Tax & Other Financial

The average homeowner in England and Wales who sold up last year made around GBP100,000 more than the amount they had originally paid for their property, according to analysis. Estate agent Hamptons, which carried out the research, looked at householders selling in...

Paul Johnson, a director of the Institute of Fiscal Studies and visiting economics professor at University College London, has advocated for the abolition of stamp duty for private landlords in the UK. In an op-ed, Johnson highlights the additional tax burden on...

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) in the UK has confirmed the capital limits applicable to several state benefits. This comes ahead of new powers aimed at monitoring claimants' bank accounts. Under the new measures, Britain's top 15 banks will be requested to...

The UK government has announced an increase in Local Housing Allowance (LHA), benefiting more than one million renters with an average cash boost of £800 a year.  The LHA boost, effective from April, is expected to make 1.6 million private renters on either Universal...

Research by easyMoney reveals that UK house prices are expected to climb on an annual basis, and that there has only been four times in 50 years that prices would have fallen.  The analysis is based on historic UK house price data from the Land Registry spanning the...

The ONS House Price Index for November 2023 indicates that average house prices in the UK decreased by 2.1% in the 12 months to November, compared to a drop of 1.3% in the 12 months to October 2023. The average house price in November 2023 stood at £285,000, down...

In their update for the quarter to 31 December 2023, PRS REIT plc, an investment trust that invests in high-quality, new build, family homes in the private rented sector, reported: Rental demand for the Company's homes remains very high, reflected in very strong...

Mortgages for Business is rebranding. The buy-to-let intermediary, which was founded in 1990, will now be known as Mortgage Finance Brokers. The firm says its name change reflects the fact that commercial mortgages now make up a small proportion of the business. As...

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has released employment and wage data for the year to September-November. Current wage growth has slowed, and if it continues at the current pace, wages will be up 2.8% in a year.  Wages in September-November were up 6.6% in a...