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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

19 Jan 2017 Author: Stephen Breen The credit crisis saw mortgage deals for those with a small deposit vanish – but confidence has slowly returned to the market and 95% mortgage deals are aplenty. However, first time buyers with less than 15% to put down may still find themselves struggling to obtain finance, thanks to […]

Jeremy Hughes, Chief Executive of the Alzheimer’s Society, has said that our failure to coordinate health and social care means we are spending “a lot of money not very well” to support people with dementia. The current care system is at breaking point with between 25 and 50% of hospital beds now filled by people […]

As the number of people liable to pay inheritance tax rises – the result of surge in house prices – the government continues to reuse to raise the inheritance tax (IHT) limit. If your estate is worth more than £325,000 your heirs will have to pay 40 per cent tax on the whole value of […]

13 Jul 2016 Author: Stephen Breen The legal issues When you buy a property, your solicitor may recommend an Environmental Search. Occasionally your mortgage lender may insist on a search. The results of the search will reveal whether there are risks of flooding, contamination or subsidence in the area. It will also reveal if there […]

In 2017, around 225,000 people will be diagnosed with dementia – now the leading cause of death in Britain. 60,000 will die of the disease – and it will be a contributing factor in the deaths of many more. This debilitating illness is still without a cure and experts are now saying we need to […]

Although the housing market has shown surprising resistance to the uncertainty of the Brexit vote, some homeowners are finding it difficult to sell their properties. The recent vote to trigger Article 50 when the Government still hasn’t presented a credible plan has perhaps fuelled uncertainty and left buyers a little hesitant to make any rash […]