Firms office space intentions over the next three years A recent survey conducted by property consultant Knight Frank and Cresa, a commercial real estate firm, has highlighted that over the next three years, half of the biggest international employers (those with more than 50,000 employees) are anticipating reducing their global office space by between 10% and 20%. This appears to Read More
Economic Review – May 2023
UK growth forecasts upgraded Revised projections released last month by both the Bank of England (BoE) and International Monetary Fund (IMF) suggest the UK economy is now set to avoid recession this year. The BoE’s latest forecast predicts the economy will grow by 0.25% across the whole of 2023, a significant upgrade from February’s prediction of a 0.5% contraction. This Read More
Residential Property Review – May 2023
Mixed market signals in May Recent releases from Savills presented mixed signals for the residential market, with the UK Housing Market Update pointing to recovering market activity in May, even as the English Housing Supply Update for Q1 2023 revealed a quarterly drop of 20% in new homes completed. The number of new sales agreed in April was just -6% Read More
Commercial Property Market Review – May 2023
Spotlight on UK retail The recently released shopping centre and high street spotlight from Savills for Q1 has highlighted that although the UK retail investment market has faced challenges, the occupational market has remained buoyant. From a volume perspective, emphasising consumer cautiousness in the face of high inflation, retail sales declined 3.2% year on year in March, however a marginal Read More
Economic Review – April 2023
Recent signs of economic resilience While the latest gross domestic product (GDP) statistics revealed that the UK economy stagnated in February, recent survey evidence paints a more positive picture with signs of ‘encouraging resilience’ and ‘growth momentum.’ Official data released last month by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed that the economy saw no growth during February. ONS said Read More
Residential Property Review – April 2023
Residential market update Demand, sales and new listings all remain in negative territory, according to the latest UK Residential Survey from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), with agreed sales dropping to -31% this month, below the -25% recorded in February. New buyer enquiries, meanwhile, were down by a headline net balance of -29% in March, virtually unchanged from Read More
Commercial Property Market Review – April 2023
Investor confidence returns as pricing plateaus UK commercial investment volumes totalled £5.6bn in Q1 2023, according to a report from Savills, the second lowest quarterly volume since 2009. Amidst a volatile and unpredictable economic backdrop, investment volumes were lower than any quarter except Q2 2020. The average Savills prime yield now stands at 5.57% after yields in industrial and regional Read More
Economic Review – March 2023
UK expected to avoid recession Revised forecasts from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) suggest the UK will not enter recession this year despite households facing a record drop in spending power. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt unveiled the independent fiscal watchdog’s latest projections during his Spring Budget statement delivered to the House of Commons on 15 March. Mr Hunt declared it Read More
