House prices reach record high of £245k in October 2020 says ONS

The cost to rent a typical home would be £1,054 a month, against £1,125 a month for mortgage repayments on the same property, according to Hamptons.

My partner and I live in a converted flat and we can hear everything my neighbours do upstairs. What can we do to solve this problem?

Experts are predicting a ‘bottoming out’ of the mortgage market after interest rates hit record lows this week.

Homes in England’s market towns are now worth £36,000 more than other locations, according to Halifax, with buyers paying double for the privilege in the most sought-after.

Rics said that current sales boom is not expected to last once the stamp duty holiday ends, but inflation will continue.

With travel abroad still uncertain, buying a holiday let here in the UK could be a good investment this summer – but if you’re not a cash buyer, getting a mortgage can be complicated.

A new company will advise parents without big cash pots on remortgaging their homes to get their children on the housing ladder. Tembo will boost first-time buyers’ deposits using interest-only mortgages.

Of all the measures taken by the government to keep the UK economy motoring in the pandemic, the tax break for house purchases under £500,000 is the most counter-productive.

More 5 per cent deposit mortgages were launched in May than any other type of home loan, as lenders increasingly look to cater to first-time buyers.

House prices reached another record high in May, according to Halifax, with the average property adding more than £3,000 to its value in the last month alone.

Almost 1.7 million homes in England and Wales with an EPC rating between D and G cannot be improved to reach a C rating, according to new research by Rightmove.

The cost of the average home has jumped by 10.9 per cent to £242,832 in only 12 months, according to Nationwide.

A flurry of fixed-rate loan deals have been launched at less than 1 per cent. This has prompted one expert, Peter Gettins of L&C Mortgages, to describe the market as ‘incredibly competitive’.

Millions struggled to keep on top of household bills and debts when the pandemic forced businesses to shut and pay was slashed.

House prices are soaring and mortgage terms are getting longer – so it is little wonder that fewer borrowers expect to have paid off their mortgage by the time they retire.

First-time buyers in England could get a home for up to 50% less than market value under the Government’s First Homes scheme. We explain how it works and who is likely to benefit.

Virgin Money last week announced its Greener Mortgages for borrowers buying eco-friendly new-build houses, while Nationwide offers cashback to energy-efficient homeowners.

Perhaps you have lockdown savings sitting idle. If so, now could be the perfect time to consider overpaying your mortgage.

UK house price growth hit double figures in the year to March, with the average property worth £24,000 more than it was this time last year at £256,000 according to the ONS.

The Government will not heed calls to cut or reform the stamp duty tax on buying a home, despite short-term changes helping to turbo-boost the housing market over the past year.

Typical mortgage rates increased between January and June this year according to Moneyfacts, despite headline-grabbing 0.99% deals coming to the market.

While lenders have offered some of the cheapest deals in history in the past year, fears of inflation on the horizon means rates could soon start to rise.

At the heart of most people’s finances is a mortgage, which is typically the largest outgoing for families every month.

House prices soared by 10.9 per cent annually in May, marking the strongest growth in nearly seven years, according to the Nationwide house price index.

Those who bought using the scheme years ago face paying back more than they initially borrowed on initially interest-free taxpayer loans, due to accelerating house prices.

We speak to Fred Harrison, a British author and economic commentator, who successfully predicted the previous two property crashes years earlier.

Banks are calling on the Government to cut waiting times for the Support for Mortgage Interest scheme, which provides loans to borrowers receiving certain benefits, and open it up to part-time workers.

UK borrowers’ obsession with interest rates could lead to thousands of pounds in unexpected costs. Here’s how to compare fees and rates to make sure you’re getting the cheapest mortgage.

The total spent on properties in England and Wales in the year to March was 8.1 per cent higher than the £254.1billion spent the previous one.

Britons making enquiries about homes in Portugal surged 93% when it went on the green list, we reveal how to get a mortgage, what you might pay and how to avoid pitfalls.

Property transactions in the UK leapt 180% year-on-year in April, according to HMRC – but numbers fell significantly between March and April 2021 as buyers anticipated an end to the stamp duty holiday.

