Every month a number of organisations publish house price indices. Some months they are broadly in agreement and yet others they are wildly different. Just why is this?
Each of these reports is based on a different set of criteria and different data. This can make significant differences to the results. We have taken a look at the major surveys and explain just what it is that is being analysed.
Halifax – Measures the average price agreed on a property being bought using a Halifax mortgage, and the percentage change in the price over the month and year.
Nationwide – Measures the average price agreed on a property bought using a Nationwide mortgage, and the percentage change in the price over the month and year.
Hometrack – Looks at what estate agents and surveyors think is happening to the housing market in their local area, including average house prices and the proportion of the asking price buyers are paying.
Rightmove – Measures the average asking price for properties put on the market over the past month, and the percentage change in that price over the month and over the year.
Land registry – Measures the price of properties bought in the past month in England and Wales – these are the prices on completion and include cash purchases as well as those funded with a mortgage. It also reports annual and monthly price changes.
Office for National Statistics – Looks at the average price on completion for a property in the UK, and annual and monthly changes. Data is broken down by region, type of property and type of buyer.
LSL Property Services/Acadametrics – Analyses the average price of a property bought and registered with the Land Registry over the past month. It shows monthly and annual changes and the number of sales.
Dubai property investors are set to get a full refund if developers default on handover under a proposed new Investor Protection Law that could be in force by the end of June 2012.
The proposal also makes it mandatory for developers to provide all promised common facilities. It means that if there are delays and failures investors will be eligible for cancellation of their contracts and get a full refund.
It also means that swimming pools, gyms or any other promised facilities will have to be ready before officially handing over the keys to the new owners.
This comes as a growing number of developers have failed to provide the facilities mentioned in their sales purchase agreements (SPAs) or marketing material. Until now, buyers did not have much recourse and could only hope that the facilities would get completed at some point in time.
Developers will also face fines if the units they promise are not delivered on time, or to agreed specifications.
Following the global economic slowdown of 2008, there are still hundreds of property projects on hold in Dubai. According to the latest figures 165 projects have been completed since the beginning of 2009, 291 projects are on hold, 291 projects are likely to be completed in due course, and 29 projects have not yet been started.
National sales prices for existing residential property in Turkey increased by 0.95% in March, according to the latest data from the REIDIN GYODER home price index.
Regionally they increased 1.06% in Adana, 0.75% in Ankara, 0.49% in Antalya, 1.18% in Istanbul, 0.85% in Izmir and 0.33% in Kocaeli.
New home prices increased by 1.28% compared with the previous month and 11.62% higher than they were in March 2011.
Trademarked projects on the European side of Istanbul increased by 1.38% and on the Asian side of the city they were up 0.69%.
In terms of size of properties, those of between 51 and 75 square meters increased by 1.03%, those between 76 and 100 square meters increased by 1.32%, those between 101 and 125 square meters increased by 1%, those between 126 and 150 square meters increased by 1.21% and those at 151 square meters and over increased 1.14%, all compared with the previous month.
Average property prices in the UK are predicted to increase 3.9% by October as confidence in the real estate market improves, according to a new survey.
The latest Housing Market Sentiment Survey from Zoopla shows that 67% of British home owners expect house prices to rise over the next six months and there positive signs that lack of mortgage availability has eased over the last quarter.
This is the highest proportion of home owners predicting property price growth since the first half of 2010 and in stark contrast to sentiment at the end of 2011 when only 55% of owners were predicting prices to climb.
In addition to the rise in overall confidence, homeowners are also more bullish now about how much they expect average house prices to rise over the next six months. At the end of 2011, owners expected prices in their local area to increase 2.2% on average. Over the last quarter this has risen to 3.9%, again, the highest price growth expectation in almost two years.
Confidence amongst home owners in London is at a near all-time high with 82% of property owners in the capital now confident of property price rises over the next six months. And owners in the capital are predicting that house prices in London will grow 5.5% by October.
Spain and France are still the top destinations for British people buying a second home abroad, according to the latest search report from Rightmove Overseas. Some 21.01% of searches for overseas property were for Spain followed by 17.91% for France and 12.06% for the US.
Traditional locations in Spain such as Benidorm, Villamartin and Torrevieja have all seen an upsurge in interest, according to Rightmove Overseas. ‘This is probably down to the British people who like to look for property where they holiday. Other European destinations, such Brittany in France have also seen increased levels of property interest,’ said Shameem Golamy, head of Rightmove Overseas.
Charles Purdy, managing director of Smart Currency Exchange said that with Sterling continuing to hold above the €1.20/£1 level it is no surprise there is increased interest in buying in the eurozone.
Indeed the middle of April saw Sterling hit a 19 month high to make it worth €1.217. The last time sterling had such strength against the euro was in September 2010.
The United States is also becoming more popular with British buyers as prices are low and there is income potential for those who want to rent out their second homes, especially in states like Florida.
Georgia is also proving popular, according to the Rightmove report, with searches rising 66% month on month.
Complex buy to let yields in the UK reached their highest level in the first quarter of 2012 as average yields for Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO) climbed to 10.7% per annum, according to the latest index from Mortgages for Business.
