Friday, 14th August 2009 Top stories this week CABE: New homes are too small for everyday life, say residents......read more HCA: Guide to economic viability re-launched.....read more RICS housing market survey July 2009.....read more CLG: House price index - June 2009.....read more Housebuilding Innovation Awards 2009 - GYLES BRANDRETH to present.....read more Quick Links Industry news Housing market news Government and political news Events 500 SITES NOW SIGNED UP BUT TIME RUNNING OUT TO REGISTER FOR YOUR FREE MATERIAL!!! It is only four weeks to the start of News Homes Week and member companies now urgently need to ensure they are fully prepared if they are to reap the benefits of what will be a high profile promotion for the new homes industry. There are now nearly 500 of the UK’s house building sites registered for New Homes Week and signed up to receive site packs including sites operated by every major house builder in the country. ANY MEMBERS NOT REGISTERD FOR SITE PACKS BY AUGUST 25TH WILL NOT RECIEVE ANY FREE NEWSPAPERS / LEAFLETS OR MATERIALS. The ‘Alert’ press release was yesterday issued to the media informing them about New Homes Week and interest has been huge. National and local media publications are looking to run supplements and features about the benefits of new build homes during New Homes Week and many members are building their autumn selling campaigns around the Week. Representatives from almost all HBF member organisations are now signed up, though in some cases it seems that whilst some regions of the company are engaged, managers from another area or division are unaware of developments. Have you; Made sure ALL the relevant people in your organisation are aware of NHW? Completed and returned your site pack registration form? Signed up for the FREE new-homes.co.uk search engine web site? Started organising your ‘New Homes Week’ events? Contacted your local newspaper about your events? Ordered any additional copies of the ‘New Homes Week’ newspaper? For more information, and to register to receive updates about ‘New Homes Week’, contact nhw2009@hbf.co.uk or visit www.nhw2009.co.uk to top Industry news CABE claims new homes are too small for everyday life The Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE) this week published a report on space standards in new build homes. It is based on a survey undertaken for the publicly funded body, along with English Partnerships and the RIBA, in early 2008 of 2,500 private new home owners in London and the surrounding area. Whilst the report itself was relatively balanced, media reports focussed on the negative conclusions highlighted in the press release issued by CABE, including: 44% of all households surveyed said they did not have enough space for small children to play safely in the kitchen while meals are being prepared; 37% said they or their children did not have enough space to entertain guests privately; 72% did not have enough space for the three small bins required to recycle properly; 35% did not have the kitchen space for basic cooking appliances such as a toaster or a microwave; 57% did not have enough storage, and; 47% cannot accommodate all the furniture they have, or would like to have. Richard Simmons, CABE Chief Executive, said the research brings into question the argument that the market will meet the demands of people living in private housing developments. 'We need local planning authorities to ensure much higher space standards before giving developments the go-ahead.' HBF was quoted widely in the media responding to the claims, and was interviewed on the Today programme (Radio 4) and Channel 4 news. HBF argued that house builders have to build homes that people can afford, and that if the planning system rations the amount of permissioned land for housing, so creating a serious undersupply, prices will be very high in relation to incomes. This means house builders have to build smaller dwellings than would be possible if there was an adequate supply of housing to ensure people can afford them. Read more To listen to HBF’s director of economic affairs John Stewart debating the issue on Radio 4’s Today programme with Richard Simmons please click here.(skip to 02:37:01) to top HCA: Guide to economic viability re-launched Online guidance to help local authorities and developers establish the economic viability of housing and mixed-use regeneration schemes has been updated and re-issued this week, by the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA). The Economic Appraisal Tool (EAT) allows local authorities to establish effective but realistic affordable housing targets in order to meet national planning policy requirements, based on a calculation of residual land value. The tool is designed to be site specific, but can also be used to inform viability modelling to test affordable housing targets in Local Development Frameworks. The HCA encourages bids for grant funding to be accompanied by an EAT submission, which it then uses to help determine grant levels, as well as demonstrate the added value social housing grant can bring to a scheme. Local authorities are able to estimate a saleable value for land as well as negotiate s106 and other planning obligation agreements; and developers can use the EAT to estimate how much they should pay for land as well as to inform their own s106 negotiations. Richard Hill, Director of Investment and Renewal at the HCA, said: “This is a really useful planning tool which we’re re-launching at a time when the economic viability of schemes has been brought more sharply into focus because of current market conditions. “It’s online and easy to use and complements our guidance on negotiating s106 agreements in the downturn, where we made it clear that at the HCA we consider partnership working and upfront planning to be the early keys to successful delivery.” Read more to top Housing market news RICS housing market survey July 2009 The RICS housing market survey reported this week that: Buyer enquiries continued to grow strongly albeit at a