Thousands are unable to find a new home that suits them at a price they can afford. But a growing number are are giving up part of their garden to build a home for a family member.

More first-time buyers are opting for cheap and cheerful alternatives. Marina Popova and Myles Jackson (pictured) bought their boat for £35,000 using savings and a loan.

After boundary disputes between neighbours spiked during lockdown, a new service aims to offer an alternative to court battles than can cost up to a quarter of a million pounds.

Nationwide Building Society has launched a 5% deposit mortgage with a market-leading interest rate of 3.49%, as the range of options for first-time buyers continues to improve.

The trend of mortgage rates creeping up could be about to be reversed, as lenders launch new deals amid the country’s housing mini-boom.

Estate agents are lapping up strong sales and spiked buyer interest at present, but are still seeing listings stay woefully low, the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors said.

House prices have refused to succumb to the carnage wreaked on the UK economy by coronavirus and lockdown. We look at why and what may happen next.

The average asking price jumped by over £5,700, or 1.8 per cent, to a new ‘all-time high’ of £333,564 in a single month as buyers rushed to snap up homes with more space, according to Rightmove.

My neighbour’s tree is blocking the sunlight in my garden, but he is refusing to do anything because he says it acts as a privacy screen from other properties. Can I cut it down myself?

Homebuyers hoping to complete ahead of the next stamp duty deadline may find they are unable to do so in time due to conveyancing delays.

An off-market sale is one where the property is not marketed publicly – with the sale arranged by a buying agent and clients looking to purchase without participating in a bidding frenzy.

Last year’s famine has turned into a relative feast, with more than 100 high loan-to-value mortgages now available – and more being launched every week.

TSB is now offering a two-year fixed rate of 0.99 per cent to those with at least a 40 per cent deposit who are remortgaging.

The number of first-time buyers funding their own house deposits has rocketed, as lockdown savings have lessened their reliance on the Bank of Mum and Dad.

Borrowers with 5 per cent deposits now have more than 110 mortgages to choose from, figures reveal.

House prices hit yet another record high in April to reach £258,000, as buyers continue to take advantage of the stamp duty holiday according to mortgage lender Halifax.

First-time buyers are more likely to be rejected for a mortgage now than prior to the pandemic, according to Aldermore Bank – but there are steps they can take to boost their chances of being accepted.

The surge in demand has resulted in some home movers using companies with poor service standards – and with little redress available to them. Regulation of the sector is patchy.

Research has found banks and building societies could become reluctant to provide mortgages in high-risk areas for extreme weather – and brokers say there is a risk of blanket bans on certain postcodes.

We would like to change our front garden into an off-street parking space. How much will it cost, who is responsible for dropping the kerb, and will it be appealing to future buyers?

HSBC handed out more mortgages in March than in any other month in its 40-year history of offering home loans, including providing loans for more than 3,000 first-time buyers.

Casting a critical eye over your home is crucial if you’re trying to sell. We spoke to estate agents to find out the top ten property flaws that can put off buyers, from loud decor to pet dogs

The Government says 30,000 to 40,000 households could use the scheme, known as Help to Build, each year. It will be available later in the summer and the full details haven’t been revealed.

Carole Patterson is one of a growing number of scorned home buyers taking legal action against lawyers who they say failed to point out costly clauses in leasehold contracts.

The City of London has announced plans to build 1,500 new homes in office blocks left vacant due to the pandemic. But what should buyers consider if buying a home converted from another use?

In April, the typical UK property value hit a peak of £238,831, Nationwide Building Society said, as a lockdown property boom grips the market.

We’re interested in buying a bungalow that has been converted to a two-storey chalet house – without the proper planning permission. Can we get it approved retrospectively?

MPs have voted down an amendment which could have slashed the high interest rates paid by mortgage prisoners, saving some up to £800 per month.

Dozens of home loans, partially backed by the Treasury, are now available to buyers with a 5 per cent deposit. Missing a mobile bill payment or a credit card repayment could damage your score.

