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Plan to revolutionise mortgages
24th June 2011Readers of my blogs will know that I am always looking at innovative ways to increase activity in the housing market. One of the main issues in recent years has been a lack of mortgage finance. I was very interested to hear about a new venture – Castle Trust – headed up by Sir Callum McCarthy, the … Continue reading "Plan to revolutionise mortgages" -
Dundee Property Market – Surge in Activity
15th June 2011Over the past week there has been a number of articles highlighting the weakness of the property market and how grim the prospects are for house prices in the UK. The most recent one had the headline ‘UK Housing Market Could Crash Harder Than US’ which appeared in the Wall Street Journal. I disagree with this … Continue reading "Dundee Property Market – Surge in Activity" -
Blackadders launch Home Move Box
10th June 2011Here at Blackadders, we are always keen to come up with innovative and different ways to assist our clients. At a recent Property Conference, I was introduced to the team behind the Home Move Box and Blackadders have now signed up and I understand that we are one of the first Solicitors in Scotland to … Continue reading "Blackadders launch Home Move Box" -
Rents reach a record high an April survey says
27th May 2011A recent survey by Letting Agency Network LSL Property Services has advised that the average rent paid by tenants in England and Wales reached a record monthly high of £692.00 in April. This is an increase of 0.8% compared with the previous month and was 4.4% higher than a year earlier. This very much accords … Continue reading "Rents reach a record high an April survey says" -
End to housing market boom or bust
25th May 2011I very much welcomed the Joseph Rowntree Foundation’s recent call for an urgent and fundamental reform of the housing market following the failure of policy makers to learn the lessons from previous boom and bust cycles, which have lead to the UK having one of the most persistently volatile housing markets in the world. Julia … Continue reading "End to housing market boom or bust" -
Now is the time to buy – lenders tell first time buyers
19th May 2011The Clydesdale Bank and Yorkshire Bank have carried out research of the UK housing market over the last four months and are indicating that now is the time for first time buyers to get on the property ladder. In November 2006, a first home in Scotland cost on average £110,174 – this is now £113,351. … Continue reading "Now is the time to buy – lenders tell first time buyers" -
Property Investment – The Way Forward
12th May 2011As readers of previous blogs will know, I am a great advocate of property investment. Results of a recent National Association of Estate Agents survey has shown that property ownership in the UK has dropped to 58% with the remaining 42% made up of rental properties. The 42% is divided between social housing and private … Continue reading "Property Investment – The Way Forward" -
Property Market Showing Signs of Recovery
4th May 2011I was interested to see a survey from findaproperty.com which is based on data from over 400,000 homes across the country. This showed that the average asking price for a property in March was up over £1,500 on the previous month. The survey showed that prices rose 0.3% in January and 0.5% in February. This … Continue reading "Property Market Showing Signs of Recovery" -
Mortgage Applications Up – but will they translate into approvals?
27th April 2011According to an index compiled by the Mortgage Advice Bureau and Coreco Group, mortgage applications were up 11.6% in March compared with February and were up over 20% on March last year. This is further evidence of an increase in activity in the property market. The big question is how many of these applicants will … Continue reading "Mortgage Applications Up – but will they translate into approvals?" -
Property and the Scottish Government Elections
25th April 2011After the budget the next highlight on the political map which may have some impact on the property market is the Scottish Government Elections at the start of May. I have been reading the manifestos of the four major parties and although I am glad to see some mention of the property market in all of … Continue reading "Property and the Scottish Government Elections"