HOUSING NEWS

Within days of going on the market, one picturesque, two-bedroom stone cottage in the upper Yorkshire Dales had been viewed 10 times, leading to eight offers… Another 10 people are still on the waiting list to see it, attracted by its views over a small waterfall and beck. Potential buyers are coming in with offers […]

UK house prices accelerated in August, the Nationwide has said, with values now 13% higher than before the pandemic. The building society said that annual house price growth sped up, to 11%, with the average home costing £248,857. It said property prices recorded their second largest month-on-month rise in 15 years, up by 2.1%. The […]

House prices have fallen for the first time this year, according to property website Rightmove. It said the average price of property coming to market in August fell 0.3%, a drop of £1,076, to £337,371. That was prompted by the ending of the stamp duty holiday and a subsequent fall in demand for bigger homes. […]

The Halifax says house prices rose again in July after dipping last month, making the average price £261,221 and leaving prices 7.6% higher than at the same time last year. Last month, average prices were 8.7% up on a year ago. The lender said it expected prices to settle further after the recent spate of […]

Share Stamp duty holiday withdrawals have “taken some of the heat out” of the UK housing market, according to the Nationwide. The building society said house prices dropped slightly in July compared with June, but were still 10.5% higher than a year ago. Any stamp duty savings have been outstripped by rising prices. But the […]

Property sales in the UK hit a new record level in June, official figures show, but analysts say it may mark the peak of the housing boom. An estimated 213,120 sales were completed during the month – more than twice the total in May, data from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) shows. Commentators said there […]

Some of Britain’s biggest high street banks are refusing to give mortgages to self-employed people who received government grants during the pandemic. Mortgage brokers say those working in sectors like entertainment, hospitality and travel are the worst affected. Many lenders spoken to by the BBC are not accepting mortgage applications from people on furlough. Brokers […]

A lack of available properties is helping to push up house prices, surveyors say. As a result, a majority of Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) members think prices will continue to rise over the next year. The shrinking supply meant the number of new properties coming to the market fell by a third in […]

Stamp duty rates in England and Northern Ireland are changing from 1 July. The stamp duty holiday introduced in June 2020 will start to be phased out. It means house buyers will have to pay stamp duty again for purchases above £250,000. How is stamp duty changing from 1 July? Stamp duty is a tax […]

Two big players in the leasehold sector have agreed to change the way they operate, following an investigation by the competition watchdog. Housebuilder Persimmon will allow its leaseholders to buy the freehold of their property at a discount. Insurance company Aviva, which buys leaseholds from house builders, will repay homeowners who saw their ground rents […]