Nationwide’s ‘Green Reward’ mortgage gives cashback to owners of properties that are more energy efficient. They will need an SAP rating of at least 86, or an EPC rating of B, to be eligible.

Homebuyers are increasingly being incentivised to purchase energy efficient properties by some mortgage lenders via cashback offers.

‘Extreme market momentum’ has prompted the value of homes sold across the country to double to £150bn in the first 15 weeks of this year, property website Zoopla said.

More than two in five homeowners plan to renovate or extend their home in the wake of the pandemic. We take a look at what they need to know before embarking on such projects.

New rules introduced this month have potentially opened up shared ownership homes to people with lower incomes. Will it help more people realise their home ownership ambitions?

House prices increased 8.6% in the year to February, marking the highest annual rate of growth since 2014, the ONS said.

Hinckley & Rugby Building Society launched a two-year discount variable mortgage at 0.99 per cent, while a raft of state-backed 95 per cent mortgages have gone live.

The scheme, called ‘Helping Hand,’ will be launched on 26 April. Borrowers will need a deposit of at least 10 per cent, the minimum Nationwide requires across all its products.

Some borrowers took mortgage holidays as a ‘nice to have’ – but now they face extra questions and increased scrutiny from lenders when applying for a new loan.

The UK’s largest equity release broker, Age Partnership, has pledged to look at all existing equity release loans to see whether borrowers can be switched to a better deal.

First-time buyers and home movers will be able to get Government-backed mortgages with deposits of just 5 per cent with five major banks and building societies from today.

The average asking price of homes up for sale across Britain jumped over 2 per cent in a month, with buyers flocking to snap up properties with outdoor space and work from home options.

Almost a third of buyers are paying over the asking price for their properties, as the current demand to move has resulted in competitive bidding wars. But how do you win one? We asked the experts.

Hinckley & Rugby Building Society will launch a new mortgage with an interest rate of 0.99% next week – but the criteria look set to be fairly strict and it’s not a fix.

House prices in Wales and the North West have led Britain’s pandemic property boom as homebuyers shunned cities in favour of more space.

The greatest excess of demand over supply in Newquay for a decade means almost two thirds of properties on estate agents’ books have sales agreed, property website Rightmove said.

House price growth in northern cities and towns is continuing to outpace southern locations including London, according to the latest Land Registry data.

More mortgage prisoners have told of the financial and personal hardships they have suffered, in a bid to drum up support for a potentially life-changing new law currently going through Parliament.

A south-facing garden has long been a selling point for estate agents – and the pandemic has made them even more desirable. But how much does having one really add to the value of your home?

On a net basis, the nation’s private property wealth reached the equivalent to £189,549 for the average UK property owner, the Equity Release Council said.

Half of property professionals reported an increase rather than a decrease in agreed sales during March, as the market responded positively to the extension of the stamp duty holiday.

A desire for better homes and the stamp duty holiday has sparked a buying frenzy – yet first-time buyers and those with small deposits have been frozen out by tight lending criteria and soaring prices.

A significant number of homeowners could be overpaying for home insurance because they have bought a policy from their mortgage provider instead of shopping around.

Against most sensible measures, house prices in the UK are too expensive, but there’s a theory that says they could keep going up from here before they crash.

Landlords could get better mortgage deals if their properties are energy efficient, as lenders launch new green products to the market – but do they offer enough of a financial incentive?

Those living in energy inefficient homes could soon find it harder to get a mortgage, after a Government report said it could start rating lenders on the energy efficiency of their portfolios

Property price growth slowed slightly in the last month amid a ‘softening’ of demand ahead of the original end of the stamp duty holiday.

Prime postcodes in cities such as Winchester, Oxford and Bath have seen house prices rise this year – but the lure of the countryside is still strong according to Savills.

A quarter of a million ‘mortgage prisoners’ have faced years of financial struggles after their banks went under in the 2008 crash. We spoke to three of them about how a new law change would help.

Currently, 43% of homeowners are worried about making their monthly mortgage payments. We explain what to do if your income drops, and how to remortgage with defaults on your record.

We just received the homebuyer report on our new period home, which raised concerns about an old loft conversion and extension. How can we ensure it’s safe and what survey do we need?