slightly slower pace than in June; The new instructions net balance edged into positive territory for the first time in more than two years; Price expectations improved a little further with the net balance climbing to its highest level since April 2007. The latest RICS survey provided more evidence that activity in the housing market was picking up, albeit from historic lows. New buyer enquiries have now increased for nine consecutive months although the net balance of surveyors seeing an increase rather than a decrease in buyer interest (compared with the preceding month) was slightly lower than in June. There were also more definitive signs that the rebound in enquiries was feeding through into increased transactions. Newly agreed sales, measured on a net balance basis, increased once again, reaching the highest level since August 1999. Meanwhile, the average number of agreed sales per surveyor (over the last three months) rose for the fourth month in a row. New vendor instructions to sell property actually edged into positive territory in July. Read more to top CLG: House price index - June 2009 The CLG house price index reported this week that UK house prices were 10.7% lower than in June 2008. Other key findings included: The mix-adjusted average house price in the UK stood at £191,423 in June 2009 (not seasonally adjusted); UK house prices rose by 2.6% in the quarter ending June 2009. This compares with a fall of 3.8% for the quarter ending March 2009; The annual average house price fell in England (-10.7%), Wales (-12.2%), Scotland (-7.1%) and Northern Ireland (-23.0%); The annual average house price paid by first time buyers in June 2009 was 11.7% lower than a year ago. By comparison average house prices paid by former owner occupiers were 10.3% lower. Read more to top CML: Market stabilising but not yet ‘normal’ New data from the Council of Mortgage Lenders shows further signs of stabilisation in the mortgage market, but transactions are still weak on a historic basis. Lending for house purchase and remortgaging both increased in June, albeit from very low levels. There were 45,000 house purchase loans, worth £5.9bn, up 23% from 36,500 loans in May. However, this is less than half the average number of loans in June over the last seven years. A total of 116,700 house purchase loans were advanced in the second quarter, a 50% increase from the preceding three months but down 22% from the second quarter of 2008. There were 17,200 loans to first-time buyers worth £1.9bn, up from 13,700 loans in May but below the 18,400 in June last year. There were 27,800 loans to home movers worth £4bn, up from 22,700 in May but down from 29,500 in June last year. Affordability measures for homebuyers were broadly static in June, but the tightening in criteria since the onset of the credit crunch appeared to have ended. The typical first-time buyer had a 25% deposit, unchanged since February. Home movers typically borrowed 69% of the property’s value, unchanged from April. Income multiples have also started to increase modestly, with the typical first-time buyer borrowing 3.08 times their income, compared to 3.04 in May, and home movers typically borrowing 2.76, compared with 2.74 in May. CML Economist Paul Samter said: “Low interest rates and realistic selling prices have helped generate a welcome increase in transactions. But there is some way to go before we reach normal levels of activity. “There are tentative signs that lending criteria are easing, but remortgaging demand is likely to remain subdued whilst interest rates stay at current levels.” Read more to top CML: buy-to-let market showing signs of stabilising The buy-to-let market showed the first signs of stabilising in the second quarter as arrears improved significantly and the decline in new lending began to slow, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders. There were 21,600 new buy-to-let loans advanced in the second quarter, a relatively modest 4% decline from 22,400 in the preceding three months. Heavily reliant on wholesale funding, the buy-to-let market has suffered a sharp contraction in the credit crunch. There are now fewer active lenders in the private rental market, with less money to lend. And therefore seven consecutive quarters of decline have left buy-to-let gross lending at very low levels. Read more to top NAEA: Sellers suffering from ‘valuation blues’ Residential properties are being undervalued by mortgage lenders causing sales and remortgages to fall through, according to research conducted by the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA). According to the NAEA, discrepancies between agreed sale prices and valuations carried out by surveyors are having a detrimental effect on the number of property transactions. NAEA members believe that mortgage lenders could be undervaluing properties by as much as 10% with a large majority (69%) of agents experiencing problems with lenders’ valuations after a sale is already agreed. 65% of those who took part in the poll of UK agents said that property sales had fallen through as a result of down valuations. Further to this, 86% had seen further negotiations take place as a direct result. Peter Bolton King, Chief Executive of the NAEA, said: “Our members have heard in several cases that lenders gave specific instructions to their valuers as to how they should approach these valuations. “We all know that valuation is not an exact science and you can understand under current market conditions people erring on the side of caution. But is it fair that they value a property based on what might happen in the future rather than what is happening today?" “Undervaluing properties creates the knock-on effect of sellers having to drop prices and those homeowners who are looking to re-mortgage their property being left with little room for manoeuvre. “Whilst I understand that lenders are operating under severe constraints, it is neither fair nor ethical for valuations to be lowered on the basis that it might reduce exposure to competitive loan rates,” explained