The UK Government should make better use of property taxes to deter foreign buyers, boost property supply and raise tax revenue,...
Archive
Mortgage searches on behalf of borrowers using gifted equity or making a concessionary purchase from a family member rose by 75%...
12 September 2023
From: Breaking News
A well known critic of stamp duty has returned to his long-standing theme of querying whether buyers have paid too much...
14 February 2023
From: Breaking News
A Bill to bring the Government’s Stamp Duty reductions into legislation reached its second reading in the Houses of Parliament this...
26 October 2022
From: Breaking News
Savills has released a revised five-year forecast for the UK’s prime housing markets, to reflect the strong levels of activity in...
05 August 2022
From: Breaking News
Fewer foreign buyers are purchasing property in the UK, anti-money laundering data suggests. The property market has been hampered in recent years...
16 June 2022
From: Breaking News
A stamp duty surcharge which has been labelled ‘forgotten’ because of its low profile has nonetheless bagged £45m for HM Treasury in...
08 November 2021
From: Breaking News
A prominent London-focussed buying agent says she is seeing more foreign buyers returning to the UK capital - with more expected...
01 September 2021
From: Breaking News
Propertymark says confusion over new stamp duty rules has led to a surge in fall-throughs. Since April 1 homes bought in England...
10 August 2021
From: Breaking News
High end agency Savills says prime central London remains “relatively subdued” ahead of the return of foreign travel and overseas buyers. PCL...
30 June 2021
From: Breaking News
High end purchasers of homes in London paid 15 per cent of the stamp duty in 2020, yet the value of...
12 March 2021
From: Breaking News
The Brexit deal agreed in dramatic form on Christmas Eve is one part of a cocktail eventually boosting the London market...
30 December 2020
From: Breaking News
A prominent London agency says cash buyers are securing substantial discounts in prime areas of the capital. The biggest cash discount currently...
11 December 2020
From: Breaking News
The country producing the largest number of buyers of prime London properties is not China, nor from north America or the...
20 October 2020
From: Breaking News
London’s properties are “over-valued” according to a leading bank. UBS, which has what it calls a Global Real Estate Bubble Index, says...
07 October 2020
From: Breaking News
A tax expert says that there is 'zero likelihood' of the government changing its mind on stamp duty changes for overseas...
15 September 2020
From: Breaking News
The advantage given to overseas buyers when Sterling weakened during the long-running Brexit saga has returned with the arrival of the...
27 March 2020
From: Breaking News
The stamp duty surcharge for non-resident investment buyers announced in yesterday’s Budget is dwarfed by discounts they receive thanks to the...
12 March 2020
From: Breaking News
With Brexit still unresolved, the domestic agenda has been pushed from the headlines by the seemingly overwhelming public and political discord...
07 December 2019
From: Features
The chief of an online auction service says the Conservatives’ controversial proposal for a three per cent stamp duty surcharge on...
26 November 2019
From: Breaking News
Agents have reacted angrily to General Election proposals by all three main political parties to hike stamp duty for foreign buyers. The...
25 November 2019
From: Breaking News
High end agency Knight Frank says prices in prime central London have fallen again - although the 4.4 per cent drop...
06 September 2019
From: Breaking News
An independent estate agency says a No Deal Brexit will prompt a “feeding frenzy” of foreign buyers who are already “piling...
29 August 2019
From: Breaking News
In the run up to his appointment as Prime Minister, Boris Johnson suggested that he might cut Stamp Duty Land Tax...
24 August 2019
From: Features
The international estate agency Engel & Volkers is closing its single prime central London office - despite past claims that sales...
22 August 2019
From: Breaking News
One of the country’s most respected agents has advised the agency industry to treat Boris Johnson’s pledges with real caution. Black Brick buying...
24 July 2019
From: Breaking News
Our own industry’s upheaval over recent years has been no less dramatic than the turmoil at Westminster. The political earthquake has seen...
23 July 2019
From: Breaking News
Knight Frank says Brexit-related uncertainty has curbed trading activity across all UK residential markets over the last 12 months - and...
13 June 2019
From: Breaking News
In the first Q&A Natter for a while, I catch up with Angelica Donati - CEO of Donati Immobiliare Group, PropTech...
01 June 2019
From: Features
A recently-launched free-to-list portal says it’s uniquely positioned to attract overseas buyers and investors interested in purchasing in major UK cities. Residential...
30 May 2019
From: Breaking News
Some of the most expensive properties in London are selling typically between 13 and 21 per cent off the asking price. And...
07 May 2019
From: Breaking News
HM Revenue & Customs has issued more details of its bid to encourage estate agents to combat money laundering in the...
05 March 2019
From: Breaking News
If anyone thought Brexit may allow domestic buyers a bigger share of the market, think again: no fewer than 57 per...
18 February 2019
From: Breaking News
The government has launched an official consultation about a new stamp duty surcharge - the long-awaited additional one per cent for...
12 February 2019
From: Breaking News
On the face of it, this year’s Budget was not what you could describe as ‘housing heavy’ in terms of the...
03 November 2018
From: Features
Experts suggest that overseas buyers are likely to act quickly to take advantage of a delay in any stamp duty surcharge on...
01 November 2018
From: Breaking News
The agency industry has reacted in a broadly downbeat way at the relatively few housing-related proposals that were announced in yesterday’s...
30 October 2018
From: Breaking News
One of London’s most prominent buying agencies says post-Brexit the interest in buying in the capital will return - whether there...
24 October 2018
From: Breaking News
A London buying agent has called for a second referendum on Britain’s EU membership, suggesting that it would give more certainty...
