Opinions & blogs

The buy-to-let market is only going one way

Markets tend to move in a certain direction because of numerous forces and I...

Don’t fall into the luxury property trap

With all of the talk of the housing shortage in the UK, it seems...

No bread for ‘jam tomorrow’?

I’m not sure I’d go so far as to say that the Chancellor’s Spring...

95% LTV: looking behind the figures

There are a whole raft of ways in which we can judge the performance...

Not what it seems

A friend recently asked me if I could have a word with his brother-in-law,...

Problems with free legals have not gone away

In this business, issues which at one point seemed incredibly important often get resolved...

The ‘professionalisation’ of buy-to-let is dominant

Sporting contests are often described as a ‘game of two halves’ which tends to...

It really is harder for today’s first-time buyers

Whenever there is a debate about the difficulties younger people have today in purchasing...

Closing the window on cyber threats

It’s no secret that small businesses are often over-stretched with their workload. That’s the...

Don’t be apathetic about protection

The ‘protection gap’ is often mentioned but, as time passes, there seems little progress...

Saving and spending

While we are working, we earn money; we spend some of that money, and...

Softly softly approach to secured loans

2017 was a strong year for second charge loans and while we wait for...

Tackling the construction skills shortage is only the first step

It’s no secret that there is a skills shortage in the construction sector. It...

Ex-pat buy-to-let mortgages an opportunity for brokers 

Ex-pat mortgages were back in the news recently when challenger bank, Aldermore, launched a...

COMMENT

Mortgage maturity: A golden opportunity for advisers

Around 1.8 million fixed-rate mortgage deals are due to come to an end in 2026, adding to the 1.6 million mortgages that already matured...

Rates are moving and regulation is evolving

Many lenders are having to increase their rates, and that trend looks set to continue over the coming week. For clients whose current deal...

Building tomorrow’s mortgage market: AI built on trust, governance and confidence

The government's Financial Services AI Adoption Plan, led by Harriet Rees, group chief information officer at Starling Bank, and Dr Rohit Dhawan, group director...

The protection prompt: what AI still needs to get right

The Mills Review has prompted plenty of discussion across the mortgage industry. While much of the focus has been on the finding that a...

Why second charges are helping Right to Buy borrowers do more with their home

For many people, Right to Buy is still one of the most accessible ways to become a homeowner and over the last five years,...

Latest news

Skipton loses former Connells chief’s discrimination case

Skipton Group Holdings and Connells have lost an employment tribunal case brought by former...

IMLA supports flexible mortgage rules but says housing supply remains key

Mortgage lenders have backed proposals to give first-time buyers and other underserved borrowers greater...

Mortgage borrowing jumps to £7.7bn

Net mortgage borrowing more than doubled to £7.7bn in June, up from £3.3bn in...

AMI says mortgage rule reforms must keep advice at their core

Proposals to give lenders greater flexibility must be supported by mortgage advice if they...

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