August 20th, 2007 by Tea
HE turmoil in the stock market may have a silver lining for homeowners: it raises the chance that interest rates have peaked.
Mortgage lenders have already started to cut rates on their fixed deals, with Britannia building society, Halifax and Royal Bank of Scotland all announcing reductions in recent weeks.(for more information click here)
August 20th, 2007 by Tea
The simplest way to avoid inheritance tax (IHT) is to make gifts while you are still alive.
Every tax year you can give away £3,000 of assets and they will not count towards your estate for IHT. If you do not use up the full exemption in one year you can carry it forward, but for one year only. Gifts of up to £250 to an unlimited number of different individuals are also tax-exempt, but you cannot use both exemptions to give to the same person. (for more information click here)
August 20th, 2007 by Tea
Inheritance tax, faced by more and more families because of the steep rise in property prices in recent decades, would be abolished under Conservative proposals published today.
In a dramatic opening of the bidding war between the parties in advance of the next general election, a policy group headed by John Redwood will say that the tax - which at present applies to estates worth more than £300,000 and brings in about £4 billion a year for the Treasury - should go when economic circumstances allow.(for more information click here)
August 20th, 2007 by Tea
Asking prices for properties in London have fallen for the first time in a year, bringing hope that softer conditions in the capital could ease affordability pressures across the country.
Rightmove, the property website, said that London asking prices, which had risen by around 2 per cent per month for the past year, fell by 0.1 per cent in the past month. (for more information click here)
August 13th, 2007 by Tea
hilst increases in prices in the French property market have slowed, prices are still increasing, notably in the cities such as Lyon and Strasbourg, and in coastal areas where a real shortage of accommodation is apparent.
The market slowed off in the run up to the French presidential election, which is a normal occurrence, but has since picked up and the future looks promising due to the new president, Mr Sarkozy’s planned reforms. For those purchasing their main property of residence he has introduced a tax reduction of 20 per cent of the mortgage interest paid annually up to 1500 Euros per year per couple, or 750 Euros per year for a single person during the first five years after the purchase and of the mortgage. Inheritance tax has also changed, with the surviving spouse no longer paying inheritance tax. Mr Sarkozy wishes to encourage French residents to purchase property and to become a nation of home owners like the UK.(for more information click here)
August 13th, 2007 by Tea
COMMERCIAL property lenders are becoming more cautious as lending in the sector continues to increase substantially and as the rising cost of debt bites harder, according to Jones Lang LaSalle Scotland.
The company said there had been a rise in lending in the UK overall, which reflected the increased turnover in the market. Over the first half of this year, direct real estate investment in the UK reached a record £27.2 billion, a 6 per cent increase on the same period last year. (for more information click here)
August 10th, 2007 by Tea
Gordon Brown’s arrival at Number 10 Downing Street marks the end of the phoney war with David Cameron and the Conservative party. The next few weeks and perhaps months will be a period of constant sparring, as Mr Brown tries to wrong-foot the Tories with carefully planned policy announcements and stage-managed coups like the defection of Quentin Davies, who switched from Mr Cameron’s party this week.(for more information click here)
August 10th, 2007 by Tea
Lenders are offering mortgages to buy-to-let landlords without requiring any minimum rental cover or proof of income, even though returns have sunk to record lows in the 10-year-old market.
Other lenders are offering buy-to-let mortgage loans of up to £20m to help people build up property empires, prompting fears of a bubble in the popular market.(for more information click here)
August 10th, 2007 by Tea
Mortgage lending remained strong in June but there were still signs of a loss of momentum in the housing market, according to Bank of England figures published on Monday.
The number of approvals for house purchases was 114,000 in June, only slightly below the 115,000 six-month average. Although the June figure was unchanged from May, it was stronger than expectations.(for more information click here)
August 10th, 2007 by Tea
Lille could be set to be the next big property investment destination after a low-cost airline announced that it is to begin direct flights to the city.
bmi regional said that it would be starting the UK’s first direct flights to the city in northern France from April 23rd. (for more information click here)