Slowing activity but demand remains high New buyer enquiries rose slightly in the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors’ (RICS) November survey, with a net balance of +13%, while new instructions fell for the eighth successive month to -18%. The end of the Stamp Duty holiday, among other factors, has contributed to a dip in housing […]
Monthly archives: December 2021
Commercial Property Market Review – December 2021
Strong performance from retail parks Retail parks remain the shining light of the retail industry, with their yields across Europe now at parity with shopping centre yields, according to Savills’ data. So far in 2021, more than €5.1bn has been invested in retail parks across nine European countries. Investment was up 46% year-on-year in the […]
News in Review
“We’re concerned about inflation in the medium term” Last week the Bank of England (BoE) became the first major central bank to raise interest rates since the onset of the pandemic. At a meeting ending on 16 December, the Bank’s nine-member Monetary Policy Committee voted by an 8-1 majority to raise rates to 0.25%, an […]
Blocking out ‘noise’ for the good of your portfolio
It’s so easy to feel overwhelmed by the endless barrage of negative news or ‘noise’, which can stoke anxiety about the performance of your investments and doubts over whether your investment strategy is on course. Learning to block out this noise, which may influence hasty or erratic investment decisions, is essential. By keeping a record […]
News in Review
Financial advice and wellbeing: a match made in heaven
Recent research has found that those who receive professional financial advice are four times more likely to enjoy high levels of financial wellbeing1. In addition, clients who take advice build up three times more pension wealth on average (£246,000) than those who don’t (£95,000). Advised clients also accumulated more than double the non-pension savings (£65,000) […]
Annex army on the march
The words ‘Granny’ and ‘annex’ may go together like salt and pepper but converting existing outbuildings into residential space is no longer the preserve of those needing to home elderly parents. Lockdown syndrome The events of the past 18 months may have given annexes a new lease of life. Councils received approximately 9,000 planning applications […]
Economic Review – November 2021
Inflationary pressures mount Official statistics show the UK headline rate of inflation now stands at a 10-year high, with surveys pointing to further upward pressure as firms continue to report rapidly-rising cost burdens. Data released last month by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed that the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) 12-month rate – which […]
News in Review
‘The global recovery is strong but imbalanced’ Last week saw the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) publish its latest appraisal of world economic prospects. In a relatively upbeat assessment, the Paris-based soothsayer predicted that global growth will hit 5.6% this year before moderating to 4.5% in 2022 and 3.2% in 2023. However, the […]
Becoming a financial wellbeing ‘all-rounder’
Financial wellbeing is closely aligned with the control people have over their financial future. People with high levels tend to meet their long-term financial goals and have a clear idea about what makes them happy and what they want from life. This allows them to identify and achieve more meaningful life goals before and during […]