figures represent a fall from the 4.4% annual rise witnessed over the three months to May.

According to the Index, rental prices rose in almost every area of the country, with 10 out of the 12 regions surveyed seeing an increase over the three months to the end of June.

Rental price growth in the UK was led by East Anglia and the East Midlands, where rents rose by 8.2% year-on-year, followed by gains of 7.4% in Scotland.

London’s rental market, where the average rent on a new tenancy is now £1,575, up 3.9% year-on-year, also saw rental price growth slow – down from 6.2% the previous month.

The North East and North West of England were the only regions to see annual rents fall, down 3.6% and 0.2%, respectively. 

The June data from the HomeLet Rental Index will provide some encouragement for both landlords and tenants, in light of the increase of rental stock following the rush to acquire buy-to-let properties before higher rates of stamp duty came into force at the start of April. 

Martin Totty, chief executive of Barbon Insurance Group, HomeLet’s parent company, commented: “The June HomeLet Rental Index shows that the rental market remains resilient in the face of the various economic and political headwinds the sector has faced recently. Landlords are continuing to secure rental growth whilst there are some early signs of affordability criteria beginning to bear on the rates of rental price growth.

“The impact of the EU referendum vote will now play out over the months ahead: if, as expected, the result acts as a restraint on the supply of new housing, the gap between demand and supply in the private rental sector will remain marked; all the more so if more people decide to rent while waiting to see what happens to house prices.

“Landlords will be considering their position carefully, particularly in the light of further taxation changes to come next year, which could reduce net yields; with long-term drivers such as net population growth still in place, it is likely that rents will continue to rise, though affordability will continue to be crucial. The recent slowdown in rental growth rates may suggest an affordability ceiling is being approached.”

https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2016/7/rents-continue-to-rise-across-the-uk

Property Deal from Midland Property Investments

'We been asked by a number of people what the different kind of property deals we are in involved in. Here is one of our recent ones. If you would like to get involved or learn more just contact us via email on dav.dhallu@gmail.com.

First property venture out of the Midlands. This is a joint venture between the builder and other investors. An office to residential conversion in St Margarets, Twickenham. See the numbers below.

St Margarets

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zkNvT2ycCY

The offices were bought for £410,000. There are two options for this project.
Option 1: one 1 bed room and one 2 bed flat
The build costs will be approx £200,000
Selling price will be approx £800,000
Profit will be approx £190,00 - £200,00

Option 2: three 1 bed room flats
The build costs will be approx £220,000
Selling price will be approx £950,000
Profit will be approx £330,000


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