Midweek property news update
New Covid curbs
3 minutes to read
All change
The PM yesterday told people to work from home where possible and ordered restaurants and bars to close early to tackle the spread of Covid-19.
Banks were among the first to tell staff to return to working from home where possible, and the FT this morning reports the chancellor Rishi Sunak is drawing up plans for a new programme to subsidise workers’ wages to coincide with the end of the job retention scheme in October.
That follows calls from business groups and the Bank of England's governor Andrew Bailey for the scheme to be extended. Mr Bailey also used a speech yesterday to defuse speculation the Bank of England will soon opt for a negative base rate.
Tracking the development of vaccines
Bloomberg yesterday reported the vaccine trial designed by Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech may allow them to find whether their shot works before their fastest-moving rivals.
The FT this morning carries an excellent explainer on the race for the vaccine. There are more than 300 vaccine candidates so far, according to the World Health Organization: roughly 40 are currently being tested on humans, and only nine of those have reached the final stage before possible implementation — Phase 3 trials.
The report carries data from Deutsche Bank that shows, on a per-capita basis, the UK has built the largest and most diversified vaccine portfolio, having pre-ordered more than five doses per citizen spread across six leading vaccine candidates. The UK is followed closely by the US, Canada and Japan.
Putting a price on a waterfront view
Since May, competition for UK property has been driven by pent-up demand created during several years of political uncertainty and the subsequent lockdown. It has also been driven by the pursuit of more space, and official figures published yesterday showed sales rose by 15.6% in August after climbing by 14.5% in July.
Chris Druce this morning reveals average property prices located near water are growing at a faster rate than those further inland. Waterfront homes are worth an average 46% more than homes located further away and the largest premiums can be found at estuaries, followed by coastal locations. For more, plus a look at some of the finest waterfront properties on the market, click here.
Diary of an agent
Chris Druce continues to monitor how the market is developing with our representatives around the country. In this morning's diary of an agent, Chris reveals the Jersey market has come out of lockdown busier than when it entered; the competitive situation has led to same-day offers for newly listed property becoming normal; and how lockdown has reinvigorated the higher-value end of the island’s property market after an extended period of political uncertainty.
Jersey, which has a population of more than 107,000 people, has had just 396 confirmed Covid cases, and offers tests to new arrivals with results available in a maximum time of 72 hours.
In other news...
Swedish firm EQT backs Sigma housing plan with £300m; Manufacturing recovery slowing down; Australia's virus hotspot may speed up easing curbs as cases drop; PM wins over rebels on Brexit treaty-busting powers; Macron tells the UN to wake up with swipe at the US and China.