photo credit: Matthew Shelley

Today I’m on a one-blogger anti-propaganda mission, Michael Moore style. In the first three months of 1992, the time of the last major UK property wobble, just 146,000 UK mortgage sales were completed, according to thisismoney.

Back in March of that year Madness topped the charts, and we all still relied on phones and fax machines for communication. All reporting and commentating on the property crash was done through channels which make the humble email look like a Lamborghini Gallardo.

Disinformation nation

Fast forward to 2008 and every man and his dog wants their two pence worth of soapbox time on the current situation through the wonders of modern technology. Thirty press releases a day pile into my inbox where they elbow each other for attention, and the Skype phone chimes all day. The result? A mountain of claims, counter-claims, plans, schemes, statements, studies and outright propaganda akin to the information battles of World War Two.

Confusing messages

Take Sandbach-based Persimmon homes for instance. Early this month the firm happily pooped out a press release declaring its Mercia office was doing just fine thanks, and Persimmon’s figures ‘flew in the face’ of opinions that the UK housing market is in decline.

A week later its trading statement revealed its completions were down 31 per cent during the six months to June 30. They are not the only ones sending out confusing messages. It’s all too much. I’m off to dig a recession shelter in the back garden and slap masking tape on the windows. Wake me up when the information war is over.

Technorati Tags: property, property invetsment, real estate, real estate investing

photo credit: Jorge-11

If your impression of Liverpool is all tracksuits, football and scallies, you’d only be partly right. Liverpool is fast becoming the place to be, and it’s worth considering investing in some top scouse property.

Not only is the city basking in Capital of Culture 2008 glory, with a 30 per cent rise in visitors, but the opening of Liverpool ONE has boosted its ratings no end. You don’t have to be Coleen McLoughlin to enjoy the new 1.6 million feet of shopping space, 160 shops and 20 bars and restaurants, and if you want a spot in the heart of all the action, Liverpool ONE also comes with a swanky residential apartment complex called One Park West.

Hubcaps are safe, along with property investments

The 17-storey building is designed by the same architect responsible for the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur - Cesar Pelli. It overlooks the waterfront and consists of 326 studio, one, two and three bedroom apartments, secure parking and 24-hour concierge. Hardly the council flat dwelling, steal your hubcaps image that some people have of Liverpool.

World-class gateway

And now could be the time to invest if you’re thinking about it. Plans have been revealed to turn the city into a ’super-port’ to rival the likes of New York, Singapore and Dubai. The Mersey Partnership (TMP) are hoping to turn the city into a world-class international gateway by improving the existing port, road, rail and air links, with the focus on waterfront regeneration.

So with all the completed, on-going and planned regeneration combined with the Beatles, the Albert Dock and the array of cultural venues like the Tate Modern, Liverpool is heading up the property investment barometer. Calm down, calm down.

Technorati Tags: property, property investment, real estate, real estate investing

photo credit: Dr Tran!

While we’ve all been harping on about how amazing Vegas is, we appear to have overlooked a hot property investment opportunity right next door. The desert. That’s right, the cactus filled, dying of dehydration, scorching hot desert. And you thought it was just sand.

The US federal Bureau of Land Management recently lifted a suspension on new applications to build solar power plants on the 258 million acres of desert that it manages, creating a ’solar land rush’ in America. The Nevada desert is now a prime target and land that has long been considered useless is becoming a battle ground for companies wanting to build their solar power plants.

Vultures? What Vultures?

But it’s not just corporates who are targeting the land - private property investors are also vying for space. According to CNN, some are paying over $10,000 (£5,000) an acre for desert dirt which would have cost just $500 (£250) a few years ago. It seems the potential profit to be made from energy efficient solar powered property outweighs the thought of vultures circling your body at the edge of Death Valley.

‘Dubai has done ir’

Maybe I am being a bit extreme - desert property has been shooting up for years - look at Dubai - and the aforementioned Vegas sits happily in the middle of all this land. Investing a few thousand in an acre of land seems like a pretty good deal if you can turn it into viable property, even better if you grabbed it at a fraction of the price years ago.

So, sun drenched property paradise or burning hell hole? You decide.

Technorati Tags: real estate, real estate investing, property, property investment

photo credit: TorleyInvesting in a home on a desert island which is floating serenely in the middle of a deep blue sea is a lot of people’s idea of the perfect property dream. But architect Vincent Callebaut’s vision could shake up the whole ‘island-living’ image.

The award-winning Belgian has come up with a solution to beat rising sea levels; don’t build new homes on high ground, build them on the water. D’oh, why didn’t we think of that?! Silly old housing minister Caroline Flint for not suggesting this sooner.

His floating ‘Liliypad Cities’ are giant islands which will hold 50,000 people and be completely self-sufficient. Each island will consist of three cities, accessed by marinas, and three mountains. There will be no cars or roads and a lake in the middle will collect and purify rain water. Power will be generated from renewable energy sources such as solar, thermal, wind energy, hydraulic and a tidal power station. They’ll also be covered in plants, housed in suspended gardens.

