Economy

North West surges ahead in off-plan sales as London slips

Mortgage brokers are being urged to reassess their regional strategies as new figures reveal...

Bank of England cuts rates to 4.25% in knife-edge MPC vote

The Bank of England has reduced the Bank Rate by 25 basis points to...

How might Trump’s tariffs impact on mortgages in the UK?

With Trump’s tariff wars already sending financial markets yoyoing up and down and the...

Trade tariffs and instability deepen economic pessimism, says Family Building Society

The UK economy faces a turbulent six months, with trade tariffs, political instability and...

Chancellor to meet City leaders for crisis talks on US tariffs

The chancellor, Rachel Reeves, will hold urgent talks with leading City executives this week...

Spring Statement 2025: Industry reaction as Reeves pledges to hit 2% inflation target by 2027 as growth forecast is halved

Chancellor Rachel Reeves has reaffirmed the government's commitment to bringing inflation down to 2%...

Industry reaction as inflation drop brings hope for borrowers

Borrowers got a surprise boost as inflation fell more than expected last month, dropping...

Why predicting 2025 interest rates feels like a fool’s errand

In my first (and for some reason clearly not my last) article last month,...

Inflation expectations rise slightly as BoE releases latest survey

Public expectations for inflation and interest rates have edged higher, according to the Bank...

Mortgage & rental spending rises as consumer confidence holds steady

Mortgage and rental spending increased 2.0% year-on-year in January, up from 1.8% in December,...

ANALYSIS: Prospects of interest rate cut rise as UK inflation declines in December

UK inflation unexpectedly declined in December, increasing the likelihood of an interest rate cut...

Pessimism over economy and personal finances on the rise

A new survey conducted by the Family Building Society has found that homeowners and...

Uncertainty looms over UK housing market in 2025 amid budget and tax changes

The UK housing market faces a challenging start to 2025, as tax changes, geopolitical...

Top economist: Deter saving and encourage borrowing to grow the economy

UK banks have a whopping £300 billion more in savings that they do outstanding...

COMMENT

We need to wait to get a clearer picture

It's been a week where the political and economic backdrop has moved almost as fast as rates themselves, and it's worth taking stock of...

Leasehold valuation reform: the consultation is asking only half the question

The Government's consultation on leasehold enfranchisement valuation rates is important because it will help determine what leaseholders pay to extend leases or buy freeholds,...

What commonhold will mean for mortgage lenders and brokers

Commonhold is often presented as the straightforward alternative to leasehold. It removes the freeholder, gives flat owners greater control and avoids some familiar problems...

Why you need to know what sits behind the average review score

There’s a funny thing about review scores. The better they are, the less likely we are to question them. If a company is sitting at...

The new Chancellor wants to remove barriers to growth; he should start with housing

There was probably a degree of unintended irony in the Treasury choosing to call the Chancellor, John Healey’s, first major market ‘intervention’ his ‘Growth...

Latest news

FCA joins industry partners to tackle protection insurance gap

The Financial Conduct Authority is working with industry, government and consumer groups in an...

Family Building Society appoints Laura Hamp as chief financial officer

Family Building Society has appointed Laura Hamp as chief financial officer and a member...

Buy-to-let market reaches £311.6bn as sector marks 30 years

The UK buy-to-let market has grown to almost two million outstanding mortgages worth £311.6bn,...

Conveyancing Association names Nick Chadbourne as new chair

The Conveyancing Association has appointed former LMS chief executive Nick Chadbourne as its new...

PROFILES