London is back: Office occupancy reaches pre-pandemic levels March 15, 2022 London office occupancy peaked at 42 per cent on Thursday 10 March, the highest single daily rate in the capital since before the pandemic in 2020. The weekly average prior to the pandemic was 63 per cent. Furthermore, last week was the highest weekly average for the UK and London, with both averaging 31 per [...]
Foreign home ownership in London swells by £6bn but oligarch exodus to slow cash influx from abroad March 14, 2022 Internationally-registered homes in London increased by £6bn last year, but the impact of Russian sanctions is expected to slow the rate of growth in the market. Despite the pandemic, there was a four per cent increase in the number of houses registered to buyers overseas, up to 84, 451, according to new numbers released by [...]
Housebuilder shares boosted by fresh cladding estimate March 14, 2022 Housebuilders saw their share prices lifted on Monday after optimism that the bill foisted on developers for cladding remediations would be much lower than initially forecast. It had been thought that property firms would have to pay £4bn to rectify unsafe cladding on 11-18metre tower blocks. However, the potential bill was estimated to be closer [...]
Millions of Londoners slip into housing nightmare as rents are now higher than before pandemic while landlords pull out March 14, 2022 All UK regions experienced year on year room rent increases in February, with London seeing the biggest increases since before the pandemic began. London average room rents now stand at £796 per month, having reached lows of £703 (March 2021) during the pandemic, according to the data by SpareRoom, shared with City PM this morning. [...]
Oligarchs’ London mansions are ‘gold bricks to launder money’ says Sadiq Khan as Mayor labels UK refugee response ’embarrassing’ March 14, 2022 London Mayor Sadiq Khan described properties owned by Russian oligarchs in London as “gold bricks used to launder money”. Repeating his call for some to be used to house refugees from Ukraine, he said it would be a form of “poetic justice”. He told Times Radio: “I, for some time, with others, have been complaining [...]
The Office Group and Fora to merge in deal that would see 3.1m sq ft of office space March 14, 2022 The Office Group and Fora have announced plans for a merger, in a bid to become the “premier flexible workspace company in the UK and Europe.” The deal is subject to regulatory approval but the combined group would comprise 72 premier locations totalling 3.1 million sq. ft. A combined portfolio would cover London and Cambridge, [...]
Furlough scheme pushed back age of first-time buyer to 34 March 14, 2022 Despite a property market boom during the pandemic, the furlough scheme pushed back the average age of first time buyers by up to two years. The government’s initiative may have given a lifeline to millions as Covid restrictions plunged society into chaos, but its long term impact has reportedly been to stall many people’s ability [...]
Rental market now ‘in full swing’ after strong recovery from pandemic low March 11, 2022 The rental market has returned to “full swing” from the pandemic low as stock levels fell dramatically from this time last year. With all Covid restrictions lifted, tenants are once again looking for a place to call home, with just 64,839 rental properties listed across these 21 major UK cities, according to numbers shared by [...]
Property developer Berkeley on track to hit targets despite ‘volatile’ trading environment  March 11, 2022 Property developer Berkeley said it was on track to meet its performance targets today despite a “volatile” trading environment continuing to ramp up costs and put pressure on the firm’s supply chain.
House completions for properties outside London up by staggering 667 per cent March 11, 2022 There has been a significant spike in house completions for properties outside of London and Manchester with some areas having up to a 667 per cent rise. Apart from England’s two main population centres, the top 10 growth areas were in outlying towns, new figures from Paragon Bank shows. Milton Keynes led the way, experiencing [...]
