Online articles
The Library provides access to leading business, finance and management journals. These journals are available to logged-in ICAEW members, ACA students and other entitled users subject to suppliers' terms of use.
If you have any difficulty accessing these electronic resources, please see our help page for further guidance. The page also provides search tips and tricks that you may find useful.
Displaying 1-30 of 61 results
Exclusive
Europe's battered listed landlords are preparing for a rebound
- Article
- 27 Sep 2024
- Jack Sidders
European listed landlords are preparing for a rebound in the commercial property sector after two years of decline. Whilst public markets were frozen to most landlords for much of this period, this year has seen increased debt and equity raising by European property companies. In many European markets there are signs that valuations are stabilising or their decline is at least slowing. Recovery remains uneven across countries however.
Exclusive
Zombie construction sites are making German housing woes worse
- Article
- 21 Sep 2024
- Libby Cherry and Laura Malsch
Stalled building sites have become a common sight across Germany. More than 1,000 companies involved in real estate activities have collapsed since 2022 as part of the fallout from surging construction costs and interest-rate rises. The German government is struggling to promote new construction in a market that's not keeping up with demand, with the challenges in the housing market expected to continue for some time.
Exclusive
Amount B: implications for global industrial products and construction enterprises
- Article
- 16 Sep 2024
- Claudia Lauten, Janis Sussick, Karen Smolka
Claudia Lauten, Janis Sussick, and Karen Smolka of Deloitte discuss how amount B could impact the tax and transfer pricing approaches of global multinational enterprises in the industrial products and construction sector.
Exclusive
UK homes for sale hit 7 year high as market gains momentum.
- Article
- 27 Aug 2024
- Tom Rees
The number of properties for sale in the UK has risen to the highest level in seven years according to property website Zoopla. The increase in available properties is expected to boost sales but also keep prices in check, benefitting both realtors and those struggling to get onto the housing ladder.
Exclusive
More seats at the table: A legacy-minded Charlotte contracting family opts for broader employee ownership
- Article
- 01 Jul 2024
- David Mildenberg
Blythe Development, a construction company based in Charlotte, North Carolina, has opted for employee ownership by selling the business to an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP). ESOPs have been around for a number of years in the US but still remain rare. The company's decision is discussed, including the family's wish to maintain control of the business and to gain an advantage in the retention and recruitment of employees.
Exclusive
Portuguese real estate transfer tax: the devil is in the detail
- Article
- 03 Jun 2024
- Ricardo Seabra Moura
Taxation when companies acquire shares in entities that hold real estate can be a fiendishly complicated issue. Ricardo Seabra Moura of Morais Leitão, Galvão Teles, Soares da Silva & Associados summarises the regulations and interpretations
Exclusive
UK's soaring rents make buying a home a better option once more
- Article
- 06 Feb 2024
- Isabella Ward
Buying a home in the UK is expected to be cheaper than renting over the next five years, according to analysis by Capital Economics. This is a reversal from their previous year's analysis which found renting was cheaper for the first time in 14 years due to interest rate hikes. The shift is attributed to rising rents and falling mortgage rates.
Exclusive
Real estate was most distressed sector in Europe in 2023
- Article
- 05 Feb 2024
- Irene Garcia Pérez
A study by law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP has revealed that real estate was the most distressed sector in Europe in the last quarter of 2023. German corporates experienced the highest levels of distress, followed by the UK and France. Despite the high levels of distress, restructuring activity has not significantly increased yet, but it is expected to pick up in the coming years.
Exclusive
UK property becoming more affordable at quickest pace in decades
- Article
- 30 Dec 2023
- Lucy White
House prices in the UK are becoming more affordable at the fastest pace in decades, which is expected to allow more people to enter the property market. However, some economists still view UK homes as overvalued. The government is considering various housing measures to address the issue, including support for longer fixed-term mortgages and reducing the size of deposits.
Exclusive
Reality check
- Article
- 11 Dec 2023
- Mike Ragogna
The article focuses on the varied European construction landscapes amid revised forecasts. Topics include major construction initiatives in France, England, Germany and Spain, such as the restoration of Notre-Dame in Paris, London's infrastructure upgrades, Germany's delayed building regulations and Spain's ongoing highway development project.
