Stamp Duty receipts rise as lower threshold pulls more buyers into tax net

Homebuyers paid £15.2bn in Stamp Duty Land Tax in 2025-26, up 9.2% on the previous tax year, as the nil-rate threshold reverted to £125,000. Analysis by Coventry Building Society of HMRC figures found buyers paid £1.3bn more in Stamp...

Latest news

Landbay turns to broker education as Renters’ Rights Act reforms approach

Landbay is set to host a broker-focused webinar examining the implications of the Renters’ Rights Act ahead of its implementation. The buy-to-let lender confirmed that...

Fleet cuts five-year buy-to-let fixes and widens 75% LTV options

Fleet Mortgages has cut pricing on selected five-year fixed buy-to-let products and expanded its 75% loan-to-value offering, while also adding new tracker options for...

HSBC UK cuts mortgage rates by up to 25bps across residential and buy-to-let range

HSBC UK has reduced mortgage rates across parts of its residential and buy-to-let range, with cuts of up to 25bps. The changes span first-time buyer,...

The Dudley begins broker portal roll-out as it overhauls intermediary systems

Dudley Building Society has begun a phased roll-out of a new intermediary portal to a select group of brokers as part of a wider...

GB Bank joins Knowledge Bank criteria platform

GB Bank has been added to Knowledge Bank’s criteria sourcing platform, giving brokers access to its latest specialist lending criteria through KB PRO. The move means intermediaries can search GB Bank’s lending appetite across buy-to-let and bridging finance as...

Norton Broker Services adds Scroll Finance to lending panel

Norton Broker Services has added Scroll Finance to its lender panel, giving brokers access to the specialist lender’s buy-to-let second charge proposition. The move broadens the packager and master broker’s panel as it looks to widen the range of...

Visionary Finance arranges £25.5m private bank loan on Holland Park home

Visionary Finance has completed a £25.5 million facility for an ultra-high-net-worth borrower, secured against a prime Holland Park residence valued at £42.5 million. The borrower, an Indian national based in the Middle East, was introduced to the broker by...

Fintel sells Gateway Surveying Services and APS in £1m non-core disposal

Fintel plc has disposed of Gateway Surveying Services and APS Legal & Associates to Kairos Professional Services Limited for aggregate cash consideration of up to £1m, in a move the AIM-listed group said would simplify its portfolio and...

PROFILE

Kevin Tunnicliffe on ending the race to the bottom

This was always going to be a tricky interview. I’ve known Kevin Tunnicliffe, chief executive officer of Sort Group, which includes Sort Refer, for...

INDUSTRY COMMENT

Stop tinkering: Why mortgage tech needs a proper overhaul

Let’s be honest. If you work in the UK mortgage market right now, you know we’re all running pretty fast just to stand still. Between...

This is a different mortgage market and borrowers are reacting to it

It is important to be clear about what has changed in the mortgage market over the last month or so, because the latest data-specific...

The rise of larger deposits

The first-time buyer profile is changing. Increasingly, buyers are entering the market with larger deposits than at any point in recent years as many...

Is life insurance too confusing to buy?

While there are peaks and troughs depending on where we look, the UK life insurance market is typically quite flat, including mortgage-related protection. Recent data...

Why the government’s housing ambitions won’t fix the affordability crisis

With the bidding open for the government’s £39bn Social and Affordable Homes Programme - the main pillar of its long-term housing strategy - homebuying...

Second charge, the first option

A quiet shift is underway in the UK mortgage market, and it is being driven by borrowers, not lenders. We are seeing more clients who...

Q&As

BUY-TO-LET

Skipton cuts rates and adds new fixed deals for existing borrowers

Skipton Building Society is cutting rates on parts of its residential mortgage range and...

Renters’ Rights Act to reshape buy-to-let risk models

The Renters’ Rights Act is set to trigger a fundamental shift in how lenders assess risk...

Market Harborough cuts fixed rates and adds pre-completion switch option

Market Harborough Building Society has cut fixed mortgage rates by up to 36bps and...

Ceta unveils rent guarantee products for landlords facing longer possession delays

Ceta has launched four wholesale rent guarantee products, arguing that longer possession timelines under...

Landlords move to regain possession before Renters’ Rights Act changes

Landlords stepped up possession activity in March as the 1 May implementation of the...

Limited company landlords expect yields to rise despite higher costs

Most residential limited company landlords expect rental yields, demand and property values to increase...

Darlington posts record lending as mortgage growth lifts assets above £1bn

Darlington Building Society reported record gross mortgage lending of £234m in 2025, as the...

Landbay cuts rates on Premier remortgage buy-to-let range

Landbay has reduced rates across selected products in its Premier remortgage range for landlords,...

MORTGAGE MINGLE PODCAST

NEWSLETTER SIGNUP

FIRST-TIME BUYERS

MAB research shows confidence among buyers is rising, but many still hesitate

More than half of prospective buyers say they are ready to purchase in 2026, yet many are still delaying because of affordability concerns and uncertainty over what they can borrow, according to new research from Mortgage Advice Bureau (MAB). The firm found that 52% of...

Atom points to growing near-prime hurdle for first-time buyers

First-time buyers with thin credit files or minor historic credit issues are becoming a...

Rates rise but mortgage market holds firm

The mortgage market is showing resilience despite a sharp rise in borrowing costs with...

Landlords shift to interest-only as rates climb above 5%

Buy-to-let landlords are rapidly changing borrowing strategies as mortgage rates climb with a growing...

HSBC cuts mortgage rates by up to 34bps across core ranges

HSBC UK has reduced mortgage rates across its product range, with cuts of up...

OPINION

Beyond the Robo-Adviser: why the future of mortgages is ‘Human Plus’

The fintech industry is obsessing over a binary choice: the traditional human broker or the fully automated 'robo-adviser'. But as we navigate the complexities...

Ceasefire boosts sentiment more than mortgage market

What goes up must come down, but for mortgage rates the drop will be...

A surge today, but what comes next for advisers and conveyancing?

March has provided a very clear example of how quickly this market can move...

Technology adapts so you don’t have to

20 years ago, many brokerages looked and operated in very similar ways. Typically small, local business, many firms focused solely on standard residential mortgage applications. Processes were straight forward and the range of product options available was far narrower. There was very little need –...

Rental barometer shows strength, but March changes the tone

Looking at our recently published Q1 2026 Rental Barometer data in isolation, there is clearly a strong and positive story to tell. Average rental...

DISTRIBUTION

Paradigm hires Nick Delawa as business development director for London and South east

Paradigm Mortgage Services has appointed Nick Delawa as business development director, with responsibility for...

Recognise Bank hire to lead intermediary sales and lending

Recognise Bank has appointed Luke Watson as director of intermediary sales and lending to...

Richard Goppy to rejoin PMS as director of acquisition and key accounts

PMS Mortgage Club has confirmed the appointment of Richard Goppy as director of acquisition...

FCA maps out open finance plans with mortgages and SME lending in focus

The Financial Conduct Authority has set out its latest vision for open finance, with...

HLPartnership adds Afin Bank to panel

HLPartnership has added Afin Bank to its lender panel, giving advisers across the network access to another option for borrowers with more complex income profiles or wider eligibility needs. The network said the addition would give its advisers access to residential lending of up to...