Latest research from Key Retirement had showed that, on average, retired homeowners have earned £26k from their houses this year.

According to the data, total property wealth owned by over-65s who have paid off their mortgages grew to a new record high of £1.031tr in the past three months with average pensioner homeowners gaining more than £2,300 a month since January.

Other Key Findings

• Over £114bn has been added to the property wealth of the UK’s over-65 homeowners since the start of the year 2016.
• Since Key started analysing over-65s housing wealth in 2010, total pensioner property wealth has increased by around 34% or £266 billion which is worth around £60,300 on average for every homeowner.
  • Owning a home has been worth around £9,300 a year for over-65s.
  • Londoners made £15,445 a year each
  • Homeowners in the South West were around £6,275 a year better off.
  • Scotland experienced a fall it was relatively minimal at £276 a year.

Dean Mirfin, technical director at Key Retirement, said: “Property investment has earned £26,000 this year for over-65s homeowners highlighting the long-term benefits of owning a home.

During a period of historically low interest rates and investment market volatility pensioners who have paid off their mortgages have been able to rely on steady tax-free returns from their home demonstrating the increasing importance of property to retirement planning.

The equity release market is responding with new products and record low rates to enable more customers to make full use of their property investment and use their money for a wide range of purposes.”

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According to the latest report from Savills, the unexpected political events of 2016 will lead to a rise in caution and risk aversion among real estate investors in 2017, making secure income streams more highly prized among core investors globally.

Key Predictions

• More international buyers will enter the market , where high levels of transparency and stable legal structures make UK real estate a safety play.
• Average UK house prices are expected to remain flat in 2017, before rising by 2% in 2018 and 5.5% in 2019 to a total of 13% by the of 2021.
• A supply / demand imbalance means rents will outperform house price growth, rising 19% over the same period.
• For opportunistic investors the continued ultra low interest rate environment will limit the extent to which distressed assets hit the market. These investors will instead look towards development markets, particularly mixed use opportunities linked to infrastructure improvements.

Mark Ridley, Chief Executive Officer, Savills UK and Europe, says: “’Expect the unexpected’ is now the normality, not the exception, on the world stage. Despite this, property remains a fundamentally safe asset class, giving strong income returns and, in many cases, is a refuge for capital preservation in the longer term, its appeal remaining resolute.

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The latest report from the UK house Price Index has revealed that average house prices in the UK have increased by 7.7% in the year to September 2016, the same as the previous month.

Other Key Findings

• According to the report, average UK house prices were sitting at £218,000 in September 2016 – a £16,000 higher than in September 2015.
• London continues to be the region with the highest average house price at £488,000. The capital saw a 1.4% month-on-month growth in its house prices – the fastest rate of any region.
• In Croydon house prices have risen from £320,175 to £373,339 year-on-year (16.6%), particularly bad news for those in the area attempting to take their first step on to the property ladder.
• Elsewhere in the capital the picture the average house prices in London have risen 11% year-on-year.

The latest data from ONS reinforces what other recent indices have continued to show; that the dust seems to have settled after the referendum result. Rather than seeing any significant fall in overall property values, the ongoing strong growth in house prices can be attributed to the favourable combination of strong buyer confidence, record low borrowing costs and interests rates, along with a continued supply shortage.

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According to the latest data from Halifax, house prices in the three months leading to October are 5.2% higher than in the same period a year earlier.

Halifax their findings had confirmed that property sales have broadly stabilised in recent months.  Though nonetheless, UK home sales in 2016 Quarter 3 (July to September) were 8% lower than in the same period last year, indicating an overall softening in activity.

Mortgage approvals have also steadied. The volume of mortgage approvals for house purchases – a leading indicator of completed house sales – increased in September; the first monthly rise for four months. Overall, the level of approvals appears to have broadly stabilised over the past three months albeit at a lower level than a year ago. Approvals in 2016 Quarter 3 were 12% lower than in 2015 Quarter 3.

Supply remains historically very low

The stock of homes available for sale was largely flat over the three months from July to September, but it remains around the lowest levels ever recorded.

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Despite challenges including the current planning system, a skills shortage and uncertainty following the EU Referendum, housebuilders are forecasting increased growth and investment in the sector.

In the latest Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking report on the UK housebuilding sector which is the first study following Brexit

Key Findings

• 36% of house builders said that the uncertainty following the EU referendum result is the biggest challenge to their business
• Optimism about the future of the housebuilding industry has picked up slightly from 7.1 last year to 7.2 in 2016, with 10 representing the highest level of expectation.
• The outlook has given the industry the confidence to invest, with average five-year investment plans up 17% year on year.
• Housebuilders confident about growth, with 42% of respondents saying that their growth forecasts had improved since the EU vote, compared with 27% who said they had declined.
• They are predicting an average growth of 28% over the next five years, up from 25% last year.

Sector Challenges Key findings

• Challenges that the sector highlighted, after the EU referendum result, include the rising cost of materials (35%) and the current planning system (29%).
• While the UK continues to face the housing shortage, (22%) of housebuilders do not believe the sector has the resources it needs to help the Government achieve its targets for new housing, and 14% are unsure.
• Firms also said that the availability of government support (32 per cent) and suitable land (29 per cent) are factors that impact the industry’s ability to meet targets for new housing.
• 30 per cent of firms said there are not enough skilled workers in the industry, with bricklayers, electricians, plumbers and joiners being the hardest to recruit.
• Recruitment and skills therefore remain a focus, with three of the top priorities for firms over the next five years being recruiting additional staff (52 per cent), and investing in training (49 per cent) and apprenticeships (32 per cent).

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Homebuyer confidence hits pre-Brexit levels

The latest report from NAEA had showed that during September, demand for housing rose by 16%

Other Key Findings

• Average number of house hunters registered per member branch increased from 287 in August, to 333
• This is a rise of 16% and takes the number of prospective house buyers recorded up to the levels seen back in June (Post Brexit), when estate agents recorded 330 on average per branch.
• 23% of sales were made to FTBs
• The number of houses available to buy decreased  in September, to 40 per branch. This is a decline from 41 properties per branch recorded in August, which was the highest level seen since March this year
• The amount of sales agreed rose by 12.5% in September to an average of nine per branch.

Mark Hayward, Managing Director, National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) comments on the findings: “This month’s report proves that buyer confidence is growing, which is obviously reassuring, given that we expected uncertainty following Brexit. Although supply has dropped marginally, this does not concern us as it’s still higher than the levels we saw between April and July.”

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According to the latest UK HPI Average house prices in the UK increased by 1.3% between July and August and by 8.4% in the year to August 2016.

Key findings

• The average UK house price was £219,000 in August 2016 – £17,000 higher than in August 2015 and £3,000 higher than last month.
• The East of England is the region which showed the highest annual growth, with prices increasing by 13.3% in the year to August 2016.
• Growth in the South East was second highest at 12.2%
• Growth in London was 12.1%.

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