Welcome to our weekly update giving you the key stories, breaking news and topical analysis from the past week up to today, 31 August 2018.
It’s been a shorter working week this week because of the bank holiday, but plenty has happened in the housing market. Mortgages are modernising with paperless options and new products for those with bad credit scores, while London is still losing large numbers of city dwellers looking for cheaper property elsewhere. We also look at whether the capital could face a house price crash because of Brexit. Read on for this week’s top seven stories you might have missed.
1. Going digital – RBS’s new paperless mortgage is quicker and easier
The property industry is slowly catching up with paperless technology, and a new mortgage from RBS could be the start of a big change if other providers follow suit. Click here to read the full story.
2. Furnished or unfurnished? Landlords need to cater to tenant demand
All buy-to-let landlords should know how important it is to meet the needs of their tenants, but there could be a discrepancy between what tenants want and what’s on offer. Click here to read the full story.
3. Should soaring land values be frozen to reform housing market?
The value of land has risen at more than double the rate of house prices over the last two decades, with landowners pocketing the profits, and a think tank wants things to change. Click here to read the full story.
4. London exodus continues as homebuyers move up north for better value
More Londoners than ever are quitting the capital in search of an affordable place to live, with migration to the north and Midlands trebling over the last decade. Click here to read the full story.
5. A new way to invest in property: the rise of equity release
Using equity release to access the cash tied up in your home is a popular way for over-55s to fund retirement, but new evidence suggests it is increasingly being used to buy more houses. Click here to read the full story.
6. Mortgage providers relax lending standards for the credit-impaired
The number of lenders who are willing to offer mortgages to people with poor credit ratings is on the rise, opening up the market for those who would otherwise struggle to borrow for a home. Click here to read the full story.
7. London property market crash: what are the predictions?
House prices in London have been faltering of late, and experts have now revealed their views on how a “disorderly” Brexit could further impact the capital’s property market. Click here to read the full story.