Exclusive
Japanese buyers snap up New York and London buildings in spending spree
- Article
- 06 Dec 2023
- Lisa Du
Japanese investors are currently spending the most in two decades to purchase properties overseas, despite the global real estate slump and the decline of the yen. This surge in investment is driven by the availability of rock-bottom financing rates in Japan and the desire to diversify income due to low returns in Japan. Japanese buyers tend to go for prominent assets, providing liquidity to the US commercial real estate market.
Exclusive
Signa's lofty property valuations point to brutal pain to come
- Article
- 02 Dec 2023
- Jack Sidders
Signa, a collapsing European real estate empire based in Austria, is facing significant challenges in its portfolio. Signa's implosion highlights Germany's commercial real estate crisis, as much of its portfolio is in the country. German property debt is being sold at significantly reduced prices, indicating substantial revisions in valuations. Signa's high valuations have attracted attention, but the company's excessive debt and limited cash flow have proven fatal.
Exclusive
Investigation into the key barriers to achieving UK 'construction 2025' strategy targets
- Article
- 01 Dec 2023
- Krzysztof Dziekonski, Abdul Majeed Mahamadu, Patrick Manu, Francis Mascarenhas
'Construction 2025' is a UK Government strategy introduced in 2013 to improve the construction industry by meeting outlined performance targets by 2025. However, with only a few years left to reach the targets, it is unclear how much industry is advancing to meet them. This paper reviews the progress to achieve the strategy's targets.
Exclusive
UK house prices fall for first time in 11 years, official data shows
- Article
- 15 Nov 2023
- Lucy White
UK house prices fell by 0.1% year-on-year in September 2023, marking the first decline in over a decade, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The drop was attributed to higher mortgage rates impacting activity
in the housing market. The ONS data aligns with reports from mortgage lenders and property portal Rightmove, which have also indicated falling house prices. Simultaneously rental prices have been rising, with a 6.1% year-on-year increase in October 2023, driven by factors such as an influx of students and a lack of rental supply.
Exclusive
New Zealand's general election: key corporate tax issues.
- Article
- 09 Oct 2023
- Greg Neill and Young-chan Jung
Greg Neill and Young-chan Jung of Russell McVeagh preview some of the corporate tax issues to be intensely debated during New Zealand's upcoming general election, including those regarding commercial real estate, GST and foreign investment.
Exclusive
Sweden: new case law on tax values of properties with contaminated soil
- Article
- 02 Oct 2023
- Rebaz Wahab
Property tax is a considerable yearly expense for commercial property owners in Sweden. Rebaz Wahab of KPMG Sweden reports on a recent judgment from the Administrative Court of Appeal in Gothenburg that offers additional guidance on how soil contamination may affect property tax valuation.
Exclusive
A new £500m real estate fund seeks to tap into Britain's housing woes
- Article
- 29 Sep 2023
- Damian Shepherd
UK fund manager Moorfield Group is planning to capitalize on the problems in Britain's housing market by purchasing homes from struggling landlords and renting them out. Its new real estate investment trust, known as MREIT, will buy new and existing single-family homes and student houses to let out. Moorfield sees this as an attractive exit option for buy-to-let investors looking to sell, as well as housebuilders considering bulk sales in the face of a weakening residential sales market.
Exclusive
Banks wary of London housing projects amid $1bn value drop
- Article
- 29 Sep 2023
- Neil Callanan, Cagan Koc, Jack Sidders
UK banks are becoming increasingly cautious about lending for housing development in London, in the latest signal that the outlook for the capital's property market is weakening. Lenders have cut the leverage ratios they're willing to offer developers by as much as 10 percentage points since the start of 2023, according to Nicole Lux, a senior fellow at Bayes Business School. Higher mortgage rates are also damaging London home prices, which have fallen by about 4% over the last year, according to mortgage lender Halifax.
Exclusive
China cuts tax on stock trading for first time in 15 years
- Article
- 18 Sep 2023
The Chinese government cuts stamp duty to boost investor confidence as the country faces a real estate crisis and an economic slowdown.
Exclusive
Return-to-office is a $1.3 trillion problem few have figured out
- Article
- 04 Sep 2023
- Matthew Boyle
In these post-pandemic times, companies are still working out how to adapt to lasting changes to corporate working life. Stark differences have emerged across continents and cultures, with Asian and European workers largely returning to offices at a faster pace than their counterparts in the Americas. However, European working practices vary widely - the UK has one of the highest rates of remote work, and France one of the lowest. The disparities within countries and cities have upended the commercial real estate market, leading to a debt crisis among some landlords.
