Property articles
The ins and outs of rent protection
Moneywise, July 2020
Any landlord who has ever watched TV series Nightmare Tenants, Slum Landlords or Can’t Pay We’ll Take it Away! is probably aware there is a risk someone will move into their property and not pay the rent.
Should buy-to-let landlords switch to holiday letting?
Lovemoney.com, July 2020
Thousands of landlords have switched from long-term to holiday letting, but will they be better off financially?
Planning permission: when do you need to get consent from your council?
Lovemoney.com, February 2020
We reveal when you’ll need planning permission and how you can avoid (unintentionally) breaking the rules when extending or upgrading your property.
Buy-to-let: this type of property offers landlords the highest rental yield
Loveproperty.com, February 2020
Looking to buy a property to rent out but can’t decide what to invest in? New research has revealed the type of buy-to-let residence that’s most likely to give you the best return.
House swaps: how do these work and what do you need to know?
Lovemoney.com, September 2019
Rather than looking to sell and buy on the open market, one option is to find someone to swap houses with you.
Renovate or relocate: should I move or improve my home?
Lovemoney.com, April 2019
Many homeowners needing more space face a dilemma over whether they’d be better off moving or improving their existing home.
How to protect yourself from being ‘gazumped’
The Sunday Telegraph, April 2019
There are few conversations more upsetting for buyers or sellers than those where an estate agent breaks it to them that the other party has pulled out of a sale.
Help to Buy rated: boost for homebuyers or house builders?
Lovemoney.com, March 2019
The recent bumper profits of housebuilders have reignited debate about who really benefits from Help to Buy. We run the rule over the scheme to work out whether the scheme has been a success or failure.
The rise of the long-distance landlord
Moneywise, February 2018
Ever since buy-to-let mortgages were introduced just over 25 years ago, the idea of buying a property to let out has been a popular investment choice for many people looking for a way to supplement their income and grow their wealth.
The Negotiator, February 2018
Given the barrage of negative legislative, tax and finance changes to hit landlords over the past couple of years, it’s little surprise that many buy-to-let investors are either selling up or choosing not to expand their portfolio.
Time to Seek a Property in Malta?
A Place in The Sun, January 2018
It might not be grabbing headlines or attracting the volumes of buyers that Spain or France does, but the small island of Malta has been quietly prospering in its southern Mediterranean locale south of Sicily.
Safety in numbers – is it worth joining a franchise?
The Negotiator, December 2017
This year has been challenging for the residential property business, with the sales market stalled in many areas, government policy impacting landlords and a letting fee ban looming large.
Balancing the business – how the employment market is changing in agency
The Negotiator, October 2017
Times are tough for many estate agents. In most parts of the country, London in particular, the market is either flat or falling, depending on which market index you place the most faith in.
Does outsourcing offer lower costs when times are hard?
The Negotiator, April 2017
When it comes to predicting what’s in store for the housing market, it’s anyone’s guess. From the wild variations between house price indices, market monitors and expert opinions, the only thing we can truly be certain about is that we’re living in uncertain times.
Has print marketing turned its last page?
The Negotiator, January 2017
The property portals’ dominance means fewer and fewer house hunters find their home within a newspaper advert. But print marketing is far from dead.
Have estate agency boards had their day?
The Negotiator, November 2016
For decades estate agency boards have been a conversation starter. In the pre-portal days, they got neighbours gossiping about whose house was for sale and how much it might be on for.
Why holiday homes are the new buy to let
Moneywise, July 2016
Last year saw some nasty, unexpected surprises for the country’s estimated two million landlords. In July, the government announced plans to curb mortgage interest relief for landlords and to scrap the wear and tear allowance, and then in November it announced a 3% stamp duty surcharge for anyone buying a second property.
Forward thinking pays dividends
The Negotiator, June 2016
Recent HMRC figures showed that the rush to beat the deadline for the April stamp duty rise pushed sales in March up a whopping 77 per cent on the same month the previous year; there has been rather a large number of investment properties hitting the rental market over the past two months.
How to hire a tradesperson you can trust
Moneywise, May 2016
I started to have doubts about the man I’d hired to fit my kitchen at the end of the first day. I saw that he’d failed to cut down the end panels to fit the overhead cabinets, which had resulted in a bizarre-looking array of mismatched parts.
Is this the worst place to live? Not any more
The Times, May 2016
When Rough Guides publishing company announced its top ten cities to visit this year, many people were surprised to see Hull at No 8 on a list that featured Vancouver, Amsterdam and Reykjavik.
The Enduring Appeal of Australia
A Place in The Sun, April 2016
Some countries fall in and out of favour with Brits moving abroad, but there’s one that has an enduring appeal: Australia.
Buy-to-let is taxed more in Britain than Germany, France or US
The Telegraph, November 2015
When George Osborne announced that he was cutting the amount of mortgage interest relief landlords could claim, he stated that the aim was to level the playing field between landlords and first-time buyers.
Brits could take heed from Aussie buy-to-let tax concerns,
Accountancy Age, September 2015
When George Osborne delivered his emergency Budget in July, there were some nasty surprises for the country’s estimated two million landlords.
Head east for the land of smiles
A Place in The Sun, May 2012
Thailand is often called the land of smiles. The slogan traditionally refers to the friendliness of the locals, but foreigners too have found themselves with plenty to grin about after setting up a base in the country.
Capital Magazine, February 2012
Creative careers do not often come with a pay packet that allows for a spacious pad in Central London, especially not in the early stages. For many, their chosen career path is more likely to start with an unpaid internship than a £40,000 signing bonus and they face a constant struggle between the need to be in London to forge a career and the reality that it’s just too damn expensive to live here.
So relieved we didn’t buy last year
The Guardian, April 5 2008
Like many young couples, my husband and I have spent the past few years saving madly for our first house – and watching prices escalate ever further out of reach. But now we are counting our blessings that our offer we made last year on a one-bed, ex-council flat fell through.