Welcome to the January 2019 Property Surveying Newsletter

Connecting you to Verified Independent Chartered Surveyors
In this month’s edition … we look at how subsidence affected properties in 2018, discuss alternatives to the London property market and discover what home owners and tenants really want

The Property Market Monthly Fact File

The property market fact file is a collection of data compiled each month by our Chartered Surveyors and the propertysurveying.co.uk team, reflecting survey data, statistics, trends and information from the property market. This provides a single place where anyone with an interest in UK property can find the information they need.


City of London magistrates court building in London

Legal: Conveyancing solicitor jailed for property fraud offences

Ross McKay was sentenced to seven years in prison for his involvement with a criminal gang that amassed a £10 million property empire through property and mortgage fraud.


Doctors owe £422 million of unpaid property payments

NHS Property Services manages around 10% of the National Health Service’s estate valued at over £3 billion that was previously owned and managed by health authorities and primary care trusts. The company is owed over £422 million in overdue rent, service and management charges which its tenants say are the result of a rapid increase in the costs imposed on them.


London mansion asking prices slashed

Celebrity mansions in London have fallen in value, as their famous owners have failed to achieve their substantial asking prices.


Record level of subsidence claims in 2018

A four-fold increase in the number of properties suffering from subsidence was recorded after the exceptional dry weather of 2018. We look at the reasons for subsidence, and discuss what you can do about it.


Waterfront new homes in Barry, Vale of Glamorgan

Barry home buyers move in – despite enforcement action

As developers fail to build the promised shops, restaurants and cafes that secured their planning permission, a Planning Condition Enforcement Notice should have prevented any new homes from being occupied.


New build homes ‘crumbling due to weak mortar’

Weak mortar has been found on at least thirteen new build housing estates around the UK – despite assurances that the material has passed strength tests in the lab.


Top London commuter towns and villages

If you need to be within commuting distance of London but are put off by affordability, want better education choices or would like to live by the seaside, here are some ideas.


Living in disused buildings for cheap rent

Leaving a building unoccupied for any period of time can result in its condition deteriorating, insurance problems or even leave it vulnerable to squatters, but a growing use of ‘property guardians’ could be the solution.


Minimalist living not your style?

Space is at a premium, with new homes getting smaller and smaller, but what if you can’t keep the number of your possessions in line with the living space available? Going minimalist is one answer … but what if that’s not an option?


Sydney Opera House in Sydney Harbour, New South Wales, AustraliaWorrying cracks appear in Opal Tower, Sydney, Australia

A new and highly-acclaimed 36-storey apartment building in Sydney has been evacuated after large structural cracks appeared on two of the building’s levels.


Struggling to save the deposit for your new home?

We look at a variety of ways you can squirrel away a few more pennies that will help you save the pounds needed to afford a deposit on your new home.


And finally …

Survey reveals what home owners and tenants want

In a new survey, 1,000 householders aged 25 to 40 reveal what they really want when they buy a new home.


Written by Independent Chartered Surveyors
of the UK wide network of Property Professionals

This newsletter is a free service by PropertySurveying.co.uk for those with an interest in the UK Property Market. As well as being posted online here, it is emailed direct to our subscribers all across the country.

Subscribe to receive this newsletter by email every month (we promise never to share your details with a third party). The next newsletter will be published in February.

Email us at: office@propertysurveying.co.uk

© PropertySurveying.co.uk