There’s no doubt that the property market underwent a tumultuous year in 2020, where efficiency was required more than ever. Since the...
Archive

The government has revealed new regional price caps for its revamped Help To Buy Equity Loan scheme, set to operate between...
19 November 2020
From: Breaking News

Zoopla is the first UK property company to launch advertising on Pinterest, the lifestyle picture-centric social media platform. A statement from Zoopla...
16 November 2020
From: Breaking News

The first monthly market monitor to show activity in the housing market tailing off has appeared - and it says momentum...
11 November 2020
From: Breaking News

Recent figures emanating from the mortgage and housing market suggest that – since lockdown was ended in mid-May – transaction levels...
31 October 2020
From: Features

Chancellor Rishi Sunak has been told to avoid a stamp duty holiday cliff-edge next March at any price - because it...
29 October 2020
From: Breaking News

The only certainty at the moment is ongoing uncertainty. It’s something we’ve got used to in 2020, but it’s still not...
10 October 2020
From: Features

Government leaks to mainstream and building trade media suggest the controversial Help To Buy scheme will be extended beyond its end-of-2020 deadline. An...
30 July 2020
From: Breaking News

Hello and welcome to another week. We’re more than aware that it’s a challenging time for our industry as for most...
20 July 2020
From: Breaking News

An industry analyst is challenging the long-established agents’ view that reducing or temporarily scrapping stamp duty would help the market. On the...
08 July 2020
From: Breaking News

A prominent tax specialist has suggested that stamp duty cuts would not help improve the housing market, despite many agents suggesting...
02 July 2020
From: Breaking News

Buyer demand for new-build property has bounced back 66 per cent in the six weeks since the resumption of the housing...
01 July 2020
From: Breaking News

There’s been a big rise in demand for new-builds since the lockdown according to figures from Knight Frank - but the...
23 June 2020
From: Breaking News

Online sector veterans Russell Quirk and Kenny Bruce have used social media to call for a temporary scrapping of all stamp...
16 June 2020
From: Breaking News

The outlook for the housing market is still taking shape, but here I take a look at three market indicators to...
30 May 2020
From: Features

Rightmove and Knight Frank are today both calling for a series of government incentives to kick-start the market after the Coronavirus...
20 April 2020
From: Breaking News

The controversial Help To Buy scheme looks likely to be expanded in breadth and extended in duration to help kick-start the...
16 April 2020
From: Breaking News

New research of the buying habits of first-time buyers in the UK we’ve undertaken here at reallymoving.com shows that Shared Ownership...
25 March 2020
From: Features

The Financial Conduct Authority has issued a shock warning that mortgage borrowers who purchased properties through the Help To Buy scheme...
19 February 2020
From: Breaking News

Not for the first time, a government policy on housing ends up begging more questions than it provides answers - but...
08 February 2020
From: Features

The typical house move in 2019 turned out to be just nine miles - and large numbers of buyers moved within...
08 January 2020
From: Breaking News

After a year dogged by Brexit deadlock, political turmoil, and slow growth, estate agents’ confidence in the property market hit a...
04 January 2020
From: Features

There are reasons to be optimistic that a majority government will improve the housing market, simply by ending political and economic...
21 December 2019
From: Features

A former residential chairman of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors has posed key questions for the government to answer over...
20 December 2019
From: Breaking News

Yes, believe it or not, we’ve nearly reached the end of a whole decade. And what an eventful decade it’s been. We’ve...
14 December 2019
From: Features

With Brexit still unresolved, the domestic agenda has been pushed from the headlines by the seemingly overwhelming public and political discord...
07 December 2019
From: Features

[Estate Agent Today was ‘off air’ for some of Wednesday and most of Thursday thanks to technical problems - we apologise...
06 December 2019
From: Breaking News

In just over two weeks, the UK population will head to the polls for the fourth general election since 2010. Of course,...
27 November 2019
From: Features

It’s on - although judging by the early lack of enthusiasm amongst the British public, you might be forgiven for thinking...
01 November 2019
From: Breaking News

It has been said time and time again that the uncertainty around Brexit is causing, well, uncertainty. As I write this, the...
26 October 2019
From: Features

Young homebuyers want tech-savvy, astute and attentive estate agents who are able to handle their complex requirements via a range of...
23 October 2019
From: Breaking News

Zoopla has unveiled new functionality that it claims will make searching for new homes easier for consumers - and resumes the...
21 October 2019
From: Breaking News

