The most and least affordable places for first-time buyers now

The gulf between the most and least affordable places to live within different regions of Britain is growing, Nationwide Building Society research shows. Within London, the notoriously expensive borough of Kensington and Chelsea is the least affordable place in the capital to live, when taking into account factors like house prices and average earnings. Within … Read more

234k extra buyers could benefit from stamp duty holiday extension

As many as 234,000 buyers who’ve had a property sale agreed could save thousands of pounds if the Chancellor’s rumoured three-month stamp duty holiday extension goes ahead. The total amount saved in stamp duty charges if the extension is given the green light in the Budget next week could top £984million, according to online property … Read more

10 tips to boost your credit score and avoid mortgage rejection

More than one in five aspiring homeowners blame bad credit for having their property purchases thwarted, citing this as the reason their mortgage application is turned down.  Having a bad credit history is the reason behind 22 per cent of mortgage rejections, according to a survey commissioned by mortgage broker, Haysto. The survey found that … Read more

Housing transactions drop for first time since April as stamp duty holiday nears end

Property transactions in the UK took a tumble in January for the first time in nine months, in the latest sign the pandemic-fuelled market boom is coming to an end. There were 98,830 residential property transactions last month, according to HMRC’s provisional estimate of UK residential transactions – 25.2 per cent fewer than December 2020. … Read more

Help with the rental deposit: How these alternative companies work

While the pandemic has been tough time for many, young, single renters have been hit particularly badly.  They are more likely to be employed in struggling industries such as retail and hospitality, and to have less secure jobs overall. Having not accrued the years of service to require a big pay-off, they are also cheaper … Read more