Last weekend, Levelling Up and Housing Secretary, Michael Gove wrote in the Sunday Times that the nation’s housing crisis was so...
Archive
If a week is a long time in politics, then I’d say it’s a lifetime for anyone working in the property...
16 February 2024
From: Breaking News
It usually takes a scandal or a reshuffle to remove a Government minister so it came as a bit of a...
31 January 2024
From: Breaking News
Sir Simon Clarke’s call for Rishi Sunak to be ousted from Downing Street may well express what many of his MP...
27 January 2024
From: Features
The Government’s latest attempt to bolster the property appears to be 1% deposit mortgages. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt is reported to be considering...
22 January 2024
From: Breaking News
Like millions of others, I watched in open-mouthed astonishment as details emerged about the Post Office scandal. I knew a little bit about...
22 January 2024
From: Breaking News
After months of negative messaging and anti-development sentiment, espoused both nationally by the Government, and locally during May’s local election campaigning,...
13 January 2024
From: Features
The Government recently consulted upon a revised approach to local plans. Throughout the consultation document, frequent use is made of the...
30 December 2023
From: Features
The best way to judge the UK housing market is to check on what’s happening in Parliament, not the price indices...
31 October 2023
From: Breaking News
Housing supply rather than the private rented sector (PRS) made the headlines during the Conservative and Labour Party conferences this year...
14 October 2023
From: Features
After years - indeed a decade - of anti-rental sector policy and rhetoric it’s difficult not to see recent days as...
23 September 2023
From: Features
The process from a Local Plan allocation to a digger on site typically stretches beyond the length of a five-year political...
12 August 2023
From: Features
According to research, the average cost of home insurance was £300 in 2022 – a record low. However, this could increase...
22 July 2023
From: Features
According to the latest English Housing Survey, there were 495,000 second homes in the UK in 2018/19 – a figure said...
15 July 2023
From: Features
The National Association of Property Buyers’ Jonathan Rolande gives his take on a manic week for the property market. This is the week when...
23 June 2023
From: Breaking News
Sleight of hand, optical illusion, card up the sleeve – we all love a good conjuring trick, don’t we? And they say...
13 May 2023
From: Features
Housing policy formation must go beyond electoral cycles, academics have warned. A group of Cambridge University alumni has teamed up to urge...
05 May 2023
From: Breaking News
A former Housing Secretary has outlined why the Conservative Party mustn’t abandon its commitment to housebuilding. It comes as some 47 Conservative...
24 November 2022
From: Breaking News
Auctioneers claim they are benefiting from a sales market slowdown as buyers rush to make use of mortgage offers and sellers...
28 October 2022
From: Breaking News
Michael Gove has returned to frontline politics and his previous role as Levelling Up and Housing Secretary. He is among the new...
25 October 2022
From: Breaking News
I can’t really write about anything else this week, can I? Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you will have...
22 October 2022
From: Features
Simon Clarke is set for his first grilling by MPs as Levelling Up and Housing Secretary. Clarke will be questioned by the...
18 October 2022
From: Breaking News
As I watched Liz Truss take to the stage at this week’s Conservative Party conference, my eyes were drawn to the sign behind her. “Getting Britain...
08 October 2022
From: Features
A land agent has called for the planning process to be privatised as it hits out at the Government’s focus on...
05 October 2022
From: Breaking News
Housing Secretary Greg Clark, who is also the Levelling Up Secretary, has been caught up in the storm surrounding Rishi Sunak...
08 August 2022
From: Breaking News
As Britain’s housing boom continues, SDL Property Auctions has warned of ten ways new homeowners could be fined up to £5,000...
26 July 2022
From: Legislation & Compliance
When it comes to housing policy, the Conservative MPs have given their party a choice between Tweedle Dum and Tweedle DumDum. Rishi...
23 July 2022
From: Features
If there’s one thing that received a boost as a result of Covid and lockdowns, it’s podcasts – which reached whole...
16 July 2022
From: Features
The last week has been dramatic even by the standards of UK politics, with a Cabinet and junior minister rebellion bringing...
13 July 2022
From: Breaking News
It has been six years since the UK voted to leave the European Union (EU). Political and economic debate continues to rumble...
23 June 2022
From: Breaking News
In retrospect, it was perhaps inevitable that the infamous dead cat would come into the debate over government housing targets and...
21 May 2022
From: Features
Prime Minister Boris Johnson recently announced that he is considering extending Margaret Thatcher’s Right-to-Buy scheme, that gives council tenants the chance to...
