Landlords have faced some major issues over the last few years – new lettings regulations and property taxes as well as the impact of Brexit. And 2020 is likely to deliver more challenges, from a proposed increase in Stamp Duty for overseas buyers to changes to Capital Gains Tax. It’s certainly not an easy time …

Continue reading “Top 10 things to watch out for in London property in 2020”

After several years of subdued house price growth, we have at last seen some positive news for the London property market. The recent General Election win by the Conservatives (and so the greater clarity over Brexit) means that we now hope to see a period of increasing political stability and therefore greater confidence amongst property …

Continue reading “The London sales market – January 2020”

With a New Year come new beginnings and for many investors it’s the time to start planning their investment strategy. There’s no denying that it has been a turbulent few years for the London property sector, however the fundamentals continue to remain strong and our outlook continues to be bullish. Despite Brexit, property prices have …

Continue reading “New Year New Build”

There is no doubt about it: demand for rental properties in London has been incredible this year! At the beginning of 2019 we could not have imagined how strong demand would be. This is clearly good news for our landlords, the majority of whom are experiencing only the very shortest voids. This will be helping …

Continue reading “The London property market 2019 – a year in review”

Overseas trips to visit our clients are a regular part of the diary for myself and fellow Benham & Reeves directors Anita Mehra and Vidhur Mehra. This autumn has seen a particularly busy schedule, so far involving visits to Mumbai, Bangalore and Nairobi. Anita and I will also be visiting Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and Hong …

Continue reading “Sales success in India”

Demand for rental accommodation in London remains quite literally, phenomenal! Many of our London lettings branches have completely run out of rental property stock recently and this has presented us with quite a challenge as try to keep up with demand from good quality, professional applicants. And while there are several new residential developments completing …

Continue reading “The London rental market – November 2019”

With the outcome of Brexit still undecided, the London property market remains subdued and is likely to remain so until an agreement is reached. So while we wait a little longer for the result of current negotiations, many buyers continue to sit back to see how the situation plays out. This uncertainty means that many …

Continue reading “The London sales market – November 2019”

Benham & Reeves are now offering purchasers of Barratt London homes, a guaranteed 5% rental yield for 24 months, at some of their latest developments in London.

A shortage of rental properties remains a serious issue for us, meaning we do not have enough rental accommodation to meet applicants’ needs. This is becoming a significant problem across London. But why? Well, of course we know that some landlords have exited the market, deterred by changes to the UK’s tax system.

The London property market is once again seeing enquiry levels increase, with demand particularly strong from first time buyers keen to take advantage of a slower than usual sales market, the financial advantages offered by the Government’s Help to Buy Scheme and continuing low interest rates (currently 0.75%), keeping down the cost of borrowing.

Traditionally, the summer months are a quiet time for the London property market, with many people away on holiday and keen to kick back and enjoy the sunshine. So demand from buyers has been subdued over the last few weeks, as we would expect at this time of year.

Rental demand in London is simply phenomenal at the moment. The combination of strong demand from students, young graduates moving to London to take up their first job and professional renters generally (from the UK and overseas), means that enquiry levels are at an all time high.