HOUSING NEWS

Buying a home is the most significant financial decision in most people’s lives. For tenants, paying the rent is the biggest monthly outgoing. So it is little wonder that house prices are an obsession for some, and a source of frustration for others. The financial crisis had huge implications for those wanting to buy or […]

Houses in Norfolk are among those falling in value, according to the RICS survey House prices are now falling in four areas of the country, according to the latest report from chartered surveyors. The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) has said that prices are declining in London, the South East, East Anglia and north-east […]

House prices across the UK are rising strongly and will continue to do so in the months ahead, the Halifax has reported. In the year to October, prices rose by 4.5%, up from 4% in September and the fastest rise since February. It brings the average price of a UK house to a new record […]

The impact of a small rise in interest rates is likely to be modest for most UK households, according to mortgage lender Nationwide. The Bank of England has been widely tipped to increase rates for the first time in a decade on Thursday. If rates do go up from 0.25% to 0.5%, the effect will […]

Home-buying and selling in England and Wales could be “faster and less stressful” under plans to simplify sales and tackle gazumping. Communities Secretary Sajid Javid launched an eight-week review, saying he wanted to “hear from the industry” on how to streamline home-buying. Ways of locking in deals and stopping sellers accepting higher offers at the […]

Tenants’ regular rent payments should be recorded on their credit score and used as proof to lenders that mortgage demands can be met, MPs are to be told. At present, mortgage applicants are unable to rely on rent payment history as proof that they would be safe to lend to when buying a home. A […]

House prices in more than half of neighbourhoods in England and Wales are still lower in real terms than a decade ago, BBC analysis has revealed. In 58% of wards, residential properties are selling for less now, after accounting for inflation, than they were in 2007. The findings, drawn from official data, expose a stark […]

Young first-time buyers are increasing their overall mortgage debt in order to tackle short-term financial pressures. The average mortgage term is lengthening from the traditional 25 years, according to figures from broker L&C Mortgages. Its figures show the proportion of new buyers taking out 31 to 35-year mortgages has doubled in 10 years. That means […]

The number of homeless UK households placed into temporary accommodation outside their local area has increased by 59% in five years. A Freedom of Information request revealed that numbers rose from 10,651 in 2012/13 to 16,914 in 2016/17. The London Borough of Southwark placed the most households out of their area in 2016/17, a total […]

The cost of taking out a fixed-rate mortgage has started to rise, even though the Bank of England has kept base rates at a record low. Barclays and NatWest have become the latest lenders to increase the cost of some of their fixed-rate products. At least nine other banks or building societies have also raised […]