Are we actually set up to support first-time buyers?

After a summer spent thinking it over, this time of year is often the point where first time buyers decide whether they're going to push on and be in their new home for Christmas, or hold off for...

Latest news

Wealthy borrowers favour liquidity as specialist lending grows

High-net-worth borrowers are increasingly using finance to preserve liquidity and manage their wider wealth rather than simply to secure capital, according to Enness Global. The...

MIMHC extends mental health survey after record industry response

Mortgage professionals have been given an extra week to contribute to the Mortgage Industry Mental Health Charter's 2026 500 Voices Survey. The Mortgage Industry Mental...

e4 Strategic signs Project 28 Charter to speed up property transactions

Proptech provider e4 Strategic has joined the Project 28 Charter, an industry initiative intended to reduce the time between a property sale being agreed...

Nomo joins Omni Mortgage Club lender panel

Omni Mortgage Club has added Sharia-compliant property finance provider Nomo to its lender panel. The Fintel-owned, whole-of-market mortgage proposition said the agreement would broaden the...

United Trust Bank creates expanded role for buy-to-let and bridging

United Trust Bank has promoted Gene Clohessy to director of buy-to-let and bridging, giving her responsibility for sales and underwriting across both divisions. Clohessy (pictured) joined the bank in July 2025 as director of bridging underwriting and has 20...

Landlords exploit softer market with lowball offers

More than half of buy-to-let investor offers were at least 10% below the original asking price in July as landlords used their chain-free position to negotiate harder, Hamptons has reported. Investors accounted for 14.1% of property purchases across Great...

Asking prices suffer biggest August fall since 2018

The average asking price of a newly listed home fell by 2% in August, the largest reduction recorded for the month since 2018, latest Rightmove data reveals. The £7,360 monthly decline took the national average to £364,999, leaving asking...

Instamo launches automated post-submission mortgage tool

Instamo has launched FastAdmin, a post-submission automation service designed to reduce the administrative work involved in progressing mortgage applications. The system connects lender platforms with broker customer relationship management systems and continues monitoring cases after they have been submitted. It...

PROFILE

Toni Smith on the human factor and the fourth emergency service

After nearly four decades in financial services, Sesame Network distribution director Toni Smith still believes technology should make advisers stronger, not replace them. When Toni...

INDUSTRY COMMENT

Leasehold reform has a September window – will Burnham use it?

At the time of writing, the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill still has no published First Reading date.  But is it imminent? Andy Burnham entered...

Advisers need an answer for evolving landlords

It’s a tough time to be a landlord. The succession of changes to tax and regulation made in recent years - with the Renters’...

AI doesn’t remove bias. It gives us the chance to manage it

One of the great promises of artificial intelligence has always been objectivity. Machines, unlike people, do not have bad days. They do not favour...

Q&As

BUY-TO-LET

Molo cuts buy-to-let mortgage rates by 12 basis points

Molo has reduced rates across its standard and specialist buy-to-let mortgage ranges for UK...

Knowledge Bank opens broker search data to lenders through KB PRO

Knowledge Bank has launched an intelligence service that allows mortgage lenders to analyse more...

Prime London sales falter as rental growth hits 18-month high

Prime London sales activity weakened in July while annual rental growth accelerated to its...

StrideUp cuts HMO and MUFB finance rates and raises broker fees

StrideUp has reduced rates across its houses in multiple occupation (HMO) and multi-unit freehold...

Regional divide reshapes landlord investment plans

Landlords are reassessing where they invest as regional differences in yields, arrears and void...

Accord cuts selected mortgage rates by up to 0.18%

Accord Mortgages will reduce selected residential and buy-to-let mortgage rates by up to 0.18%...

Paragon refreshes buy-to-let range with rates from 3.55%

Paragon Bank has refreshed its buy-to-let mortgage range, introducing rates from 3.55% and products...

FIRST-TIME BUYERS

RICS: Mortgage costs keep housing market subdued

The UK housing market remained subdued in July as buyer demand and agreed sales struggled to regain momentum, the latest Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) residential report reveals. New buyer enquiries recorded a net balance of -28%, unchanged from June but improved from the...

HSBC lowers residential and buy-to-let mortgage rates

HSBC UK will reduce rates across a range of residential and buy-to-let mortgages from...

Remortgage searches rise 7% in July

Residential remortgage searches increased by 7% during July as purchase and buy-to-let activity weakened,...

Affordability blocking housing recovery

Improving confidence is encouraging buyers back into the housing market but affordability remains the...

Mortgage rate reversal wipes out July cuts

Average mortgage rates increased during July, reversing the reductions recorded a month earlier, according...

OPINION

Commonhold reform: Devil in the detail

The government's language on leasehold reform remains forthright. Ministers speak of, “bringing the feudal leasehold system to an end,” of returning power to homeowners...

Managing cashflow and risk in today’s turbulent market

Over the past decade buy-to-let landlords have become accustomed to operating in a market...

Is there such thing as a ‘typical borrower’ anymore?

What is a typical borrower? A few decades ago, it would have been a...

Private credit has reached its next stage of maturity

Every lending market experiences moments that prompt uncomfortable questions. A high profile default, allegations of poor governance or a significant loss inevitably lead to soul searching. Credit committees revisit assumptions, investors reassess risk appetite and commentators question whether the market has become too complacent. These...

Your clients aren’t being stolen… they’re being handed over

Let's be honest about something the industry won't say out loud. Lenders going direct aren't the problem. Brokers are. Every year the same conversation happens....

DISTRIBUTION

Stonebridge overhauls protection sourcing platform

Stonebridge has redesigned the protection sourcing journey within its Revolution adviser platform to support...

GB Bank joins Mortgage Advice Bureau lender panel

Mortgage Advice Bureau has added GB Bank to its lender panel, giving its advisers...

Marsden passes £100m Guernsey lending milestone

Marsden Building Society has surpassed £100m in mortgage completions in Guernsey through its partnership...

TPFG financial services revenue rises to £13m

The Property Franchise Group (TPFG) increased financial services revenue by 10% to £13m during...

MortgageMatch launches AI-ready broker directory

MortgageMatch.org has launched a consumer-facing platform designed to make finding and comparing mortgage brokers clearer and more straightforward. The searchable website brings broker information together in one place, allowing consumers to explore firms according to their location, geographical coverage, services and areas of specialism. A growing...