Between blue and yellow shoots..?

Posted on 27th February 2017 by Adam Mackrell

As the winter slowly edges away in the UK there are green shoots appearing in the garden, in parts of the countryside and according to Phillip Hammond in the British economy. However we all know how easily data can be made to show what you want it to and although we wouldn’t for a minute suggest this has happened, we need to always keep in mind common sense, a commodity that often seems like rare earth metals.. In short supply.

Global financial and currency markets are fluctuating as one would expect in “uncertain times” and Gold is doing rather well – depending on which perspective you look at it from. This is of course normal, in reaction to “Brexit” and the mainstream medias reaction to Donald Trumps government and policies…

Much more interestingly and much closer to home we have had the “whitepaper on housing” that we have been waiting for and it doesn’t disappoint see here.  Highlights include improving the PRS (private rental sector), the gathering momentum of the “build to rent” wave picks up strength and the – allegedly crucial – issue of tackling planning delays.

We haven’t heard much of some other important factors in what we hope is not too narrow an argument like sufficient land needed for something also important – namely food and agriculture security, shortage of skills in the building sector to build what is needed, other planning issues like community and neighborhoods and the fact that once people actually get a property they generally don’t want anyone to build any more, anywhere near them… And strong human rights laws that they can use to stop this from happening to name just a sample.

The UK rhetoric is finally shifting from home ownership and back towards the pre 1950’s cycle of majority rental and even further back towards the new “version” of landed gentry.

It is worth remembering that the fundamentals underpinning the residential housing market here are still many years from being resolved – namely the supply and demand imbalance.

We believe the UK and this market is still a safe haven for investors looking for a protected place for a part of their portfolios and invested in the right way – the OSG way – will appeal to investors looking to reduce their exposure to uncertainty and help obtain what they need in the medium term.

Adam Mackrell
Director
Oxford Spires Group