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The cheapest mortgages on record are currently on offer as rates tumble during the COVID-19 crisis. Although the property market has been frozen by the lockdown, analysis from Moneyfacts shows there has never been a better time to re-mortgage. The average rate on a two-year fixed-rate deal has fallen to 2.09% from 2.43% on March 20. This was the day after the Bank of England slashed official borrowing rates to a record low and just three days before the lockdown was introduced. However, the number of mortgage products on the market has more than halved since lockdown. There were 5,222 in early March and just 2,566 at the start of May. The number available to those with a 5% or 10% deposit has dropped by 770, leaving just 72 deals available.
Daily Mail (11/05/2020) Daily Mirror (11/05/2020)
Figures show that house prices in the UK were down 0.6% last month to an average price of £238,511 as a result of coronavirus lockdown restrictions, with buyers and sellers expected to return to the market as soon as safety measures are loosened. Russell Galley, managing director at Halifax, remarked: “The impact of measures taken to curtail the spread of coronavirus started to filter through to the housing market in April, with average prices falling by 0.6% compared to March, and the annual growth rate easing to 2.7%.” He went on: “The future remains uncertain and based on our current forecasting we expect short-term headwinds to house prices, although we maintain our underlying confidence in the health of the housing market in the longer term.”
City AM (08/05/2020) The Times (08/05/2020) Daily Mirror (08/05/2020) Yorkshire Post (08/05/2020)
Research from the home investment fund Hearthstone showed house transactions are estimated to have fallen to around 50% of usual volumes in March and "possibly as low as 10% in April". Meanwhile, estate agents have reported an increase in inquiries for property around the country from buyers based in London, with house prices in the capital at risk when restrictions on moving are loosened.
The Daily Telegraph (06/05/2020)
The number of mortgages being approved to home buyers dropped to a seven-year low in March. Figures from the Bank of England show that 56,161 mortgages were approved for house purchase in March - a drop-off of 24% compared with the previous month, and the lowest monthly total since 54,341 approvals were recorded in March 2013. Approvals for re-mortgaging fell by 20% to 42,600, the fewest recorded since August 2016, the Bank's Money and Credit report said.
Daily Express (01/05/2020) The Independent (01/05/2020)
Modular building specialist, Caledonian, has secured a contract to deliver volumetric modular serviced apartments for One Charter Street in Canary Wharf – a 279 apartment building near Wood Wharf. Two full-height concrete cores will provide structural stability and the scheme will be topped with a rooftop restaurant. The scheme is an open and collaborative approach between Canary Wharf Group, edyn, Caledonian, design partners HTA, Holloway Li and TUV-SUD.
PBC Today (01/05/2020)
The housing market could be back up and running in just a few weeks after the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors confirmed it will unveil “practical guidance” to enable home valuations to restart safely. A RICS spokeswoman said the organisation was readying a new set of guidelines for valuers across the UK and hopes to release them imminently. “In the coming weeks, RICS will issue practical guidance to help professionals to re-open buildings and ensure safe home moving,” the spokeswoman said. However, she stressed that while it hoped the new guidance would enable safe property inspections to recommence, all firms should continue to follow government advice.
Daily Mail (30/4/2020)