A total of 87,700 mortgages for new house purchases were approved in February, compared to an average of 63,500 over the past 10 years.

App-based provider Moneybox has paid out £94.5m in bonuses to first-time buyers in 2020-21 and those hoping to get onto the ladder, like 24-year-old Katie Mcleod, from Swindon.

Home sales hit their highest daily level in a decade this week as the housing market boom continued apace – while visits to the Rightmove website smashed the all-time record twice over

How to take the temperature of your local property market, the best Isa investments of all time, green investing and whether cutting electric car grants was wise.

The busiest property markets of 2020 have been revealed, with small towns taking the top spots as buyers rushed out of cities.

One in five properties listed on Rightmove are now chain-free, as movers sell up and rent to help them win bidding wars when it comes to finding their new home.

The extension of the stamp duty holiday has added further fuel to the fire of the property market, but while some areas are blowing hot others are cold.

Mortgage borrowers hit hardest by the pandemic may find themselves paying out thousands more each year, because they believe the financial fallout has affected their ability to remortgage.

House prices dropped for the first time in six months in January, according to official figures – but they could be set to increase again due to the stamp duty holiday extension and the easing of lockdown.

Housing transactions jumped a quarter in February in what has been described as a show of ‘remarkable resilience’ in the market.

Property prices in England are now seven times the local salary on average, as house price inflation appears to be outgrowing wages. New analysis also shows a ‘gender gap’ in the affordability of homes.

Buyer demand was up 24% in the week that followed the Budget on 3 March, according to property portal Zoopla.

From sports betting to streaming subscriptions, we asked mortgage experts about spending habits that could raise mortgage lenders’ eyebrows – and how much of a risk they pose.

We may have seen the price of the average home go up by around £15,000 last year in the UK – but this paled in comparison to other countries which saw astronomical rises of up to 30%.

Yorkshire Building Society has become the first lender to bring mortgages with 5% deposits back to the market, potentially heralding a price war that could benefit first-time buyers.

Britons are being urged to secure their homes against a potential surge of burglaries anticipated for when lockdown ends. We asked experts for tips on how to protect your home.

The average asking price for a home in the UK increased in the first two weeks of March, as the number of people enquiring about available properties broke the all-time record.

Would you fix your mortgage until it ends or would you rather take the gamble that paying less now won’t be offset by higher rates in the future?

As the easing of lockdown apparoaches, Britain’s mortgage borrowers will re-emerge from their homes with differing circumstances.

Demand for city centre living is on the rise again – and with rents having fallen in many areas during the pandemic, there may be cheap deals to be had for renters who get ahead of the game.

More than half of self-employed people said they felt penalised when applying for a home loan, while 96% said they had to provide more paperwork, a new survey shows.

Bread and butter savings rates have fallen by seven tenths, but many mortgage borrowers have barely benefited since the Bank of England cut its base rate to an all-time low last year.

Metro Bank has launched a new range of mortgages for borrowers with ‘adverse’ credit history who may struggle to get a home loan elsewhere – making it the only high street lender to offer this.

If you’re struggling to work at your kitchen table – and you have the luxury of a garden – it could be time to invest in a ‘shoffice’. Here’s everything you need to know about building a garden workspace.

A shortfall in the number of homes coming up for sale remains a major stumbling block for the housing market, economists at the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors have warned.

A mortgage being touted as the UK’s ‘longest-ever’ fixed rate home loan will be launched next week. Habito One will allow home buyers to stay on the same rate for up to 40 years.

House prices could see five-figure increases this year, as forecasts are revised upwards thanks to the stamp duty holiday extension and vaccine roll-out success.

All landlords need to have had electrical safety inspections carried out on their properties by 1 April this year, or risk being fined up to £30,000.

Home movers have seen four million possessions lost, damaged or stolen during transit over the past 12 months, costing them £700 on average. Here’s how to make sure your stuff stays safe.

The holiday will save thousands more buyers up to £15,000 in costs. First-time buyer Jessica Sena (pictured) saved £5,000. She exchanged contracts just hours after Rishi Sunak’s announcement.

