The numbers of buyers chasing each property has increased in Essex, nowhere more so than Romford where an average of 26 buyers are chasing each property. Other parts of the county are doing well also. Over the last 12 months, Basildon has seen a huge surge in demand for property,
Affordability for home buyers in Australia eased back in second quarter of 2016 as price growth returned to the residential real estate market. Overall affordability fell by 3.7% and was 2.1% less than the same quarter of 2015, according to the latest report from the Housing Industry Association, the voice
In June the Technology & Construction Court (TCC) delivered a simple message to contractors, says solicitor Sarah Evans. If you want the benefit of draconian payment provisions, spell out your payment applications clearly. Above: Sarah Evans is a solicitor with Thomas Eggar LLP Henia Investments Inc v Beck Interiors Ltd
The numbers of buyers chasing each property has increased in Essex, nowhere more so than Romford where an average of 26 buyers are chasing each property. Other parts of the county are doing well also. Over the last 12 months, Basildon has seen a huge surge in demand for property, up by 298% followed by Romford, up by 89%, Upminster up by 70% and Chelmsford up by 29%. Romford is also seeing record demand for its property – it is taking just six days on average for properties to be snapped up by eager buyers. Martin Gibbon, Group Director of Balgores Property Group commented: “Demand for property in Essex is continuing to boom and this is down to a number of factors. Without doubt, rising London house prices are driving large numbers of professional couples and families to Essex, where they can find more affordable accommodation, within just a short commute of Central London. Crossrail is another driver in demand, particularly for property in Brentwood, Chelmsford and Romford. In 2018, Shenfield will become the terminus of Crossrail. Trains run via Brentwood and Shenfield every 10 minutes to Liverpool Street (40 minutes) and it is just a 40-minute drive to Stansted airport. Many families and young professionals are attracted to Brentwood and demand for property is up by 29% year on year. The town offers plentiful green space, good schools and very low unemployment rates. Romford is seeing record demand for property, thanks to the excellent transport links into London, enabling commuters to reach the City within 20 minutes. Many professional couples are moving from East London, because they are priced out of the market. By relocating to Romford, commuters can save tens of thousands of pounds purchasing their home. The average cost of a 2-3 bedroomed house within walking distance of the train station in Romford has leapt by 63% since 2008 and is now sitting at £335,625. Basildon has recorded the largest surge in property demand over the last 12 months, up by a massive 298%. House prices have risen sharply too, up by 21% year on year, with the average home now worth £262,395. Many homeowners have been outpriced in other areas, so they have settled in Basildon. There has been a massive regeneration of Basildon and it offers a great choice of affordable property including older, character properties, as well as new housing developments in the area, including Acacia Park in Gloucester Park and Morello Quarter in Cherrydown East, which are attracting young families and professional couples to the town. Properties in Hornchurch are selling very quickly – just an average of 11 days to sell, thanks to the high number of buyers who are looking to purchase a home within a cost effective commutable distance to London. Hornchurch boasts a huge variety of different property styles and a vibrant town centre. People who are selling property in London are now achieving very high prices, which allows them to pay more than ever for properties in Hornchurch. This, coupled with the fact that mortgage rates are still low, means that people are now more likely to pay the asking price, or a higher price to secure their dream home. This in turn is constantly driving up property values.” Source link
Affordability for home buyers in Australia eased back in second quarter of 2016 as price growth returned to the residential real estate market. Overall affordability fell by 3.7% and was 2.1% less than the same quarter of 2015, according to the latest report from the Housing Industry Association, the voice of Australia’s residential building industry. The capital city housing affordability index fell by 4.3% during the quarter, while the regional market index experienced a 1.9% improvement. ‘Home price growth moderated in the early part of the year and the index showed an improvement in affordability during the March 2016 quarter. However, in the June quarter dwelling price growth returned and the index reverted to the level we saw at the end of 2015,’ said Geordan Murray, HIA economist. ‘While there was a decline in the headline index tracking the national