A report by the influential Public Accounts committee of MPs has been highly sceptical of the effectiveness of Help To Buy. It...
18 September 2019
From: Breaking News

The new housing minister has admitted that her party has tried to “put a lid” on house price rises and has...
17 September 2019
From: Breaking News

If you thought - perhaps hoped - that five weeks of prorogued Parliament meant a break from politics, think again: the...
14 September 2019
From: Features

Who knows how long any housing minister will last, especially with a General Election widely expected in the coming months. So Esther...
12 September 2019
From: Breaking News

It’s been six years since the Help to Buy scheme was launched, with the honourable intentions of helping more people onto...
07 September 2019
From: Features

It’s been quite a week for news so you might have missed this story - there is yet another boost for...
31 August 2019
From: Features

There has been a sceptical response by agents and others in the property industry to the government’s latest headline-grabbing tweaks to...
29 August 2019
From: Breaking News

The Housing Secretary says he wants to make home ownership more affordable for first time buyers - which could mean discounts...
28 August 2019
From: Breaking News

New research has identified those local housing market potentially worst hit by the planned changes to Help To Buy in 2021,...
02 August 2019
From: Breaking News

We now have a new Leader of the Conservative Party and, rather more importantly, a new Prime Minister. That individual is Boris...
27 July 2019
From: Features

Theresa May arrived in Downing Street some three years ago - but her premiership has not been a smooth ride. As she...
06 July 2019
From: Features

With this summer marking forty years since Margaret Thatcher came to power, her legacy continues to invoke both celebration and consternation...
06 July 2019
From: Features

The National Audit Office says many users of Help To Buy would have been able to purchase a home anyway, without...
13 June 2019
From: Breaking News

South west regional agency Luscombe Maye has amended an advertisement for a new housing development following a complaint to a watchdog. A...
12 June 2019
From: Breaking News

Demand for shared ownership properties will rise by over 15,000 units a year when Help To Buy comes to an end...
06 June 2019
From: Breaking News

1989 was a significant time for the property industry: it marked the beginning of the end of a period of unprecedented...
04 May 2019
From: Features

In recent weeks our campaign to replace leasehold with commonhold has continued to gather momentum both in the press and across...
02 May 2019
From: Breaking News

Data produced by the government showed that some 211,000 homes have been bought using the Help to Buy: Equity Loan. The scheme...
01 May 2019
From: Breaking News

First time buyers purchasing new homes using the government’s Help to Buy equity loan scheme paid on average 12 per cent...
11 April 2019
From: Breaking News

Estate agents have responded cynically to the small-fry property sector announcements made by Chancellor Phillip Hammond in yesterday’s spring statement mini-Budget. Overshadowed...
14 March 2019
From: Breaking News

Figures released this morning show a surge in first time buyers securing mortgages in recent months, despite the market showing continued signs...
12 March 2019
From: Breaking News

The row over whether Help To Buy benefits house builders’ personal wealth more than it assists the housing market is continuing...
27 February 2019
From: Breaking News

After several days of gloomy market news, here's something more optimistic - there were 370,000 new first time buyer mortgages completed in...
20 February 2019
From: Breaking News

Property consultancy JLL has launched a specialised Help to Buy team in response to what it calls “the increasing demand for...
18 February 2019
From: Breaking News

I often speak of my wish to see property taken out of the hands of politicians. Indeed, this is likely to...
19 January 2019
From: Features

While even agents of the calibre of Savills struggle in today’s market - see the agency’s figures here - it’s a...
17 January 2019
From: Breaking News

One of Britain’s foremost property consultancies has given a relatively upbeat prediction for the UK housing market over the next five...
15 January 2019
From: Breaking News

Developers have continued to sell thousands of new-build houses with leaseholds, despite a government pledge to ban the “unscrupulous” practice a...
24 December 2018
From: Breaking News

An end-of-year analysis from the National Association of Estate Agents shows the state of the industry - and it confirms just...
04 December 2018
From: Breaking News

Figures released by the government over the weekend show that 14,867 Help To Buy equity loans were taken out in the...
03 December 2018
From: Breaking News

A property comparison website has made a defence of the controversial Help To Buy initiative, claiming it “acts as an important...
15 November 2018
From: Breaking News

Shocking figures from the Local Data Company, a consultancy monitoring the health of High Streets, show that 211 estate agency offices...
12 November 2018
From: Breaking News