Exclusive
The 'G' element in 'ESG' for commercial real estate
- Article
- 01 Sep 2023
- Bruce Turner
Bruce Turner explores our rapidly evolving understanding of ESG factors related to commercial real estate, and its challenges to market acceptance in either investment analysis or valuation. He also looks briefly at responses to ESG by professional valuers' associations in a still uncertain environment.
Exclusive
How will China tackle its mounting real estate woes?
- Article
- 01 Aug 2023
Analysis of Mainland China's real estate debt payment problems. The article speculates that the Chinese government is likely to pursue light intervention that would let some real estate companies go under without major government bailouts. Beijing has been dealing with the issue of excessive real estate debt for decades, but in the last few years, the sector's sales have consistently dropped.
Exclusive
UK home sellers cut asking prices for first time this year
- Article
- 17 Jul 2023
- Jill Namatsi
UK property sellers cut their asking prices for the first time this year, an indication that a sharp jump in borrowing costs is cutting into what buyers can afford. The figures confirm a trend toward lower prices reported by mortgage lenders, suggesting that home sellers are beginning to lower their expectations for how much they can get.
Exclusive
HSBC downgrades 11 stocks in 'precarious' UK real estate sector
- Article
- 10 Jul 2023
- Kit Rees
UK real estate firms face a "precarious" situation in the near to-medium term as net asset values fall and refinancing risks loom, according to analysts at HSBC, who downgraded 11 firms in the sector. A recession in the UK is looking increasingly likely, which would further hit real estate values and rental growth.
Exclusive
The world's empty office buildings have become a debt time bomb
- Article
- 23 Jun 2023
- John Gittelsohn, Shawna Kwan, Jack Sidders, Natalie Wong
Commercial real estate owners and lenders worldwide are grappling with changes in how people work and shop, due to the post-pandemic increase in working from home. Meanwhile, higher interest rates are making it more expensive to buy or refinance buildings. When commercial real estate loan payments are due, owners may prefer to default rather than borrow again to pay the bill.
Exclusive
Hospitality at heart of real-estate repositioning across UK
- Article
- 01 Jun 2023
- Malcolm Kerr, Stephen Metheringham
An update on the current challenges and opportunities for the UK hotel industry. Topics include a rebound in hotel occupancies and rates in 2022, how the banking crisis and rising interest rates are expected to impact investments in hotel real estate, and a slowdown in hotel construction activities despite steady hotel build supply.
Exclusive
New Zealand introduces interest deductibility concession for build-to-rent property developments
- Article
- 15 May 2023
- Greg Neill and Young-chan Jung
Greg Neill and Young-chan Jung of Russell McVeagh analyse New Zealand's plans to encourage build-to-rent property developments via a series of new tax measures.
Exclusive
Shift to cheaper homes holds answer to diverging UK house prices
- Article
- 20 Apr 2023
- Lucy White
Britain's two main mortgage lenders, Halifax and Nationwide, have been calling house prices in opposing directions since the start of 2023, leaving economists to wonder whether the real estate market is going up or down. Spokespeople for both lenders have pointed out there are various differences in their methodologies which may influence the results. The answer to the riddle appears to be that buyers are shifting their purchases toward cheaper properties.
Exclusive
UK banks to curb mortgage supply as loan defaults rise
- Article
- 13 Apr 2023
- Tom Rees
British banks expect to curtail the availability of mortgages in the coming months after signs emerged of business and household loan defaults picking up. Default rates on mortgages, unsecured credit to households and loans to small and medium-sized businesses all rose in the first quarter of 2023 and are expected to increase further.
Exclusive
Muted rebound
- Article
- 10 Apr 2023
- Cathy Roberson, Mark Szakonyi
An update on the state of US retail imports and inventory, including the factors hindering a significant recovery in retail imports, plus overly high inventory levels for furniture, appliances, building materials and garden retailers, and retailers' efforts to optimize their inventory management.
Displaying 1-30 of 61 results
Terms of use
You are permitted to access articles subject to the terms of use set by our suppliers and any restrictions imposed by individual publishers. Please see individual supplier pages for full terms of use.
Can't find what you're looking for?
The ICAEW Library can give you the right information from trustworthy, professional sources that aren't freely available online. Contact us for expert help with your enquiries and research.
Explore our communities
Information, insights, guidance and networking opportunities on a range of industry sectors and at various stages throughout your career.
Find out more