14 May 2022
From: Features
A lack of support to help people onto the property ladder has been highlighted as one factor for the Tory party’s...
09 May 2022
From: Breaking News
It’s easy to overestimate the importance of something in one’s own industry or work, but there seems good reason for believing...
23 April 2022
From: Features
Former Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick is believed to have become the first MP to take in Ukrainian refugees under the government’s...
19 April 2022
From: Breaking News
This week, you will have all seen the sad news that Graham Norwood is stepping down as editor of Estate Agent...
19 March 2022
From: Features
The hot topic of rent controls has remerged in recent weeks, with passionate voices on both sides of the argument speaking...
02 March 2022
From: Features
It’s been a busy and arguably fruitful year for the property market, with an eager consumer base pushing forwards with their...
17 November 2021
From: Features
By the time I next write this column, we’ll be just days before the next Budget and Autumn Statement. So I’ll...
02 October 2021
From: Features
Affordability has always been a hot topic when it comes to the property market, and this is doubly true for first-time...
22 September 2021
From: Features
Boris Johnson's sudden and unexpectedly ruthless Cabinet reshuffle, which drew comparisons with Margaret Thatcher's 'purge of the wets' in 1981, ended...
17 September 2021
From: Breaking News
It’s been a dramatic week in the world of politics – and this has led to another new Housing Secretary, in...
17 September 2021
From: Breaking News
One of the most senior politicians involved in the property industry is embroiled in a row over her anti-Marcus Rashford social...
13 July 2021
From: Breaking News
The biggest news story in town this last week – which has brought people who don’t usually like or watch football...
24 April 2021
From: Features
Pre-pandemic, virtual and video viewings were a nice little add-on for some agents, but they were far from universally used and...
27 February 2021
From: Features
High end agents usually keep their powder dry when it comes to party politics, to avoid upsetting customers. However Knight Frank has...
05 November 2020
From: Breaking News
If a week is a long time in politics (an old phrase, for younger readers), then a year is a very long...
25 July 2020
From: Features
A branch of London agency Foxtons has been targeted by a group of political agitators called Beyond Politics, which says it’s...
23 July 2020
From: Breaking News
NAEA Propertymark is calling on agents to show “greater diligence” when dealing with Russian buyers, in the light of the report...
23 July 2020
From: Breaking News
Conferences, events and awards dinners are a hugely important part of the property calendar, bringing the great and the good of...
18 July 2020
From: Features
The chief executive of a hybrid agency in London has revealed why he deserted big corporates to create his own company. Rollo...
07 July 2020
From: Breaking News
Back in the day, party politics and the private rental sector used to be straightforward. Conservatives were pro-landlord, Labour were pro-tenant, while...
13 June 2020
From: Features
The government will not announce a Mansion Tax at next month’s Budget. It was first reported by the Sunday Telegraph a week ago,...
16 February 2020
From: Breaking News
As residential sales and lettings professionals we are conditioned to adapt to change, it’s the nature of the profession. However, developments...
15 February 2020
From: Features
Esther McVey has been sacked as housing minister; she was the ninth housing minister in as many years. Her successor is the...
13 February 2020
From: Breaking News
Boris Johnson is considering introducing a mansion tax for high value homes according to a Sunday newspaper. The Telegraph - citing two...
08 February 2020
From: Breaking News
01 February 2020
From: Features
Following on from the second half of the last decade, the first few weeks of 2020 have been a bit mad...
18 January 2020
From: Features
Yes, believe it or not, we’ve nearly reached the end of a whole decade. And what an eventful decade it’s been. We’ve...
14 December 2019
From: Features
There used to be a consolation for some estate agents at this time of year - while it was wintry and...
07 December 2019
From: Features
There are many adjectives that can be applied to Boris Johnson, probably very few of them complimentary, but there’s one that...
26 October 2019
From: Features
In recent years, governments and local councils have sought to change the private rented sector (PRS) to make it more appealing...
28 September 2019
From: Features
Shadow defence secretary Nia Griffiths is pledging to improve the quality of housing for serving military personnel if Labour gets into...
25 September 2019
From: Breaking News
If you thought - perhaps hoped - that five weeks of prorogued Parliament meant a break from politics, think again: the...
14 September 2019
From: Features
Welcome to this week’s ADC…and what a week it’s been. Politics? No, hot air of a different kind - the weather. Yet...