Rather like doctors, estate agents are present at critical points in our lives – moving in together, bidding farewell to a...
07 November 2018
From: Features

On the face of it, this year’s Budget was not what you could describe as ‘housing heavy’ in terms of the...
03 November 2018
From: Features

Savills has issued its forecast for the housing market for the next five years, and while it highlights some bright spots...
02 November 2018
From: Breaking News

The agency industry has reacted in a broadly downbeat way at the relatively few housing-related proposals that were announced in yesterday’s...
30 October 2018
From: Breaking News

Stamp duty relief for first time buyers of full-priced houses and apartments is to be extended to first time buyers of...
29 October 2018
From: Breaking News

Perhaps it’s been our pre-occupation with Brexit, or on the other hand maybe we’re bored with politics, but this year’s Budget...
27 October 2018
From: Features

Is Help To Buy going to remain in existence for much longer? Question marks over the scheme’s future are being raised through...
16 October 2018
From: Breaking News

Those of you who receive (and read) my Sunday PropTech Review will know that, by far and away, the most shared...
19 September 2018
From: Breaking News

Speculation is growing that the Help to Buy scheme is set to be discontinued following a review by government ministers. Recent research...
03 September 2018
From: Breaking News
30 August 2018
From: Breaking News

A downbeat report from property investment specialist London Central Portfolio says “there are very few causes for optimism in the domestic...
29 August 2018
From: Breaking News

Some 31 per cent of first time buyers residing in London ended up moving away from the capital to purchase a...
28 August 2018
From: Breaking News

More than 420,000 people have now used the government’s Help to Buy schemes to get themselves on to the housing ladder...
17 August 2018
From: Breaking News

If agents want to get into what looks like a guaranteed growth sector, retirement properties might just be the one if...
04 July 2018
From: Breaking News

The government says its funding schemes such as Help To Buy will no longer be applied to what it calls “unjustified...
03 July 2018
From: Breaking News
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To say this is a turbulent time for UK politics would be something of an understatement. As I write, the Brexit...
23 June 2018
From: Features

Consumer body Which? is warning that those who used the Help To Buy equity loan to purchase their homes could face...
18 May 2018
From: Breaking News

A service that tracks different types of mortgage demand reveals that remortgaging is on the rise while borrowing for new purchases...
16 May 2018
From: Breaking News

Given the level of resource and energy being put behind upping the number of first-time buyers in the UK, you might...
28 April 2018
From: Features

Figures from the Treasury suggest that the annual revenue from stamp duty for the year to the end of March is...
27 April 2018
From: Breaking News

The proportion of first time buyers in the market is still 11 per cent below the level seen before the 2008...
11 April 2018
From: Breaking News

Barclays is next week launching a so-called ‘green mortgage’ which links the loan to the Energy Performance Certificate rating of the...
06 April 2018
From: Breaking News

A partner at Carter Jonas says that the next 12 months could see stagnation in the market and as a result...
26 January 2018
From: Breaking News

Last week’s news that the lettings fee ban is unlikely to materialise before next spring was perhaps to be expected. Ever since...
20 January 2018
From: Features

New analysis by credit and comparison service Totally Money has revealed the districts where the controversial Help To Buy initiative is...
15 January 2018
From: Breaking News

The business editor of right-wing political weekly The Spectator has made an attempt to defend the controversial £109m bonus paid to...
08 January 2018
From: Breaking News

The housing industry has set out a list of demands in advance of the government’s hotly anticipated Autumn Budget on Wednesday. Despite...
18 November 2017
From: Features

Savills has given a pessimistic outlook for the mainstream housing market for the next five years. It says average house prices across...
03 November 2017
From: Breaking News

The residential research associate director of Cushman & Wakefield says there is now evidence that the Help to Buy equity loan...
26 October 2017
From: Breaking News

With the Budget just over a month away, the steady stream of ‘leaks’ continues to grow as journalists and the industry...
21 October 2017
From: Features

And so concludes another party conference season. We’ve followed the great and the good (both terms are debatable) around Torbay, Bournemouth,...
07 October 2017
From: Features

The Conservative party, in a press statement released to clarify comments made by Theresa May, says the government’s proposed extra £2...
05 October 2017
From: Breaking News

Figures in the property industry have sharply criticised the announcement made at the Conservative party conference to pump an estimated £10...
02 October 2017
From: Breaking News

