Marlborough News January 2015 OnTheMarket is the brand new website rivalling Rightmove and Zoopla/Prime Location which launched on Monday 26 January. Smiths Gore is very much behind the website as it will remove the distractions and sometimes erroneous information that other websites mix in with the properties being displayed. OnTheMarket (www.onthemarket.com) provides an easy to use, interactive system that is all about presenting properties properly. The new site already has over 2,000 estate agents signed up, operating more than 4,600 branches between them. Many agents have also agreed to the OnTheMarket exclusivity deal where properties appear on their site 48 hours before other portals.
Mortgage funding for the self-employed and business owners Guest Contributor – Andrew Tottman
According to reports, there are now over 4.6m people in the UK classed as self-employed or company directors. This increase in self-employment is growing at a much faster pace than PAYE employees and is considered the backbone in the growth of the economy by the Government. Mortgage lenders usually make the self-employed jump through more hoops than an employee when it comes to verifying their income. Often a 3 year business track record supported by full accounts is required, whilst an employee can just provide a P60 and 3 latest payslips. Ironically the owner of the business often finds getting a mortgage harder than their employees! I can understand that if the mortgage
lender believes the self-employed person presents more risk, then they should have more stringent criteria to protect themselves but often the selfemployed have the skills to set up and run a business and will not make poor financial decisions. The silver lining for the self-employed and business owners is that there are some niche lenders who have a different perspective to the mainstream Banks and Building Societies, and they are building a reputation for treating these individuals more fairly. These lenders often allow applications with only a one year track record or one year’s financial accounts. Many of these niche lenders can only be accessed via a specialist broker.
Andrew Tottman Andrew is a director of Chilvester Financial who are a firm of local Chartered Financial Planners. If you would like to speak to Andrew or his team on any matter relating to mortgages or personal finance, do contact Edward or Shona at our Smiths Gore Marlborough office and we will be happy to put you in touch.
Paris takes legal action after surge in holiday lets Authorities in Paris are taking drastic measures to control holiday lets because of concerns about the impact on the residential property market. Under French law, you can rent out your primary residence to holidaymakers for short periods. However, City Hall in Paris believes that as many as two-thirds of properties being rented on very short lets are not primary residences, which is one of the legal requirements. The authorities in Paris are so worried about the drain on residential property that they have enacted drastic measures to bring it under control.
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However, so far few property owners have complied with the new rules. As a result it is estimated that a staggering 20,000 people - foreigners as well as French - are today liable for fines of thousands of euros. The last study, carried out in 2011, put the number of Paris apartments being let out to tourists at 20,000. Today officials say it has risen to 30,000 leading to shortage of apartments for Parisians. So officials are becoming strictor with inspectors able to ask for documentary proof that the lease is for the minimum of a year. If owners produce fake leases, they face criminal prosecution for fraud.
2014 and 2015 – The Statistics and the Hype! • The number of first-time buyers in 2014 rose to its highest level in seven years, according to one of the UK's largest lenders, Nationwide, and represents an increase of 22% compared to 2013 figures. • According to Rightmove, 2014 ended with the largest ever monthly fall in price of property coming to market - down by nearly £9,000. This left prices up on average about 7% during 2014. This 3.3% drop in new seller asking prices has reduced the annual rate of increase from +8.5% in November to give a final 2014 figure of +7%. The internet property portal consider that this is a further indication of the slowing pace of growth, though it is important to note that the recovery remains countrywide with all regions recording positive price growth for the year. On the back of an annual increase of +7% this year, they
forecast a national average rise in new seller asking prices in the range of 4% to 5% for 2015. • Some analysts believe that to judge the state of the UK housing market it may be best to look beneath your feet. Carpet and floor fitters say that a buoyant market means more trade and, after a post-recession slump, things have started to pick up. They say that movers are spending more money on instant refurbishments and stayers are trading up on the quality of their carpets. But generally, analysts are suggesting slower growth in 2015 than was the case in the year just gone. Somewhat rarely, there is near consensus among them on what that growth in property prices will be - about 4%. • The Halifax is blaming poor growth in wages for a continuing slow-down in house prices, reporting that prices in 2014 rose by 7.8% - well down from
the peak in July, when prices went up by 10.2% compared with a year earlier. Martin Ellis, the Halifax's chief economist, highlighted "earnings growth that has been consistently below consumer price inflation until very recently". He said said another reason for moderating prices was that property had become less affordable. The average price of a house or flat in the UK is now £188,858, said the Halifax.
DID YOU KNOW? • 221,000 new households will be needed annually in England. • 27% of new houses are built by local house builders. • 15 is the minimum number of units to qualify for the Builders Finance Fund. • 2020 deadline for 90% of brownfield sites to have Local Development Orders. • 20% VAT charged on building conversion work. • 0% VAT charged if a building is demolished and rebuilt.
Council Tax Many local authorities in England are set to demand higher council tax payments from low-income households, with the Local Government Association (LGA) blaming a £1bn funding shortfall. The LGA says the gulf between the cost of protecting discounts and the money provided by central government to cover them "is getting bigger every year." Some people have faced paying council tax for first time, the LGA added.
We are more than just the largest rur al property managers
Politics and Housing According to the Chairman of the Federation of Master Builders, housing is a hot political issue and one that all the main political parties are wrestling with - to build more homes to tackle the growing housing problem. The number of households in England is projected to grow to 24.3 million by 2021 which represents an increase of 221,000 households per year. However, annual housing completions in England were 110,000 in 2013. It’s not surprising therefore that there is growing pressure to build more homes and, whilst few people disagree about the need, where these new homes should be built is much more controversial.
Alongside this concern is the alarming decline in local house builders. Twentyfive years ago local house builders built two thirds of all new homes but last year that proportion had fallen to just 27%, with the result there is less choice in the house building industry. The Government’s recent planning reforms have fuelled concerns that our countryside will be concreted over. However ‘the presumption in favour of sustainable development’ only applies where a Local Plan doesn’t exist, is silent or out-of-date. It is critical therefore that local authorities should have their Local Plans in place if they are concerned about development.
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Edward Hall t 01672 529056 edward.hall @smithsgore.co.uk
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Shona Ford t 01672 529057 shona.ford @smithsgore.co.uk