Debt held against UK commercial property stood at £197.9 billion at the end of 2012, a year-on-year fall of 7.7 per cent. This followed continued falls in the value of the worst-performing assets, underlining the increasing polarisation in the property market and the wider economy, according to new research.

De Montfort University’s influential Commercial Property Lending Market report also reveals that the estimated total value of outstanding debt stands at an estimated £268 billion when debt attributed to Ireland’s ‘bad bank’ NAMA, £38 billion of outstanding commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) loans, and other big-ticket items are included, and identifies an additional £19.1 billion of debt secured by social housing.

While what the British Property Federation (BPF) describes as the “slow unwinding of commercial property debt” continues at a steady pace from the 2008 peak, the data, it says, points to a growing polarisation between good-quality and bad-quality assets.

Sub-prime property, particularly outside London and the South East, remains out of favour with investors, in part owing to the unwillingness of lenders to provide new loans secured against this property.

The May edition of Rightmove’s house-price index, believed to be the largest monthly sample of UK residential property prices, has found that the national average asking price rose to a record £249,841 this month, as new sellers increased prices by 2.1 per cent, or £5,135.

This fifth consecutive monthly rise means that prices are 9.1 per cent (£20,852) higher so far this year – the strongest start to a year since 2004. 

The South led the way, with London, the South East and East Anglia achieving all-time highs. In London, the average house price is now £509,870, making a typical property in the capital more than twice as expensive as the national average.

Rightmove believes that “cheap money and a more positive mood” are starting to release pent-up demand in the housing market.

Households perceived that the value of their homes rose in May for the second consecutive month, according to the latest House Price Sentiment Index (HPSI) from Knight Frank and Markit, which, since its inception in 2009, has been a lead indicator of house-price trends.

Around 13.5 per cent of the 1,500 homeowners surveyed across the UK said that the value of their home had risen over the last month, the highest proportion since June 2010. Some nine per cent indicated that the value had fallen, giving an HPSI reading of 52.2.

Any figure under 50 indicates that prices are falling. The lower the figure, the steeper the decline. Any figure over 50 indicates that prices are rising.

May’s reading is up from 50.6 in April, and marks only the second time that the index has been in positive territory since June 2010. This suggests that, after three years of declining values, households are becoming more confident that the price of their property is rising, Knight Frank says.

Households in London reported that the value of their homes had risen at a faster rate over the last month than at any time since the index began. Households in six other regions also reported price rises, while four regions reported price falls, with the biggest declines in the North East (46.6).

Companies are thinking more broadly about global leadership development and have higher expectations of programmes designed to foster it, according to a survey of nearly 1,200 senior business and human resources executives from more than 40 countries by the American Management Association (AMA).

“Organisations worldwide – public, private and government – are increasingly focused on bringing effective global leadership development to their workforces, and there’s now a shrinking tolerance for lack of results,” says Sandi Edwards, senior vice-president of AMA Enterprise, a division of AMA that provides advisory services and training programmes.

“Companies want to ensure that employees master the global skills and competencies required to work optimally with customers, suppliers, colleagues, and distributors from a wide variety of cultures anywhere in the world.”

The 2013 survey presents a number of findings, but three stand out in defining a new outlook for global leadership development:

Companies are thinking more broadly about global leadership development and have higher expectations of programmes designed to foster it, according to a survey of nearly 1,200 senior business and human resources executives from more than 40 countries by the .

“Organisations worldwide – public, private and government – are increasingly focused on bringing effective global leadership development to their workforces, and there’s now a shrinking tolerance for lack of results,” says Sandi Edwards, senior vice-president of AMA Enterprise, a division of AMA that provides advisory services and training programmes.

“Companies want to ensure that employees master the global skills and competencies required to work optimally with customers, suppliers, colleagues, and distributors from a wide variety of cultures anywhere in the world.”

The 2013 survey presents a number of findings, but three stand out in defining a new outlook for global leadership development:

The CIPD today reiterated its support for government proposals to allow working parents to share childcare responsibility, but highlighted administrative technicalities that ‘require close attention’ if the new system is to benefit both employers and employees

The CIPD has long supported more equal sharing of childcare responsibilities between working mothers and fathers. However, as the government's consultation on the administration of Shared Parental Leave comes to a close, the CIPD stated it recognises that managing shared parental leave will ‘not come without its challenges,' while welcoming the 'additional flexibility' it would bring to working parents.

A new map showing average prices and rents for apartments in postcode-based catchment areas around each of the London Underground tube stations may provide a useful starting point for those looking to buy or rent property in the city.

Produced by Mayfair and West End estate agent Wetherell, in association with property research consultancy Dataloft, the Wetherell London-Underground Property Map reveals, for the first time, London’s most expensive tube stations and underground lines, ranked by the value of residential properties around them.

Wetherells' MD Peter Wetherell says that the map gives Londoners the ability to question property developers, estate agents and landlords about whether they are living close to a ‘good value’ or a ‘poor return’ tube station.                          

“Property marketing people can use clever imagery, glossy brochures and smart marketing suites to help talk up homes in secondary, underperforming locations. However, one thing they cannot do is change the name of their local tube station. So the tube-linked data we have produced provides a starting point for Londoners looking to buy and rent property in the heart of the capital.”

To create the map, Dataloft undertook an extensive survey, analysing sales and rental values for two-bedroomed apartments (as reported by the Land Registry, Lonres and Zoopla) over a 12-month period.

The findings

Not surprisingly, ranked by property values, Knightsbridge is London’s most expensive tube station (two-bed flat average price £2.67 million; £1,252 per week rent).

Others in the top 10 most expensive tube stations include:

• Hyde Park Corner, by Belgravia – average price of a two-bed flat, £1.71 million; £936 per week rent
• Sloane Square, Chelsea – average price of a two-bed flat, £1.44 million; £820 per week rent
• Green Park, Mayfair – average price of a two-bed flat, £1.27 million; £1,016 per week rent                                      
• High Street Kensington – average price of a two-bed flat, £1.19 million; £822 per week rent
• Regent’s Park – average price of a two-bed flat, £1.18 million; £713 per week rent                                                                                                                                                             

In Zone 1, the Piccadilly line is London’s most expensive and prestigious tube line, as ranked by the average property value on the line. The average value of a two-bedroomed apartment is £1.36 million.

Next come the District (£1.06 million), Circle (£1.02 million) and Central (£995,452) lines.

With its currently undervalued locations of Victoria, Pimlico and Vauxhall, the Victoria line has an average property value of £760,861, while, at £613,890, the Northern line is the least valuable tube line in Zone 1.

Other fascinating findings are the huge jumps in property values that occur in the relatively short distance of a few stations. Travel just five stops from Elephant and Castle to Piccadilly Circus and prices rise from just £361,300 to £1.03 million, an increase of 186 per cent.

The Economist Intelligence Unit's (EUI) latest monthly Global Outlook Report has revised up US growth expectations after continued improvement in labour market data and fears a 'spring slowdown' had been exaggerated.

US employers created an average of 208,000 jobs a month between November and April, 50% more than in the previous six months, leading the EIU to forecast that  'US growth is set to accelerate in the second half of the year.'

The Economist Intelligence Unit's (EUI) latest monthly Global Outlook Report has revised up US growth expectations after continued improvement in labour market data and fears a 'spring slowdown' had been exaggerated.

US employers created an average of 208,000 jobs a month between November and April, 50% more than in the previous six months, leading the EIU to forecast that  'US growth is set to accelerate in the second half of the year.'