Online petitions appear to be the flavour of the week - the latest is calling for the government’s Help to Buy...
28 September 2017
From: Breaking News

An online platform has been launched with the aim of allowing first time buyers to seek crowdfunding to raise enough cash...
21 September 2017
From: Breaking News

It appears activity in the housing market in 2017 will be around 15% down on 2016. The number of housing transactions...
16 September 2017
From: Features

Even so close to the event, I don’t think anyone will be deeming 2017 as the ‘summer of love’. The summer of...
16 September 2017
From: Features

The government has poured cold water over industry speculation that Help To Buy could be phased out or significantly modified between...
09 August 2017
From: Breaking News

The government is thought to be reviewing Help To Buy which, it is claimed, could end with the scheme being scrapped...
07 August 2017
From: Breaking News

A housebuilder has changed the price listed on Rightmove to the full marketing price after an intervention by the Advertising Standards...
02 August 2017
From: Breaking News

There has been general support from the industry for the government’s apparent intention to ban new homes in England being sold...
26 July 2017
From: Breaking News

Government schemes like Help To Buy, supposedly assisting more people get on the ladder, have little impact on improving social mobility...
04 July 2017
From: Breaking News

New research suggests the Bank of Mum and Dad is now helping so-called ‘second steppers’ - existing owners moving up the...
26 June 2017
From: Breaking News

Figures released by the government suggest that over 285,000 people, including 240,000 first time buyers, have used one or more of...
23 June 2017
From: Breaking News

Theresa May’s call for a snap general election on June 8 took many by surprise. But estate agents have been broadly...
03 June 2017
From: Features

First time buyers who were supposed to be helped by the high-profile Help To Buy ISA have in fact found it...
24 May 2017
From: Breaking News

The Liberal Democrats have set a building target of 300,000 new homes a year, have pledged to scrap housing association Right...
18 May 2017
From: Breaking News

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has informally resolved a complaint made against Connells. The case focused on a Connells Rightmove listing which...
17 May 2017
From: Breaking News

Cash is becoming an increasingly large proportion of the funding used to buy homes according to a new analysis of transactions...
11 May 2017
From: Breaking News

Savills is warning that while low interest rates will probably keep house prices relatively static, transaction volumes are likely to remain...
11 April 2017
From: Breaking News

Now I’m not one to lose sleep over politicians, but it strikes me that Communities Secretary Sajid Javid and Housing Minister...
07 January 2017
From: Features

House prices will stall in 2017 and there won’t by any significant improvement in affordability for many hard-pressed buyers - but...
07 December 2016
From: Breaking News

Moneyfacts, the independent financial products monitoring service, says first time buyer have a lot to thank Help To Buy for -...
06 December 2016
From: Breaking News

In case you missed it yesterday, here’s a summary of everything relating to property that was in Chancellor Phillip Hammond’s Autumn...
24 November 2016
From: Breaking News

The huge consequences of the EU referendum, and the impending Brexit negotiations, have drawn into sharp light the consequences for a...
22 October 2016
From: Features

Speculation was rife over the weekend that the government would today announce major changes to housing policy - possibly shifting the...
03 October 2016
From: Breaking News

Fears raised over the UK housing market in the wake of the Brexit vote have so far proved to be ‘wide...
30 September 2016
From: Features

The government says its latest release of figures from its various Help to Buy schemes show that over 185,000 people have...
30 September 2016
From: Breaking News

With the number of new homes being built across the UK still significantly below the level needed to meet demand, housebuilders...
16 September 2016
From: Features

The credit crunch may have been the economic backdrop against which much of the housing market performance of the past 10...
06 September 2016
From: Breaking News

More criticism has come of the government’s multi-faceted Help To Buy initiative, this time from campaigning housing charity Shelter. The charity claims...
01 September 2016
From: Breaking News

An influential backbench Conservative MP is the latest to speak out, urging the government to resolve the growing argument over the...
24 August 2016
From: Breaking News

The number of 95 per cent loan to value mortgages available for first time buyers has dwindled 16 per cent in...
24 August 2016
From: Breaking News

The National Association of Estate Agents has waded into the row created by the revelation that the government’s Help To Buy...
23 August 2016
From: Breaking News

The Daily Telegraph appears to have exposed the government’s much-vaunted Buy To Let ISA scheme - billed as helping first time...
22 August 2016
From: Breaking News

