Opinions & blogs

Passing the affordability exam

As teachers and students of various ages have spent August nervously opening exam results...

Investors are changing their approach – and lenders should too

The buy-to-let market never stands still, but the pace of change in recent years...

Leasehold fees, specialists and the need to shop around

Leasehold properties account for around 20% of all dwellings in the UK, and while...

Tuning into later life lending conversations

There are certain conversations in our profession that can genuinely change the course of...

Economic uncertainty weighing on business borrowers

Taken as a whole, Atom bank’s SME Pulse for Q2 shows the current robust...

Right of Light risks: a looming shadow over construction projects

Gone are the days when a Right of Light infringement could be swiftly dealt...

Could a move to ‘enhanced advice’ also mean mandatory protection conversations?

The FCA’s recent Mortgage Market Discussion Paper (DP25/2) has got the industry talking about...

Take off the rose-tinted glasses and stop chasing a rate cut

Every six weeks the financial world raises its eyebrows at the prospect of a...

URGENT! AI Is coming for you. Or maybe not…

I’ll try to make this as straight to the point as I can. The...

Mind the gap: Can mortgage advice change the game for protection?

Many industry insiders still talk about the UK protection gap and how vast it...

Navigating HMO and MUFB complexity with confidence

Historically, larger Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) and Multi-Unit Freehold Blocks (MUFBs) have often...

Why we shouldn’t wait for the FCA to act on later life lending

It might feel odd to be talking about a new year, when we’re barely...

A walk on the supply side

The UK government’s stated goal to build 1.5 million homes during the current parliamentary...

Don’t build in fear – quality must come before quotas

“This is my message to housebuilders: get on with it. If you promise homes,...

COMMENT

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 notably more gradual than the sharp increase triggered by the...

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 when lenders feel the need to take action, with widespread...

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...

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...

Latest news

Help to Buy benefits skewed towards higher earners, IFS finds

Government-backed Help to Buy schemes delivered modest improvements in housing affordability, with the gains...

Buying still £500 cheaper than renting despite rates above 5%

Mortgage affordability continues to outperform renting despite rates pushing back above 5%, as lenders...

Property auctions post strong March as sales and funds raised climb

Property auction activity gathered pace in March, with both sales volumes and money raised...

Santander cuts higher loan-to-value rates for first-time buyers and movers

Santander is cutting rates across a wide range of higher loan-to-value mortgage products from...

PROFILES