22 October 2018
From: Breaking News
It’s time to sort the wheat from the chaff when it comes to overseas buyers of property. If you listen to Theresa...
13 October 2018
From: Features
“Do we really need another tax?” - that’s the question from a new buying agency, querying why the government wants to...
08 October 2018
From: Breaking News
The head of a leading Chinese property portal has taken the unusual step of commenting on a British tax policy -...
05 October 2018
From: Breaking News
An accountancy trade body has revealed that last year it briefed MPs - including the Prime Minister and Housing Minister of...
04 October 2018
From: Breaking News
One of London’s highest profile and most outspoken estate agent chiefs has scolded ‘Maybot’ Theresa May on the day she is to...
03 October 2018
From: Breaking News
House prices grew two per cent year on year for September according to new figures - and a senior agency chief...
03 October 2018
From: Breaking News
Agents have continued to express their shock and opposition to the announcement by the government that it wants a stamp duty...
02 October 2018
From: Breaking News
Experts suggest that overseas buyers are likely to act quickly to take advantage of the delay in any stamp duty surcharge...
01 October 2018
From: Breaking News
The government has used this week’s Conservative party conference to announce a new stamp duty tax of one per cent to three...
30 September 2018
From: Breaking News
An outspoken high-end London estate agent says millionaire foreign buyers purchasing “cheap” properties in the capital represent what he calls “the...
05 July 2018
From: Breaking News
One of London’s best known high-end estate agents, Gary Hersham, says corruption crackdowns in this country and overseas may be deterring...
31 May 2018
From: Breaking News
A new report suggests Capital Gains Tax changes coming into effect next year are worrying a large majority of wealthy overseas...
17 May 2018
From: Breaking News
The announcement that MPs will set up a Select Committee to probe the scale of money laundering in the UK property...
14 April 2018
From: Features
A House of Commons committee has prepared a briefing document on areas of the UK residential and commercial properties sectors most impacted...
02 January 2018
From: Breaking News
Outspoken buying agent Henry Pryor says some “pretty dodgy” overseas buyers have purchased homes in the UK in the past -...
29 December 2017
From: Breaking News
One of prime London’s most senior estate agents says stamp duty is “strangling the residential property market” in areas of the...
18 December 2017
From: Breaking News
Chris Philp, a Conservative MP and Parliamentary Private Secretary to Chancellor Phillip Hammond, says 50 per cent of new homes in...
18 December 2017
From: Breaking News
New Zealand’s new Labour prime minister elect has banned non-resident foreigners from buying existing homes anywhere in the country in a...
26 October 2017
From: Breaking News
Investors from countries as diverse as South Africa and Russia are getting a 21 per cent discount on UK property according...
15 September 2017
From: Breaking News
Peter Robinson, CEO of AIPP – Association of International Property Professionals – shines a light onto the international property market. Some UK...
01 April 2017
From: Features
A surge in sales of London properties to overseas buyers taking advantage of the Pound’s post-referendum collapse has helped Savills exceed...
13 January 2017
From: Breaking News
Forecasts are so last year: who anticipated Bowie, Brexit or Balls for example? Quotes, on the other hand, really ARE last year...
17 December 2016
From: Features
Estate agency Carter Jonas has made critical comments about the high-end housing market, suggesting a combination of factors have created “a toxic landscape”. Rory...
23 November 2016
From: Breaking News
It is fair to say that 2016 is a year full of surprises. Anyone who had the foresight to predict Britain...
12 November 2016
From: Features
Estate agents and market analysts have spent 24 hours expressing their nervousness over the repercussions of Donald Trump's victory in the...
10 November 2016
From: Breaking News
Some sectors of the industry have been giving their initial reactions to the shock Donald Trump victory in the US presidential election. Camilla...
09 November 2016
From: Breaking News
Some of this week’s headlines - ‘Firms must list foreign workers’ and ‘NHS to no longer rely on foreign doctors’ -...
07 October 2016
From: Features
The sales website Home claims that London house prices have dropped an average of 1.2 per cent in the past four...
23 August 2016
From: Breaking News
One of the western world’s ‘hottest’ city residential markets has introduced a near-instant 15 per cent price surcharge on properties purchased...
27 July 2016
From: Breaking News
With the new Formula One season now well underway, we delve into the fast lane to take you on a whirlwind...
08 July 2016
From: Features
It’s over. A win is a win, whichever side you backed. It’s true that everyone seems a lot less happy than...
01 July 2016
From: Features
Agents have been giving their reaction to the shock Brexit referendum result - and their comments have ranged from the gloomy...
24 June 2016
From: Breaking News
Prices are wobbling in the London housing market, with the referendum and ongoing currency fluctuations being two of the major causes. That...
22 June 2016
From: Breaking News
With more house-hunters than ever now starting their search for a new home by typically looking online on one of the major...
17 June 2016
From: Features
The Bow Group - a think-tank that was previously a solid backer of the Tories but has recently flirted with UKIP...
24 November 2015
From: Breaking News
Reports suggest foreign buyers may be losing interest in directly owning property in London and are in some cases increasingly attracted...
19 November 2015
From: Breaking News
Knight Frank is the latest estate agent to admit that the prime London sales market is “subdued” - and it blames...
08 September 2015
From: Breaking News
The dramatic slump in the sale of London’s most expensive homes is continuing with one agency claiming that over the past...
07 September 2015
From: Breaking News
Investors are extending their influence over the property market in prime central parts of London according to agency Marsh & Parsons. The...