Invest in floating property now!

The premise is that the islands, free to float around the world, will shelter ‘climate change refugees’ when some of the world’s cities are submerged in water. It certainly beats a caravan in Hull. And with the possibility of sea levels rising 3ft by the end of the century, it might be worth investing in some floating property now.

Mr Callebaut told the Daily Mail:

“The goal is to create a harmonious coexistence of humans and nature. Some countries spend billions of pounds working on making their beaches and dams bigger and stronger but the Lilypad project is actually a long-term solution to the problem of the water rising.”

As long as there are plans in place to coexist with 50ft tidal waves….(I’m also not sure who’s spent billions making beaches bigger and stronger but hey-ho)

‘No escape’

So when the ice caps melt Armageddon-style and London disappears under the Thames, we can all flee to the cities and start a new life on the island. Forever. With no escape. I don’t know if anyone has seen ‘Lost’, but the first sign of a polar bear and I’m off.

Technorati Tags: real estate, real estate investing, property, property investment

photo credit: lucayepa

So, Las Vegas property prices have seen the biggest US slide for the third month in a row. International property investors will no doubt have noted the irony in the emergence of one of the potential bargain opportunities of the year appearing in the world’s gambling capital.

But is pumping your cash into a piece of Nevada real estate really comparable with hitting the tables on the strip? Probably not, especially given the same set of statistics from the Altos 10-City Composite Price Index also show American price slides are now starting to slow, suggesting now would be a good time for a flutter before values across the pond start steadily climbing again.

Gambling on property – a whole new meaning

But if you really would rather take the bigger risks, why not gamble on a house? Literally. Yes, that’s right, if you are desperate enough to get into international property investment there are plenty of people willing to take your money in exchange for the chance of winning a house.

Typical examples include the imaginatively-named winahousecompetition.com, where site visitors can stump up £25 to be entered into a draw for a home worth £500,000 “for occupation or investment”.

Historic house hiccup

It turns out this sort of thing has been going on for some time. A contest run at winahouse.co.uk expired in 1998 after “less than 1,170 entries for the competition were received against a minimum requirement of 60,000 entries”.

Take it from me. A punt in Vegas is far more likely to pay dividends. Time to check my air miles.

Technorati Tags: real estate, real estate investing, property, property investment, gambling

photo credit: Steven Fernandez

The property market grim reaper is really out and about this week. A slump in the new homes and residential market has put 1,100 Persimmon workers out of their jobs, the ‘r’ word is being freely bounced about, rather than quietly muttered, and now international property group, Savilles, has joined the doom and gloom brigade.

Their latest announcement, to keep the market positive and buoyant, is that the squeeze (I’m not saying ‘crunch’…I refuse to) is spreading. Not only to the mansion market in the Home Counties (oh no, what will we all do??), which was previously holding up well, but also across Europe and Asia. They’re so sure of a continued downturn that they’ve cut their profit forecasts for this year.

Some figures not so sexy

Jeremy Helsby, chief executive of Savilles, told the Financial Times there was no sign of an improvement in confidence, which is necessary for a recovery. And they’re leading the way with their ‘confident’ outlook?? I suppose the figures and share price say it all for them. “Not good.”

There are a few lights at the end of the tunnel though. If you have a house worth over £5 million you’re laughing, because the market is apparently irrelevant if you have that sort of dosh anyway.

Go east with your investment money

Another approach would be to look towards stronger countries to invest your money in, such as the UAE and, on Savilles’ recommendation, Germany and China.

Despite the ever-present worry in the UK market, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, if you have the money to invest in property then you’re in a great position to snap up a bargain in this country. And perhaps even contribute to that increase in confidence that everyone is crying out for??

Technorati Tags: real estate, real estate investing, property, property investment

photo credit: danocamera

US tycoon Donald Trump is the talk of the town in Scotland at the moment. There’s a sentence I never thought I’d say.

Mr Trump (cue immature giggle) is planning a £1 billion golf course on the Menie estate in Aberdeenshire and it’s causing all sorts of och-eys and other Scottish sounding grumbles. It’s not just your ordinary golf course though, it’s a full scale development of two golf courses, a 450-bed hotel, 950 holiday homes, a 400-staff accommodation block and 500 private and ‘affordable’ homes.

Confident Trump

The four-week consultation period on the development is now drawing to a close and Donald (Trump, not Duck) is said to be confident of an approval despite the concerns of local residents and environmental groups over the effect it will have on the area, which includes protected sand dunes.

The Menie estate has previously been kept away from developers but Trump’s resort is being seriously considered because the investment is set to create more than 1,000 jobs and generate £50m a year for the economy. In a massively unbiased and not at all over-the-top statement, his legal team said that not giving the go ahead would be a ‘tragedy’ for Scotland.

