Articles
Your guide to mortgage surveys
One of the most important things you can do when buying a property is to arrange for a home survey. Skipping it could be a considerable risk. You would effectively be buying blind, unaware of your potential new home's actual state or condition.
Your guide to mortgage valuations
Your offer has been accepted, and you're well on the way to getting the keys to your new home. Exciting times ahead! But before you sign on the dotted line, your lender will conduct a mortgage valuation to check what the property is worth and that it provides adequate security for the loan. It is purely for their benefit to assess risk exposure and is not the same as a full house survey.
UK economy may need further stimulus says the Bank of England
To help combat the coronavirus pandemic's impact, the Bank of England (BoE) may have to ease monetary policy further. That's the view of Michael Saunders, a member of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee.
Competition watchdog investigates developers over mis-selling claims
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is investigating four of the UK's most prominent housebuilders after "troubling evidence" emerged about the way leaseholds were sold.
Stamp duty scrapped on homes under 500k
In an effort to get the housing market going during the coronavirus pandemic, the Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak announced a temporary change to stamp duty, the tax you pay when purchasing a home. From now until the 31 March 2021, home buyers in England and Northern Ireland won't have to pay stamp duty when buying homes costing up to £500,000. Usually, the threshold where you start paying stamp duty is £125,000 (£300,000 for first-time buyers).
