Docklands News

Estate agents have reported a rise in high-end London rental supply as sellers give up on sales and move their properties on to the rental market. According to Chestertons estate agents, in the first two weeks of November the number of London rental listings increased by 15% year on year. Across its 10 central London offices the rise was 16%. Katinka Hill of Chestertons said: “This is the first time this year that we have seen stock rise year on year. A lot of it is coming from the sales side – vendors whose properties are not selling, or who are holding out for a better price. The turning point was definitely everything that happened after the mini-Budget.” David Mumby of Knight Frank estate agents said: “The rise in supply in the prime lettings market [of the most expensive properties] is certainly a result of the uncertainty seen in the sales market.” According to Knight Frank, market valuation appraisals for properties that will let for between £1,000 and £5,000 per week were up by 17% in October compared with at the start of the year. 

The Daily Telegraph  

HMRC figures reveal that house sales held steady in October, with the volume of transactions rising by 2% month-on-month. Data shows an estimated 108,480 sales took place, 38% higher than in October 2021, when a stamp duty holiday in England and Northern Ireland ended. However, Lewis Shaw, founder of Riverside Mortgages, said the figures lagged behind economic reality.  He added: “On the front line, it’s now a very different story. The phones have stopped ringing, buyers are holding off, and with the World Cup and Christmas upon us, most people have decided to sit tight and wait until next year.”  

The Times  

A Conservative rebellion against the Government's Levelling-Up and Regeneration Bill has seen a debate on centrally-set targets for house building delayed for a number of weeks. An amendment signed by 50 Conservative MPs, including a number of former Cabinet ministers, sought to remove the targets from the Bill, but the Government last night pulled a vote on the Bill, with a source blaming the "congested parliamentary timetable". Former Conservative leader Sir Iain Duncan-Smith said the "top-down targets have to go, and if the Government does not back down we will vote for this amendment". The amendment would require that central targets "may only be advisory and not mandatory", and "should not be taken into account in determining planning applications". Downing Street said that Rishi Sunak was still committed to the target of building 300,000 homes a year. However, Michael Gove, the levelling up and housing secretary, is understood to be in talks with the rebels. 

BBC News   Financial Times   Daily Mail   The Independent  

Developer Crosstree has released plans for a 36-storey residential tower block next to the O2 Arena in Greenwich. One Peninsula Tower would be built on the site of the former East Greenwich Gasworks. Greenwich Council previously approved plans to build a tower block on the site in 2018, when developers AEG sent designs for a building with 260 homes, with 22.5% being considered affordable; the design for the new building is similar to the previously approved plans in 2018, with the 115-metre height of the tower remaining unchanged. Differences in the new design include slightly slimmer features, a shared gym and community spaces, and 632 cycle spaces to encourage less car use.

My London (15/11/2022)  

Notting Hill Genesis is offering first-time buyers an Black Friday deals when they buy a home at selected developments. Buyers who complete on a purchase of a selected home at its developments Goodluck Hope and Woolwich Reach in east London, as well as Heron Quarter at Woodberry Down in north London, will receive up to a £7,500 contribution towards their moving costs. Goodluck Hope is emerging as a new riverside neighbourhood for London. Residents at the development have access to sought-after amenities including a gym, state-of-the-art pool, private cinema, work space and a 24-hour concierge service. Elsewhere, just south of the Royal Docks in E16, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments are available at Woolwich Reach, where buyers can make a home on the banks of the river Thames. The deal runs until Wednesday, 30th November on the first 20 reservations, on selected properties only. 

BDaily (11/11/2022)  

Property prices in London dipped 0.6% to an average of £544,113 in September, with this the steepest month-on-month decline since July 2021. The Land Registry data shows that year-on-year, growth slowed from 7.3% to 6.9%. Andy Sommerville, director at property data provider Search Acumen, said the figures are “further evidence of a turning tide for house prices, reflecting the same pattern of declining growth we have started to see emerge over the last two months.” 

Evening Standard (16/11/2022)