I must confess that I do appal the ‘clanking fist’ of government when it interferes in markets and where usually the ‘cure is worst than the curse’.
However, the scandalous arrangements that some house developers have been imposing on unsuspecting buyers, is intolerable.
The only real benefit of the foolhardy Non Dom tax changes, instituted in the Autumn Statement of 2014 and exacerbated by the Referendum/Brexit result, is the emergence of the ‘uber tenant’.
These are international, high net worth individuals, who would have ordinarily bought substantial mansions of £20-50million each, but instead have chosen to rent these properties at eye-wateringly high levels which, in some cases, have exceeded a staggering £25,000 per week.
Halleluiah, there has been more activity in the last eight weeks in the London Property Market, than in the past two years.
After all the negative effects of the Stamp Duty hikes, Non Dom changes etc., the middle to upper sectors of the London property markets have been in a parlous state. Values have been dropping by 25%, or more, and the time taken to sell properties in excess of £5million, has increased from say six months to 18 months. Frankly, in 40 years of trading I have not witnessed such an extended malaise, without any end in sight.