26 July 2019
From: Breaking News
The new Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government is the relatively unknown Robert Jenrick - but his new housing...
24 July 2019
From: Breaking News
It’s now more than three years since the EU referendum result in June 2016, and we’re still no clearer on when...
13 July 2019
From: Features
Average UK house prices rose 0.5 per cent in May according to the latest Halifax house price index as the long...
10 June 2019
From: Breaking News
Four years ago, as we approached the general election, Andrews Property Group held a roundtable debateon the impact the election might have...
08 June 2019
From: Features
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
No, this isn’t about Brexit. But as the saga of leaving the EU is likely to bring about the downfall of...
13 April 2019
From: Features
Campaigning groups like Generation Rent and Shelter like to think they are simultaneously edgy and radical; likewise some think tanks believe...
30 March 2019
From: Features
Labour’s housing spokesman, John Healey, has spoken out against the split in the party which has so far seen eight MPs...
21 February 2019
From: Breaking News
Phil Spencer is on the warpath against “constant tinkering” by government in housing matters - and instead, he wants the problems...
02 January 2019
From: Breaking News
House price rises are now the slowest they have been for six years according to the Halifax. Across the UK, property values...
10 December 2018
From: Breaking News
Sky News says Emoov is to be sold, just months after the controversial online agency merged with Sarah Beeny's Tepilo and the...
31 October 2018
From: Breaking News
Perhaps it’s been our pre-occupation with Brexit, or on the other hand maybe we’re bored with politics, but this year’s Budget...
27 October 2018
From: Features
I’ve spoken many times before of my desire to see government take property more seriously. For more than just lip service...
13 October 2018
From: Features
The chief executive of Emoov, Russell Quirk, has suggested that the unexpectedly low take up of online agents may mean that...
11 October 2018
From: Breaking News
A new internet and DAB radio station specialising on the subject of property will launch from purpose built studios next month. Property...
11 October 2018
From: Breaking News
Bank of England governor Mark Carney says a no-deal Brexit exit could lead to a 35 per cent house price crash. The...
14 September 2018
From: Breaking News
Another day, another housing minister – at least that’s what it feels like! The resignation of the Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson...
21 July 2018
From: Features
To say this is a turbulent time for UK politics would be something of an understatement. As I write, the Brexit...
23 June 2018
From: Features
Ever wondered what it’s like to be on the frontline of property journalism? Well, wonder no more, as our very own...
05 May 2018
From: Features
One day, I’ll sit down to write for Estate Agent Today and I won’t express my dismay at the lack of...
24 March 2018
From: Features
At the start of February, Nationwide suggested that the housing market was picking up. Last week, RICS reported on its continued...
17 February 2018
From: Features
It’s probably unwise to write too much about politics these days. The most fanciful predictions turn out to be less wild...
03 February 2018
From: Features
Here we are again: another much anticipated Budget has been and gone and, yet, still nothing much has changed! Yes, of course,...
02 December 2017
From: Features
As we hurtle towards the end of 2017, it’s time to reflect on the year that’s just been. Even better, this property-based...
25 November 2017
From: Features
British politics is extraordinarily volatile right now and the ongoing battle between austerity and anti-austerity, Leave and Remain, and Conservative and...
18 November 2017
From: Features
Like many of Labour’s recent policy proposals, its call for rent controls leaves more questions than answers. There has been widespread criticism...
07 October 2017
From: Features
And so concludes another party conference season. We’ve followed the great and the good (both terms are debatable) around Torbay, Bournemouth,...
07 October 2017
From: Features
How has the world of estate agency changed in the last few decades? That’s the question this week’s Natter is going...
16 September 2017
From: Features
I’ve written before about the impact of headlines on the property industry. Interest rate speculation. Market booms and busts. Demand...
16 September 2017
From: Features
In this week’s Natter I’m going to get all political. Don’t worry, I won’t be giving my opinions on Brexit, Trump...
02 September 2017
From: Features
It’s not just the evenings drawing in that marks the approach of autumn - it’s also the return to work of...
26 August 2017
From: Features
Being a leading world-class city comes at a price – they are the most expensive for occupiers and the most lucrative...
14 July 2017
From: Features
A survey of just over 2,000 candidates and 1,000 employers across London’s residential property market suggests over half of them believe...
13 July 2017
From: Breaking News
“Housing policy should be in independent hands.” That was the conclusion of a panel debate that Andrews held, not recently, but two...