According to reports banks are putting ‘the brakes’ on approval of new mortgages as new rules come into play at the end of the month.

I am not sure why this is necessary, since from my experience in the industry, mortgagees and lending institutions are, if anything, taking an inordinate amount of time to approve mortgages burdened by the weight of regulatory processes and, if anything, they are frustrating the number of sales done by the time delays. Continue reading →

In principal I think most sensible observers would agree that an extension to Council Tax Bands could be an acceptable alternative to a draconian Mansion Tax regime that must be avoided at all costs.

There is nothing wrong with a more expensive property paying a commensurately higher charge for local services (even though paradoxically they use less of them i.e. do not use State Schools or usually the NHS and are certainly not on welfare). Continue reading →