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Despite rising inflation, interest rates and general cost of living, Barclays and a handful of other banks are predicting that house prices in the UK will continue to grow.

Barclays said on Wednesday that while higher interest rates are expected to adversely impact housing markets in major economies, house price growth should remain “positive over the forecast horizon.”

The latest Statistical Briefing from The Dispute Service – which uses data from the Tenancy Deposit Scheme, SafeDeposits Scotland and TDS Northern Ireland – has highlighted the top three reasons for deposit disputes across the UK during 2021-2022.

Rules have changed for landlords over the past few years. Increased legislation, new tax laws and the cost-of-living crisis putting strains on tenants being able to pay their rent (this isn’t a criticism of tenants who find themselves struggling in these times, just a reality of what we are all currently facing).

There can’t be a seller in the land that doesn’t want their property to sell for the highest price. Although a lot rides with the buyer, their budget and how much they’re prepared to pay, sellers can help themselves when it comes to achieving as close to the asking price as possible.

September was a month of disruption. With a new Prime Minister and Chancellor at the helm, changes marked the inauguration of this new partnership. First up alterations to the stamp duty thresholds.

Crisis. Turmoil. Unprecedented.
These were words rarely used before the pandemic. Now they’ve become headlines every day in the news.
And this week, they have been used more than ever to report the economic waves caused by the Chancellor’s mini-budget last week.
It would be naive of us to say it’s business as usual. It’s not.

From the 1st October in England and the 1st December in Wales, there are regulatory changes around smoke detectors and fire alarms that all landlords will need to implement with immediate effect, as there will be no ‘grace’ period and fines can be issued from day one.

It was predicted a few months ago that interest rates will increase to 1.5% next year. In August, money markets were betting that the rates would actually hit 2.75% in 2023, but after the mini-budget last week, the expected peak is now 6%.

Whilst a 6% interest rate is historically quite low, it was only 0.1% less than a year ago. The level of increase may cause a shock to those who are on, or moving onto, variable rate mortgages.

For example, if you have borrowed £250,000 at 2% interest and rates move to 6%, your payments could increase by over £800 PER MONTH.

Irreverently known as the ‘Bank of Mum and Dad’, cash contributions from parents and even grandparents are on the rise. In fact, an estimated £25 billion is expected to be lent to children over the next three years, with almost half of all first-time buyers having to rely on family to fund part or all of their deposit.

Cuts to stamp duty were announced in the Government’s mini-Budget, doubling the amount at which stamp duty takes hold for all home purchases, meaning the first £250,000 of a property’s price will be exempt compared to just £125,000 before.

If you are thinking of selling your property, over valuing it can cause a number of issues from lack of interest to a potential sale collapsing, possibly leaving you with a broken chain.

In this video, I go through what over-valuing is, the issues that can arise and, most importantly, how you can avoid it!

Since the Help to Buy equity loan was first introduced in 2013, it has helped more than 270,000 buyers find a home to call their own. While there had been extensions of the previous scheme in 2021, Homes England since announced that applications are open for buyers to apply for the new Help to Buy which will be available from April 2021 to 2023. Applications for the new Help to Buy scheme opened on Wednesday 16th December 2020, and will close at 6pm on Monday 31st October 2022.