Claiming “the biggest changes to building safety in nearly 40 years“, Housing Secretary, Robert Jenrick, said that the Building Safety Bill will set out a clear pathway for the future as to how residential buildings should be constructed and maintained.
The Bill was published on 5 July to set out new and more stringent requirements for residential buildings, following Dame Judith Hackitt’s review of building regulations and fire safety after the Grenfell Tower tragedy in 2017.
New measures include:
In its latest UK Residential Market Survey, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) has indicated that new listings are becoming increasingly scarce.
The RICS Survey points to a continuing excess of demand over supply, with a net balance for new instructions of -34% (down from -24% in May) during June, which is a third consecutive monthly fall in new listings.
Knight Frank has also reported strong demand, with figures showing a ratio of new prospective buyers to new instructions to sell, being 10.4 in June, which is 56% above the five-year average.
James Cleland, Head of Knight Frank’s Country business commented, “Stock is still low but building. There will be a gradual restocking over July and August and good houses will sell well over the summer. It actually feels like we’re moving towards a better place as a rebalancing of the market is underway.”
The property boom is continuing in Scotland – an annual growth figure of 12.1%, in the year to May 2021, has been recorded.
This is the highest increase in house prices in over a decade in Scotland and has occurred without the benefit of the Stamp Duty holiday, which has continued to offer buyers a significant discount elsewhere in the UK, fuelling the growth in house prices.
According to Savills, the average house price in Edinburgh rose to over £300,000 in May, for the first time. John Forsyth, a Director of Savills commented, “The sales market, particularly for family homes, has been very active in the first half of the year. Nearly 80% of the properties we have sold have attracted multiple bidders and premiums of up to 15% to 20% over valuations have been achieved by our Edinburgh city office. Our registered buyer inquiry levels were up 30% in June when compared with June 2019, which has resulted in more competition, particularly for family homes throughout the city.”
| House Price Index (May 2021)* | 133.5* |
| Average House Price | £254,624 |
| Monthly Change | 0.9% |
| Annual Change | 10.0% |
*(Jan 2015 = 100)
| Region | Monthly Change (%) | Annual Change (%) | Average Price (£) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| England | 0.4 | 9.7 | £271,434 | |
| Northern Ireland (Quarter 1 – 2021) |
1.1 | 6.0 | £149,178 | |
| Scotland | 5.4 | 12.1 | £171,448 | |
| Wales | 0.8 | 13.3 | £184,297 | |
| East Midlands | -0.2 | 11.0 | £216,077 | |
| East of England | -1.0 | 6.9 | £310,200 | |
| London | -0.7 | 5.2 | £497,948 | |
| North East | 1.4 | 11.8 | £143,129 | |
| North West | 1.4 | 15.2 | £189,245 | |
| South East | 1.4 | 9.1 | £350,016 | |
| South West | -0.6 | 8.4 | £277,603 | |
| West Midlands Region | 0.8 | 9.8 | £219,793 | |
| Yorkshire & The Humber | 0.8 | 10.2 | £181,856 |
Source: The Land Registry
Release date: 14/07/21 Next date release: 18/08/21
| Property Type | Annual Increase |
|---|---|
| Detached £391,656 |
11.3% |
| Semi-detached £242,634 |
9.8% |
| Terraced £208,810 |
11.4% |
| Flat / maisonette £215,731 |
6.5% |
Source: The Land Registry
Release date: 14/07/21
| “The total stock of homes for sale continues to run well below historical norms, and this will underpin pricing. At the same time, it may also constrain potential activity, especially for buyers looking for family houses. Even so, we forecast that this year will be one of the busiest for the housing market since the global financial crisis.“ Grainne Gilmore, Head of Research at Zoopla |
Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2017. This data is licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
All details are correct at the time of writing (20 July 2021)
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