It’s Complex Buy To Let Index shows that the complex buy to let market continues to offer landlords and professional investors better average rates of return than mainstream buy to let properties.
HMO yields are at their highest ever level at 10.7% per annum.
Despite the relative strength of the complex BTL sector, average yields on mainstream buy to let properties have also grown over the first quarter of 2012 averaging yields of 6.3%, up from 6.1% in the fourth quarter of 2011, reflecting the buoyant demand for rental properties across the UK.
‘Complex buy to let properties are becoming increasingly attractive to landlords and professional investors. Average yields on HMOs for example eclipse even the most lucrative traditional rental house or flat and can provide investors with a diverse and robust portfolio,’ said David Whittaker.
‘With the end of the first time buyer stamp duty holiday likely to have a negative impact on the owner occupier market and the government’s New Buy scheme unlikely to cover the shortfall, landlords and property investors will be relied upon even more in 2012,’ he explained.
‘The good news for landlords, though, is that for those that look beyond mainstream buy to let, there are plenty of opportunities to grow their portfolios and push their businesses forward,’ he added.
Average UK residential property asking prices have reached a new four year high according to the latest figures from Rightmove.
The previous peak recorded in May 2008 occurred just a few months before the collapse of Lehman Brothers which heralded the credit crunch whose repercussions are still being felt around the world today.
‘From a national perspective, it has taken four years for new sellers to pitch their asking prices above their previous record. However, this is not a universal signal of a housing market recovery. The richest seams of housing market activity are concentrated around those with access to cash and finance, with a strong bias to the south and London in particular,’ explained Miles Shipside, director of Rightmove.
The generally more affluent southern regions have all seen more bullish upwards price pressure in the last 12 months compared to the northern half of the country.
London leads the way with an annual increase of 7.9%, followed by East Anglia at 6.2%, the South West 3.9% and 3% in the South East. The generally more credit starved northern regions have all recorded lower annual increases such as the East and West Midlands, Wales and the North, or falls of 0.2% in the case of Yorkshire and Humberside and 1.2% in the North West.
The number of properties in the United States ending up in foreclosure has decreased slightly and is expected to continue doing so as the Spring buying season gets underway.
There were approximately 65,000 completed foreclosures in February 2012, compared to 66,000 in February 2011, and 71,000 in January 2012, according to the latest figures from CoreLogic, a leading provider of information and analysis in the real estate sector.
From the start of the financial crisis in September 2008, there have been approximately 3.4 million completed foreclosures and the number of completed foreclosures for the 12 months ending in February was 862,000, the firm’s National Foreclosure Report shows.
Approximately 1.4 million homes, or 3.4% of all homes with a mortgage, were in the foreclosure inventory as of February 2012 compared to 1.5 million, or 3.6%, in February 2011 and 1.4 million, or 3.4%, in January 2012.
Nationally, the number of borrowers in the foreclosure inventory decreased by 115,000, a decline of 7.6% in February 2012 compared to February 2011.
The five states with the largest number of completed foreclosures during the 12 months ending in February 2012 were California at 154,000, Florida at 87,000, Michigan at 64,000, Arizona at 63,000, and Texas at 58,000. These five states accounted for 49.4% of all completed foreclosures nationally.
Gross mortgage lending by building societies and other mutual lenders in the UK increased by 28% in February 2012, compared to the same month last year, the latest figures from the Building Societies Association show.
New mortgage approvals, the future pipeline of completions, were also up 31% on February 2011 and 29% on January 2012, indicating an increased level of consumer activity with mutuals, the BSA said.
‘Gross lending and new mortgage approvals by mutuals continued to rise year on year in February, despite growth across the market as a whole remaining relatively flat,’ said BSA director general Adrian Coles.
‘The strong financial results released by a number of mutual lenders in recent months show that the sector is well positioned to offer market leading products to its customers and are open for business,’ he explained.
Potential homebuyers and sellers are growing more confident that the U.S. real estate market will begin to recover as soon as next year, according to a Prudential Real Estate survey. Sixty percent of people surveyed last month had positive views about the housing market and 70 percent expected property values to improve over the next two years, according to the survey.
About 63 percent of respondents said they considered real estate a good investment, up from 52 percent last year. This is the second consecutive year consumer confidence in housing has improved, signaling the property market may “finally be climbing out of its hole,” Stephen Van Anden, chief marketing officer for Prudential Real Estate, said.
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The Worldwide Property Group is a marketing agent for developers and whilst we endeavor to ensure the accuracy of information contained in this site, including figures and forecasts at the time of publication, the Worldwide Property Group does not guarantee or take responsibility for their accuracy.
Worldwide Property Group cannot offer financial advice and is not authorised by the Financial Services Authority to do so. Please be aware, the purchases of overseas properties are not investments which are regulated by the Financial Services Authority. All investors should seek relevant advice in relation to their personal circumstances before proceeding. Worldwide Property Group acts as a promoter and / or introducer for third parties. Authorisation from the Financial Services Authority is required for any advice on SIPPs. Worldwide Property Group will refer any prospective client to the following authorised pensions advisers - 1 Stop Financial Services - Individual Reference Number 407894 for this purpose. Quoted figures are not guaranteed and are dependent upon investment performance.