picture, there was substantial variation around the country with substantial differences between states, and also differences between capital city markets and regional markets,’ he pointed out. He explained that the geographic variation in affordability is most evident in the comparison between Melbourne and Perth. Over the last year, the median dwelling price in Perth has fallen by 4.7% while Melbourne’s has grown by 11.5%. This has seen the affordability index for Perth increase by 6.2% over the last year, while the index for Melbourne has fallen by 6.2%. ‘These differences in affordability align with the relative economic performance of these two states. The Western Australian economy is navigating the tail end of the mining boom which has seen conditions in the local labour market deteriorate and consequently the rate of population growth has fallen quite sharply,’ Murray said. ‘In contrast, Victoria has experienced a healthy level of growth in the labour force and continues to record the strongest rate of population growth in the country,’ he added. A breakdown of the figures show that during the June 2016 quarter, improvements in affordability were observed in three capital cities with the largest improvement in Perth with growth of 3.2%, Darwin up 2.9% and Hobart up 2.2%. Affordability worsened in the remaining five capital cities with the largest decline recorded in Melbourne with a decline of 7.4%, followed by Canberra down 5.7%, Sydney down 1.6%, Adelaide down 1.3% and Brisbane down 1%. Source link
In June the Technology & Construction Court (TCC) delivered a simple message to contractors, says solicitor Sarah Evans. If you want the benefit of draconian payment provisions, spell out your payment applications clearly. Above: Sarah Evans is a solicitor with Thomas Eggar LLP Henia Investments Inc v Beck Interiors Ltd hammered this message home again, this time with guidance on liquidated damages. The case concerned a £4m contract for fitting out and construction works (The Works), between Henia (Employer) and Beck (Contractor) under an amended JCT Standard Building Contract without Quantities 2011. The Works were more than 11 months late and still not complete. While the contract administrator had issued a non-completion certificate, it had not determined whether Beck was entitled to any extension of time. Beck’s interim application for payment 18 for April 2015 was issued late. Beck later relied on its lateness as meaning it was a valid application for May (for which no further application was issued). Interim certificates 18 and 19 issued by the CA for April and May were also late (the latter by three minutes in the middle of the night). Certificate 19 showed a net sum payable of £18,893.53. On 17th June, Henia issued a pay less notice stating ‘£0’ was due based on the previous valuation, certificate 19 and its entitlement to liquidated damages for 40 weeks delay. The dispute focused on three issues: Was Beck’s Application 18 an effective or valid interim payment notice in respect of the 29th May 2015 payment due date? Was Henia’s ‘£0’ notice an effective or valid pay less notice? Would a failure by the contract administrator to make a decision over a compliant extension of time (EOT) application render its non-completion certificate invalid or otherwise prevent Henia from deducting and/or claiming liquidated damages? Henia’s position was ‘no’, ‘yes’, ‘no’; Beck’s was the opposite. The court agreed with Henia. On the first question, the court scrutinised the contract ‘time line’ for ‘payment due dates’, interim applications, interim payment notices, interim certificates, pay less notices and final payment dates. It found a lack of precision in the following of the contract. On application 18, the court stressed the need for it to be unambiguous. Given its potentially serious consequences, both Contractor and Employer needed to know what to do and when. As it was a hybrid at best, it was not an application for the 29th May date. On the second question, the validity of Henia’s pay less notice centred on the HGCRA1 being consistent with and reflected in the contract provisions. The notice could therefore raise contractual deductions and legitimate set-offs and deploy Henia’s own valuation of the Works. On the third question, despite the court’s view on the lack of an EOT decision and the right of Henia to deduct liquidated damages, this did not prevent Beck taking action to challenge it, either short-term in adjudication or in later final dispute resolution processes. Lessons to learn? Stick rigidly to contractual time lines for payment. Spell out the content of applications and notices without ambiguity. For Employers, there is nothing under the JCT Standard Building Contract to stop you deducting liquidated damages in pay less notices when valuing works, even if there is no EOT. 1. Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act 1996 This article was published on 3 Sep 2015 (last updated on 7 Sep 2015). Source link