Wales has confirmed that it is to scrap the former flagship Thatcherite policy of Right To Buy. Since 1980, 138,423 homes have been...
09 August 2016
From: Breaking News

A housing body says that, rather than presiding over a worsening housing crisis as many suggest, David Cameron has actually left...
02 August 2016
From: Breaking News

I’m indebted to one of the most enthusiastic estate agents I’ve had the pleasure of meeting for suggesting the subject of...
15 July 2016
From: Features

What a month it has been. By the time you read this, we'll have a new Prime Minister, a new Cabinet,...
15 July 2016
From: Features

As I sit and write this piece, even with the FTSE 100 back up and sterling having recovered some of its...
08 July 2016
From: Features

No fewer than 555,000 would-be first time purchasers have opened Help To Buy Individual Savings Accounts - HTB Isas - since...
01 July 2016
From: Breaking News

So what is it with young people failing to stand up for themselves and not making the most of their money...
20 May 2016
From: Features

Connells Survey and Valuation says the total number of valuations conducted in March showed a 21 per cent increase over the...
12 April 2016
From: Breaking News

Government figures claim almost 50,000 households in council and other forms of social housing have taken up their Right To Buy...
29 March 2016
From: Breaking News

Property has long been a safe investment. Before the downturn in 2008, sellers were able to gain a healthy capital return. Post-economic...
25 March 2016
From: Features

When it comes to Budgets and Property, you have to hope that the old adage that ‘things happen in threes’ turns...
12 March 2016
From: Features

As we know, the property market in London is notorious for sitting a long way outside the conventions of the wider UK...
27 February 2016
From: Features

A detailed analysis by Hometrack reveals that new-build transactions - running at roughly 10 per cent of all house sales for...
24 February 2016
From: Breaking News

The government claims 43 per cent of new homes built since the introduction of the Help to Buy equity loan scheme...
16 February 2016
From: Breaking News

In January readers of Estate Agent Today and Letting Agent Today were given the opportunity to give their views on proposed...
25 January 2016
From: Features

The director of two major agencies says George Osborne’s stamp duty surcharge and stock at an “historically low level” will force...
10 December 2015
From: Breaking News

Estate agency Keller Williams has set up a specialist team to help military personnel with mortgages and property investment. "The needs of...
09 December 2015
From: Breaking News

There’s been shock and anger from agents - especially those in London - at the surprise news of an additional three...
26 November 2015
From: Breaking News

- From April 2016 buy to let landlords and people buying second or holiday homes will have to pay an additional...
26 November 2015
From: Breaking News

George Osborne has announced a shock additional 3.0 per cent stamp duty on second homes and buy to let properties. Details are...
25 November 2015
From: Breaking News

It is anticipated that the government will reveal more details of how it proposes to simplify mortgage fees and make mortgage...
25 November 2015
From: Breaking News

Property journalists, and more than a few estate agents, are beginning their annual autumn ritual – forecasting what’s going to happen...
16 October 2015
From: Features

An estate agency analyst has queried whether the £2 billion spent on the equity loan Help To Buy scheme in England...
30 September 2015
From: Breaking News

Campaigning charity Shelter claims the government's flagship housing incentive, Help To Buy, has added £8,250 to the price of a home...
22 September 2015
From: Breaking News

So housing made itself top of the list of questions by the new Leader of the Opposition’s first PMQs on Wednesday...
18 September 2015
From: Features

Help to Buy’s equity loan and mortgage guarantee schemes have helped nearly 120,000 people buy a home, according to government figures. Since...
14 September 2015
From: Breaking News

The Chancellor, George Osborne, has announced a series of measures impacting on the property industry, including: Mortgage interest relief for buy-to-let homebuyers...
08 July 2015
From: Breaking News

The government says it will publish an action plan this week to explain how it is going to implement some of...
06 July 2015
From: Breaking News

The Financial Times says London Mayor and new Conservative MP Boris Johnson is lobbying the government in a bid to persuade...
02 July 2015
From: Breaking News

The majority of agents do not see the supply and demand of homes levelling out over the next five years, according...
05 June 2015
From: Breaking News

The true impact of the election on the housing market has been revealed as the latest government figures on house transactions...
22 May 2015
From: Breaking News

The new chair of trade body Homes for Scotland wants the Scottish Government to ‘evolve’ its Help to Buy shared equity...
19 May 2015
From: Breaking News

Margaret Thatcher may have given the country Right To Buy and David Cameron has created Help To Buy but when it...