Donald’s Dictionary

Colin Boyd QC also said: “In my experience of my client, the word ‘cannot’ does not appear in his dictionary.” Really? What, never? “Mr Trump, you cannot run over all the fluffy bunny rabbits in the country and use them to line the pavements of your new development.”

Technorati Tags: property, property investment, real estate, real estate investing, trump

photo credit: …..dotted…..

I’m sensing that there’s been a flurry of panic over at housing minister Caroline Flint’s office during the last couple of weeks.

Unless you’ve had your head in the sand, it’s been hard to escape the bombardment of property and housing market news we’ve been subjected to by the media - house builders going bust, profits down, the credit crunch (if I hear that phrase one more time I’ll be doing some crunching of my own) housing market suffering, the end of the world as we know it etc etc.

In a desperate attempt to increase confidence in the housing market and the delivery of affordable homes, good old Caroline has announced some new measures - also good for residential property developers who have been slowly sinking into a deep depression in the corner of a dark room.

Cash upfront for developers

A total of £270 million has been allocated for housing associations to deliver 3,800 homes for social rent and 1,500 for shared ownership, while the Housing Corporation will be able to offer larger upfront payments to developers who are investing in affordable properties. A new national clearing house is also being set up so house builders can approach the Housing Corporation with proposals to sell their unsold stock for affordable housing.

Property developers can now also bid at any time for money from the affordable housing pot, rather than waiting for the quarterly bidding round and councils will be able to bid for a share of up to £1.87 billion to build new homes or refurbish existing houses and estates.

Desperation or decisiveness?

Whether these measure were born out of desperation to boost moral in the UK residential property market remains to be seen, what really matters is that they’re at least doing something to shock the life back into a downtrodden market. Caroline said:

“My objective is to put together a package of the best possible proposals, working with industry and others to minimise the problems we currently face and create the conditions for a rapid recovery.”

Hear hear.

Technorati Tags: real estate, real estate investing, property, property investment

photo credit: Toddomanbot

Fasten your seatbelts ladies and gentlemen; today we’re off to a new destination, not America, not the UK and not the UAE. Today’s trip is to…. Korea.

Don’t worry, not troublesome North Korea with its unstable but humorous-looking leader, but the much pleasanter North-east Asian country of South Korea.

Turns out, while the Dubai set are shouting about their rotating towers, fancy fountains and colossal canal, the South Koreans are busily constructing a city which will give any Middle Eastern developer a run for its money.

South Koreans Songdo it best

Located in the Yellow Sea economic basin, Songdo is set to become one of the world’s leading business hubs. The plans include 50 million square feet of office space, including a 65-storey tower and convention centre, 30 million square feet of residential space, ten million square feet of retail space, five million square feet of hotel space and ten million square feet of green space. That’s a lot of feet.

But they have big shoes to fill. Squashed in between China and Japan, South Korea is often overlooked by property investors and it’s hoping to change this with the £100 billion development, due to be completed by 2015. There will be financial rewards for businesses willing to relocate, as long as they’re not labour-based, as one city spokesperson told the BBC “anything from art all the way to bio or nanotechnology, the brain-based industries.”

Big brother Tom is watching you

The whole city will be set up with wireless technology to link residential, business, medical and government systems. If you invest in residential property and decide to live there, you can have access to all sorts of cool James Bond stuff, like a gadget which will pay your bills, access your medical records or, if you’re feeling especially lazy, open the door for you. Sounds great, unless you’ve seen Minority Report. Tom Cruise is watching you.

Technorati Tags: real estate, real estate investing, property, property investment, korea

photo credit: qbirdnumber1

“Once upon a time, a property investor put all his money into buying a beautiful block of flats, which he rented out to young professionals for £1,000 a month and lived happily ever after.”

Not always the case these days I’m afraid, the smart money isn’t on yuppies anymore. It’s on the land of the great unwashed, the tax-dodgers, the cider-swilling, Pot Noodle munching…..okay that’s enough, I obviously mean students.

Long gone are the days when students lived up to the above stereotypes, these days University costs a lot and students are an altogether more discerning breed, which is reflected in their choice of accommodation.

‘Young Ones’ accommodation is out

Bricks & Mortarboard Student Accommodation Review by property gurus Knight Frank has revealed although the residential, commercial and industrial investment markets in the UK may not be as buoyant as we’d like at the moment, investment in student property is thriving and is more profitable than any other.

Rents on the rise

According to the site the report says the average student weekly rent has risen from £67 to £82 between 2003 and 2007 and a similar level of inflation is predicted until at least 2011. While one in ten students live in university accommodation, the others are encamped in private rentals and paying from £40 to £120 a week depending on the city.

Home Move also says Knight Frank has given a helping hand on the hotspots to choose if you’re looking to invest in student property. Edinburgh tops the list, followed by London, Newcastle, Birmingham and Manchester. The moral of this fairytale? Student property is where it’s at.

Technorati Tags: property, property investment, real estate, real estate investing, student accommodation