Press Release: 00059

6 December 2007

Buy-to-let investors squeezed out of the market

Source: http://www.ukpropertyshop.co.uk

The Bank of England's decision to cut the Base Rate to 5.5% has not surprisingly received a warm response from the property industry, with positive comments from the National Association of Estate Agents and the Council of Mortgage Lenders, as well as premier London estate agents Chesterton. Assuming that this is translated into lower mortgage rates for homeowners, or possibly less chance of future higher rates for those nearing the end of a fixed-rate term, this will certainly come as a relief to many hard pressed mortgage borrowers.

As for first time buyers, even though Nationwide's figures show prices are still around 7% higher than a year ago, the good news for those looking to buy their own home is that competition from buy-to-let investors has fallen by half. According to James Rossiter in The Times today, housebuilder Crest Nicholson reports that sales of new homes have fallen 15% since September and their chief executive Stephen Stone is quoted as saying that buy-to-let investors had "simply gone on holiday" over the past few weeks as the credit squeeze had forced them out of the market. If this trend continues, the chances of first timers getting onto the housing ladder could at long last begin to improve.

The latest Moving Location Index again puts Newcastle upon Tyne back on top, confirming once more this city's status as capital of the north. With a vibrant economy, helped by European Union funding, Newcastle has seen a massive building boom in both residential and commercial property, which has significantly improved the quality of life in the area. The other notable feature of this month's Index is the lack of seaside resorts in the top ten, with more traditional towns being favoured by those looking to move home or buy for investment.

Moving Location Index (Towns) - November 2007

Rank	Town	County	Points
1	Newcastle upon Tyne	Tyne & Wear	225
2	Leamington Spa	Warwickshire	164
3	Bath	Somerset	100
4	Shrewsbury	Shropshire	100
5	Eastbourne	Sussex	100
6	Lincoln	Lincolnshire	94
7	Cambridge	Cambridgeshire	90
8	Lancaster	Lancashire	74
9	Chester	Cheshire	73
10	Falmouth	Cornwall	73
11	Aberdeen	Aberdeenshire	71
12	Sheffield	Yorkshire	69
13	Weymouth	Dorset	69
14	Belfast	County Antrim	64
15	Canterbury	Kent	64
16	Plymouth	Devon	59
17	Southend-on-Sea	Essex	52
18	Chichester	Sussex	51
19	Newquay	Cornwall	51
20	Bournemouth	Dorset	50
21	Tavistock	Devon	50
22	Skipton	Yorkshire	50
23	Hamilton	Lanarkshire	50
24	Isle of Lewis	Scottish Islands	50
25	Bangor	Gwynedd	44
26	Skegness	Lincolnshire	44
27	Hull	Yorkshire	43
28	Cirencester	Gloucestershire	43
29	Jersey	Channel Islands	42
30	Tunbridge Wells	Kent	42
31	Stamford	Lincolnshire	42
32	Shepton Mallet	Somerset	42
33	Scarborough	Yorkshire	41
34	Kirkcaldy	Fife	41
35	Guernsey	Channel Islands	41
36	Redcar	Durham	41
37	Worcester	Worcestershire	40
38	Penrith	Cumbria	40
39	Hereford	Herefordshire	36
40	Taunton	Somerset	36
41	St Albans	Hertfordshire	36
42	Perth	Perth & Kinross	35
43	Camborne	Cornwall	35
44	Cleethorpes	Lincolnshire	35
45	Southport	Merseyside	34
46	Dunfermline	Fife	34
47	Barrow-in-Furness	Cumbria	34
48	Elgin	Moray	33
49	West Bromwich	West Midlands	33
50	East Kilbride	Lanarkshire	32

Note for Editors about the Moving Location Index and UK Property Shop

The UK Property Shop Moving Location Index is based on data from a sample of people looking to buy a property and using the website to register their property search requirements with estate agents in each town. From this data a score is calculated according to the number who are considering either moving within the town where they live, or away from their home town and into another town. The Moving Location Index is not a measure of quality, simply an indication of the relative proportion of home buyers wishing to move into or out of a town, which is influenced by many factors.

The UK Property Shop website www.ukpropertyshop.co.uk was launched in 1999 and is a popular source of information for people looking to buy, sell, rent or let residential property in the UK. It also publishes the National Directory of Estate Agents, the most complete and up to date register of all UK estate agents and letting agents.