Residential Transactional and Living Markets
Residential Investment
Overview
With Q1 2024 underway, the UK residential investment market is witnessing an upswing in confidence. This is underpinned by a broader economic environment, where a slowing inflation trend and expectations of a monetary policy shift are contributing to a brighter sentiment.
Student Housing
Overview
Despite an anticipation of higher transactional activity in Q1 2024, the projected expectation has not materialised. A significant development in the last quarter was the Chancellor’s announcement of the abolishment of Multiple Dwelling Relief (MDR) effective from 1st June. Although not widely reported, the change has inadvertently implicated the PBSA sector most significantly due to the nature of PBSA buildings, which often allowed investors to utilise MDR to qualify for Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) rates as low as 1%. However, as of 1st June, the SDLT payable will rise to 5%, subsequently affecting underlying values.
Residential Development and Land
As we come out of the winter into the Spring it is clear that sentiment has improved during the last quarter. Looking at the housing market generally, there are more properties on the market and more transactions happening; the same can be said for the land market. We have seen a marked increase in opportunities available this year due to increased positivity in the economic climate, combined with greater certainty around regulatory changes which caused lengthy delays in obtaining deliverable planning consents.