Most Britons don’t know the size of their home in square feet, according to a new survey. But given that buyers now prize space above all else, has this become vital information?

Home buyers welcomed the stamp duty holiday extension in this week’s Budget – but over-stretched solicitors say many will still miss the new deadline and some are turning clients away.

House prices in the UK edged downwards in February, but are predicted to hit record highs again after the stamp duty holiday was extended by Chancellor Rishi Sunak in this week’s Budget.

Since the start of 2018, there has been over 70,000 reported cases of such thefts, equating to about 64 a day, Churchill Home Insurance said in new findings.

The rumoured scheme will be welcomed by young home buyers, who have seen the availability of 5% deposit mortgages plummet since the start of the pandemic – how will it work?

Rishi Sunak announced a plan to help home buyers get mortgages with deposits of just five per cent in today’s Budget. But which lenders will offer them and how soon can people apply?

After the stamp duty holiday was extended, our calculator hows how much tax you would pay to move home before the new 30 June 2021 deadline.

One is a £77.5million eight-bedroom luxury mansion in one of London’s most exclusive postcodes. The other is a modest family home in County Durham on the market for £150,000.

A third of UK home renovators plan to fund their project with a remortgage, according to a new survey. But how do you go about getting equity out of your home? We explain how it works.

This couple shared their home with three lodgers to help pay the mortgage. But now they want to sell, they could be landed with a capital gains tax bill. We asked three tax experts to explain the rules

The last thing you want is to discover your beautiful new home is concealing nightmares behind every nook and cranny. But what type of survey should you choose? We explain the difference between them.

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 wages.

Some 22 per cent of home buyers blame bad credit for having their property purchase thwarted. Experian’s John Webb and the Mortgage Advice Bureau’s Brian Murphy explain how to fix it

Around 750,000 buyers in England are set to benefit from the stamp duty holiday since it was launched last year, saving them but costing the Treasury nearly £5billion, according to the findings.

We had been working on the basis that there was no way we would benefit from the stamp duty holiday, but I have now read that it could be extended for three months.

Property transactions in the UK took a tumble in January for the first time in nine months according to HMRC data, in the latest sign the pandemic-fuelled market boom is coming to an end.

Young renters have been hit financially by the pandemic. With hefty deposits often a barrier to moving, companies are now offering to secure their tenancies for them – in exchange for a fee.

The number of cohabiting couples submitting joint mortgage applications rose by 60 per cent in 2020. We explain what you need to ask each other before taking the plunge

Interest-only mortgages have become something of a taboo ever since the 2008 crash. But could they be a short-term fix for homeowners hit financially by Covid, or is taking one out too much of a risk?

Britons are at risk of paying over the odds on their house purchases, with 30 per cent of homeowners failing to negotiate on their current property. We explain how to do it successfully

Lenders have launched 117 new 10% deposit mortgages since the beginning of the year – but first-time buyers still have far fewer options than they did pre-pandemic.

Housebound UK homeowners are on a quest to perfect their homes, as Britons spent hundreds more on renovations in 2020.

Getting on the property ladder is an aspiration shared by millions of people across the UK, but prices increased 6.4 per cent in the last year according to Nationwide.

Property listings on the online portals often carry the bullet point, ‘potential to extend subject to planning permission (STPP)’. And estate agents love to talk about ‘potential’.

A total of 306,198 property transactions fell through last year, representing a 12.26 per cent rise from 2019. We asked the experts what to do if your deal is in danger of being derailed.

With thousands of homes at your fingertips, searching on Rightmove of Zoopla can feel like looking for a needle in a haystack. We reveal little-known tech tricks to help you beat the competition.

Britain’s most commonly asked mortgage questions have been revealed following analysis by Comparethemarket.com. We went to three mortgage experts to find the answers.

Research by online broker Habito found that 27% of people were on a standard variable rate – lenders’ ‘default’ rate which buyers drop on to when the initial term of their mortgage deal ends.

The fees vary a bit, can we negotiate on them and what is the best way to do this? Is there a way to incentivise the agent to get us the best price?