Marlborough News March 2015 Budget 2015 – An Editor’s Perspective From a Smiths Gore point of view, the Budget appeared optimistic and gives a confident tone for business in the UK. The announced underlying trends and forecasts for economic growth are positive and steady, which is a good platform for industry, not only in property, but across the spectrum of service, manufacturing and retail. With specific reference to the housing market, the Help to Buy ISA stimulus we see as an encouraging move for savers, but at Smiths Gore, we do not expect that to
have an influence on house prices. Even the stamp duty changes announced in December have not resulted in a boost to levels of sales. The key to increased house prices tends to be increased liquidity in the market. Previously, this resulted from high equity levels in property and generous mortgage lending schemes. Such sources are now more difficult to release, so some financial analysts have considered that the release of Pension annuity funds might spark a ‘property rush’ in the buy-to-let field. Indeed, anecdotally, a number of potential buyers have indicated that they would prefer to see their funds in property rather than an annuity. Whether that translates to more properties coming to the market than at present is difficult to predict – but we certainly hope so!
Budget Insight: Inheritance Tax
Sign Of The Times? Hundreds of new homes could be built at a historic university campus in the west end of Glasgow after the 31 acre site was put up for sale. The Jordanhill campus has been placed on the market three years after the University of Strathclyde moved out. Planning officials have approved the site, which includes the B-listed David Stow building, for up to 364 new homes.
Smiths Gore & Comic Relief
The Conservatives have reportedly drawn up plans to allow some parents to leave homes worth up to £1m to their children without paying inheritance tax. According to the Guardian, the plans involve a new tax-free band worth £175,000 per person applying specifically to family homes or main residences passed on to a direct descendant of the deceased. This, it claimed, would be transferrable between married couples making it worth a maximum of £350,000.
The team did our bit for Comic Relief this month with red being the colour of the day. Rosanna baked a chocolate cake, which raised nearly £40 for the cause. (The dogs didn’t get the cake!)
Celebrity Move
Foxtons Recently both the RICS and London estate agents Foxtons indicated they think the London property market is likely remain subdued. The RICs is actually suggesting that London house prices are now falling and Foxtons are blaming the General Election for uncertainty in political policy that might affect the property market. Foxtons chief executive, Nic Budden, said: “Whilst we expect property sales activity to remain subdued at levels comparable to those seen in late 2012 and early 2013 until greater political and economic certainty returns, the long term fundamentals of the London market remain sound and attractive.” Mr Budden is presumably alluding to Labour’s proposed mansion tax and the general pressure to find new ways to tax property because rich people cannot move their houses to avoid the taxman. With the polls tight and another coalition government a possibility, Foxtons thinks it may take longer for buyers and sellers to feel confident about government policy.
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Liz Hurley has put her countryside pile on the market for £6million, which comes complete with nine bedrooms, acres upon acres of beautiful gardens and woodlands, and numerous outbuildings including a ‘party barn’. The period property, Ampney Knowle, is situated in Cirencester and naturally is made from Cotswold stone. The farmhouse boasts six bathrooms, four reception rooms and two cottages, one of which is a converted stable block. The house demonstrates an eclectic taste with a stuffed alligator, an open-mouthed tiger skin draped on a grand piano and topless statues. Sadly Smiths Gore is not the agent for this interesting property.
The Arts and Smiths Gore Smiths Gore is delighted to announce we are Lead Sponsors for Marlborough Open Studios (MOS) this year. MOS encourages artists in media as diverse as ceramics, jewellery, glass, stone, metal as well as traditional fields such as oils, watercolours and charcoals to fling open their studio doors to the public every weekend in July. The initiative enjoyed fantastic success in 2014 with nearly 40 studios reporting brisk business, but for 2015 the numbers have swollen, so now over 60 artists are taking part. This is a fantastic opportunity to spot new talent and grab a beautiful piece of artwork for your collection without paying gallery prices!
Hand in hand with this initiative, we have also launched a local schools art competition and are hoping that as many children in years 5 & 6 will take part as possible. We have invited all the primary schools around Marlborough to send in their interpretations of ‘My Home’ and are looking forward to seeing all the entries, which will be judged by artists from MOS. We are grateful to the White Horse Bookshop in Marlborough for supporting this event.
Art and Property – Go Hand in Hand! Eduardo Costantini, one of Argentina's most powerful businessmen, made his fortune in finance and real estate, but
Up and Down
Property Prices Positive Smiths Gore advises prospective buyers not to follow the hype, but look at the trends. Halifax say UK house prices fell 0.3% in February but this followed a rise of 1.9% in January. Overall however, prices in the three months to February were up 2.6% compared with the previous quarter. Quarterly measures are often seen as more reliable as they smooth out monthly volatility, and the Halifax said the underlying trend indicated prices were firming. Prices in the three months to February were 8.3% higher than for the same three months a year ago, slightly lower than the previous annual increase of 8.5%. Martin Ellis, the Halifax's housing economist, said recent rises in people's earnings and spending power, coupled with low mortgage rates and recent stamp duty changes
were likely to be underpinning the market along with changes to the stamp duty system making us all feel a little richer. Mr Ellis also said demand for properties remained higher than the number coming on to the market. "The supply of both new and second hand homes available remains low; another factor which is likely to be supporting house prices." Howard Archer, chief UK and European economist at IHS Global Insight, said the small fall in house prices during February looked like a minor adjustment after January's relatively steep rise. "We suspect that housing market activity is now gradually turning around after losing appreciable momentum from the early-2014 peak levels, and we see activity picking up modestly as 2015 progresses."
Did you know? We are more than just the largest rur al property managers
he has spent it on a massive collection of art from across Latin America. His own personal museum, Malba, in Buenos Aires, is one of the big tourist attractions of the city.
In a survey to establish the priorities for the government (whoever gets in) it was shown that double the number of 18 to 24 year olds are concerned about affordable housing compared to the general British public.
According to the RICS, price growth accelerated in the South West of England due they felt mainly as a result of a lack of supply of homes on the market. Uncertainty, owing to the upcoming election, could have delayed some potential sellers in putting their home on the market, it said. Although London recorded its sixth consecutive monthly price fall, many buyers believed that purchasing a property in London would become more and more out of reach, said Simon Rubinsohn, the institution's chief economist. "There is a strong view in the survey that property will become even more unaffordable over the medium term. Respondents suggest, on average, that house prices will rise by a further 30% in the capital over the next five years," he said. The RICS saw the fall in London prices as bucking the trend in the rest of the country which has generally been positive, but recent surveys by lenders, the Nationwide and the Halifax, suggested that prices fell on average across the UK in February compared with the previous month.
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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