Mr Bolton-King. “At a time of great market uncertainty, homeowners need help not more obfuscation from those operating within the property market.” Read more to top Government and political news Mayor of London: First-time buyers 'bamboozled' by low cost housing deals Three quarters of London’s first-time buyers are not sure who qualifies for low cost housing schemes and may be missing the chance to get on the property ladder, according to new research carried out for the Mayor of London. The Ipsos MORI survey, commissioned by the GLA to inform the Mayor’s draft London Housing Strategy, found that low cost home ownership schemes are shrouded in confusion for first-time buyers. It also revealed: 75% of eligible Londoners think the income threshold is just £30,000 or less - half the actual threshold of £60,000. Therefore many middle income Londoners are unaware that they may qualify for help for ‘shared ownership’ or ‘rent now, buy later’ schemes; 20% surveyed said they were interested but had not applied for help, and over a quarter of these Londoners wrongly believed they earned too much to qualify, when in fact they would have been eligible; 30% say they are unsure of where to go for more information about the various schemes on the market; 50% surveyed mistakenly believe that they must be a key worker to qualify for the schemes. In fact, most are open to anyone with earnings between £20,000 and £60,000. To clear up the confusion in the capital’s housing market, the Mayor of London Boris Johnson, through his First Steps housing programme launched in March, is committed to making the system “fairer and easier for first time buyers to understand, with help for all, not just public sector key workers”. As well as improving the marketing and information around low cost home ownership schemes, the Mayor is planning to raise the joint income ceiling of applicants to £75,000, reflecting the high cost of home ownership in the capital. It is estimated that this move alone would make an additional 60,000 Londoners eligible for low cost schemes. Read more to top Consultation on proposed amendments to Planning Policy Statement 25: Development and Flood Risk Communities and Local Government published a consultation paper this week on 'proposed amendments to Planning Policy Statement 25: Development and Flood Risk'. The consultation relates to proposed clarifications to some aspects of the existing national spatial planning policy on development and flood risk, to help ensure the policy is applied effectively. Paragraph 1.5 in the consultation document summarises the nature of the clarifications. These amendments would affect the application of the policy to essential infrastructure, including water and sewage treatment works, emergency services facilities, bulk storage facilities, wind turbines and the identification of functional floodplains. Responses should be sent to arrive at CLG in accordance with the instructions set out on page 6 of the paper, no later than 3rd November 2009. Read more to top Events Housebuilding Innovation Awards 2009 - GYLES BRANDRETH to present Housebuilder Media is delighted to announce that Gyles Brandreth, broadcaster, journalist and ex MP, will be presenting at the Housebuilding Innovation Awards on Thursday 5th November 2009. The shortlist for the Awards was unveiled earlier this month, and reveals the outstanding innovative achievements the industry has made in the past year. Click here for full details The Awards, which are supported by the Government, have become among the most sought after in the industry as they recognise excellence in innovation in all aspects of the housebuilding business. The culmination of the Awards is the announcement of the housebuilding firms deemed to be the overall Innovators of the Year –previous winners have included Redrow, Barratt, Explore Living and Midas. The winners will be announced at a glittering black tie awards ceremony on Thursday 5th November at the Millennium London Mayfair Hotel. Book by 11th September to receive your 15% discount off of the booking price. For further information please contact the events team on 020 7960 1646 or click here for full details to top WHAT HOUSE? Awards 2009 – gala presentation luncheon Tickets and tables are now available for the 2009 What House? Awards, taking place at London's Grosvenor House Hotel on Friday 20th November. The event is one of the highlights of the house building calendar, as the industry meets to salute the best new homes in Britain. To book your seats for this prestigious event please email Derek Smith. ds@globespanmedia.com. Or download a booking form at www.whathouse.co.uk/awards to top HBF Annual Planning Conference 2009 – Staverton Park, Daventry Planning viability 15th September 2009 In the current economic crisis much has been discussed about fiscal policy and incentives but what of planning policy in these challenging times? Is it business as usual or is the current model broken? The 2009 HBF Planning conference will seek to address this and more. Click here for booking details or contact kellie.kent@house-builder.co.uk. to top Housing Market Intelligence Conference – Housing Minister confirmed Savoy Place, London -Tuesday 13th October 2009 Housing Minister John Healey has now been confirmed as a speaker for October’s HMI Conference completing a heavy weight line up of expert speakers for the industry’s leading annual policy conference. Confirmed speakers now include: John Healey MP, Housing Minister Grant Shapps MP, Shadow Housing Minister Sir Bob Kerslake, Homes & Communities Agency Stewart Baseley, HBF Michael Coogan, Council of Mortgage Lenders John Stewart, HBF Imtiaz Farookhi, NHBC A booking form will shortly be available but for further information please contact the events team on 020 7960 1646 or visit www.house-builder.co.uk For other HBF events visit the website http://www.hbf.co.uk/index.php?id=eventsandmeetings For HBM events visit http://www.hbmedia.co.uk/ to top Rosie Hinchliffe/Steve Turner View Previous Weekly News Summary
