7 Sep 2016 Author: Stephen Breen What are legal implications of a contract race? If a number of buyers are interested in purchasing a property, a seller may decide – rather than accepting one particular offer – that they will exchange contracts with the first buyer that is ready to do so. This is known […]
Your Rights If Buyer Pulls Out of Buying Your Property
9 Sep 2016 Author: Stephen Breen Help: The buyer of our house pulled out! When a buyer pulls out of purchasing a property, this can cause significant expense for the seller. They will have to remarket the property and may not achieve the same price they sold it for the first time round. It can […]
Pensions or Property
12 Sep 2016 Author: Stephen Breen Which offers the best investment? There is a divide between those who believe pensions are the best investment for retirement, and those who believe property is where your money should go. The Bank of England’s Chief Economist Andy Haldane recently said that property was the best investment – a […]
How To Pass The Mortgage Stress Test
23 Sep 2016 Author: Stephen Breen Today’s economic climate means lenders are more cautious about accepting mortgage applications. Here, we set out what you need to do before you submit your application, to give you the best possible chance of success. 1. Avoid best buys unless you’re squeaky clean Best buy deals are intended for […]
Small Businesses Suffering with Unfair Contracts
25 Sep 2016 Author: Stephen Breen According to research by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), more than half of all small businesses are suffering as a result of unfair terms in contracts they hold with suppliers. 52% of the small businesses surveyed have admitted signing up to contracts with inflexible and unclear terms, costing […]
Delayed Flights, Lost Luggage and Holiday Illness
25 Sep 2016 Author: Stephen Breen Holidays are a time we all look forward to – rest, relaxation and a little over indulgence provide us with much-needed time out from our busy lives. When things go wrong, it can be extremely frustrating – particularly given that we are trying to relax and unwind, not increase […]
Inheritance Disputes Increase with House Prices
3 Oct 2016 Author: Stephen Breen Many people think of their Will as the final say on what happens to their estate when they die – but an increasing number of inheritance disputes show this is not always the case. More children than ever before are using the courts to challenge the contents of their […]
Buy To Let Investments
26 Oct 2016 Author: Stephen Breen If you’re thinking about branching out into the buy-to-let investment market, there are a number of considerations. Whether buy-to-let is right for you as an investment will depend on your individual circumstances. Here, we look at some of the steps you need to take and the factors you might […]
Playing the Generation Money Game
27 Oct 2016 Author: Stephen Breen Earlier this month the Housing Minister Gavin Barwell asked pensioners to skip a generation and leave both their home and savings to their grandchildren to give them a helping hand on the housing ladder. Mr Barwell said his own mother will be leaving her estate and home worth £750,000 […]
Going Freelance
4 Nov 2016 Author: Stephen Breen Almost five million people in the UK are now self-employed, and the number is increasing every day. The reason for this growth is partly because of delivery and courier companies who classify their part time workers as contractors or self-employed. However, this practice is being examined. Last week, a […]
Reduce Your Inheritance Tax Bill by Gifting
10 Nov 2016 Author: Stephen Breen Grandparents Judith and Michael Steel recently decided they wanted to save £100 a month for their two grandchildren – Bruno, aged 14, and Luc, aged 10. Their gifts were intended to reduce the value of their estate during their lifetime so that less inheritance tax would be paid on […]
How To Style Your Rental Property for the Best Returns
As a buy to let investor, you may know by now that creating the right look for your property can help attract the right kind of tenants and maximise the rental income you are able to secure. If you’re new to the buy to let market, it makes sense to invest in your interiors which […]
Shortage of Houses Keeping Prices Rising
12 Dec 2016 Author: Stephen Breen Prior to the Referendum, plenty of credible experts forecast that a Brexit vote would send house prices plummeting. The Treasury estimated a drop of 10-20%, while research house Bernstein said that a decision to leave the EU would “kill Britain’s property prices”, slashing up to 30% off house values. […]
House Prices: 2017 – 2019
25 Nov 2016 Author: Stephen Breen It’s difficult to accurately predict what the property market might do over the coming years – particularly with so many global events leaving us with a high degree of uncertainty. The on-going saga of Brexit, the US presidential election and the forthcoming Dutch, German and French elections due to […]
What Next for the Buy-to-Let Market
The buy-to-let market has experienced a string of blows in recent times that have squeezed landlords’ profits and made the investment less attractive to some. Since April, would-be Landlords have had to find an additional 3% stamp duty for their investment purchases, a surcharge applied to all purchases of ‘second homes’. On a £250,000 buy-to-let […]
The Bank of Mum and Dad: New Ways to Lend
A variety of new products are getting first time buyers a way onto the housing ladder – with a little help from the bank of Mum and Dad. Many of the products allow parents or grandparents to help their child or grandchild without having to permanently hand over any money. This is good news for […]
2016: A Good Year For Florists
31 Dec 2016 Author: Carol Bragg Book-ended with the deaths of David Bowie and George Michael 2016 has proved a good year for florists and funeral directors if not for music lovers. The question is, why have so many high profile personalities died this year? Perhaps it is merely that with the rise of television […]
Challenges to Wills: Who Inherits>
A growing number of people are choosing to dispute Wills made by their loved ones, according to recent figures. In 2015, 116 cases were heard by the High Court – 8 times more than the 15 cases heard in 2005. In each case, family members used the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependents) Act 1975 […]
Actress Describes Impact of Dementia On Family
9 Jan 2017 Author: Carol Bragg Speaking to The Times, the actress Rebecca Hall describes the impact of her father’s dementia on the family. Actress Rebecca Hall has spoken openly about her father’s illness and how it has affected her family. Hall who lives in New York with her husband and two cats is the […]
Commercial Property Tempts Buy-to-Let Investors
18 Jan 2017 Author: Stephen Breen Tough new tax rules and changes to affordability criteria have driven residential buy-to-let landlords to look for alternative investments – in commercial property. An increasing number of buy-to-let investors are making commercial investments in the hope for a higher return and improved stability. Auction house Allsop reports a three-fold […]