Rents Rise in London.

Average rental income has risen by 4.4% in the last year, while houses let for more than £1,500 per week rose by 9%. As a result the letting market is now stronger than at any point in the last three years according to the latest research by property consultants Savills.

However property in the lower rental bands have seen little or no growth. Richard Donnell, head of Savills Residential Research, said: "This sector of the market is heavily led by investors and although investors have not been as active in the last year or two, the additional supply has led to a much greater choice for tenants. Flats let for less than £500 per week, have seen no growth in rents over recent years."

For the first time in nearly one year, the Bank's MPC have not vote unanimously, with Paul Tucker, Bank Executive Director, voting against the eight other members, in favour of a rise in the repo rate to 5.0%.

The MPC noted that a change in interest rates at the February meeting would have surprised market participants, but Mr Tucker argued that such a move at the next meeting would make sense in the context of the latest inflation report forecasts, published last week.

A further rise in interest rates is likely to slow the housing market further.

Rental incomes are 16.4% higher than this time last year according to Paragon Mortgages. As a result, average rental yields now stand at 6.76%, the highest level for 6 months.

John Heron, Managing Director of Paragon Mortgages, said: "At the start of 2005, rental incomes are rising, helped by robust levels of tenant demand. This is in part attributable to a slower owner-occupier market and the ongoing impact of affordability constraints on first time buyers. This is now clearly feeding through into higher yields, which have followed a generally upward trend since last September."

For the second month in a row Greater London saw the largest increase in yields. Greater London landlords are now achieving yields of 6.1% on an average property worth £264,186. Yields in Yorkshire (+ 7.6%), West Midlands (+ 6.8%), East Anglia (+ 6.4%) and the South East (+ 6.6%). Those regions experiencing a fall in rental yields witnessed the largest increases in property values.

SIPPS may fuel 15% rise in Property prices.

Changes to the rules regarding Self-Invested Personal Pensions (SIPPs) will occur next year ('A-Day' on 6 April 2006) and this could cause UK property prices to rocket by as much as 15%, according to organisers of the Homebuyer Show (25 - 27 February 2005, ExCeL, London).

At the moment SIPPs can contain a range of investments, including commercial property. However after A-Day, it will also be possible to invest pension funds in residential and non-commercial property overseas and receive certain tax reliefs.

Nick Clark, Managing Director of the Homebuyer Show commented: "The high number of buyers coming to the market in the form of pension funds could boost house prices by up to 15% through increased competition for properties.

"This will benefit existing homeowners and property investors who could see their buy-to-let returns substantially increase as the market booms."

More People seek a Monarch of the Glen Lifestyle.

Property prices in the Highlands have risen by 37% over the last year, the second highest price rises in Britain according to a recent Bank of Scotland report.

Yet with the Scottish Natural Heritage set to re-locate 260 jobs to the area and the University of the Highlands and Islands' Millennium Institute set to fuel a demand for buy-to-let flats, the Highlands could experience a further increase in the demand for property.

Tim Crawford, a group economist with the Bank of Scotland, said: "The Highlands had the strongest house-price growth of any region in Scotland in the past year and it was also the second-best performing area in the UK. Clearly buyers have been attracted to the combination of city and rural living that the region offers.

The report found that County Fermanagh in Northern Ireland experienced the highest UK rise at 39%.