Lloyds Banking Group has announced an injection of £2bn to help prospective homeowners secure mortgage funding. An improved loan-to-income multiple will allow eligible first-time buyers to borrow up to 5.5 times their annual household income.

Homeowners are surrounded by messages about the urgency of taking green measures in their properties, and insulation should be a high priority. However, mortgage lenders are increasingly taking a zero-tolerance approach to spray foam insulation and are declining applications.

Reports, originating in The Independent newspaper, that the UK Government is considering a 1% deposit mortgage scheme as part of the March 2024 Budget may feel like a solution for those struggling to get their foot on the housing ladder. But the housing sector is sounding a note of caution about the potential impact on prices if more stock is not made available.

Virgin Money, TSB and Skipton Building Society will now consider applications for properties in buildings that are yet to be remediated, or where leaseholders are protected from remediation costs, however, buildings that are excluded from such protections do not benefit.

The Welsh Government has launched a £40 million equity loan scheme designed to help people struggling to make mortgage payments, with the aim of avoiding homelessness.

An amendment to the Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook for Conveyancers now states that details of remediation work under the Building Safety Act 2022 must be requested for transactions involving leasehold flats in England. Estate agents dealing with this type of property where remediation work is current or planned or has previously taken place must ensure the particulars are recorded and shared with stakeholders.

In updated guidance issued on 26 June 2023, HM Treasury has confirmed that the commitments from lenders to support mortgage holders will not extend to buy-to-let borrowers.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt MP has announced a set of measures designed to provide support to residential mortgage customers as interest rates continue to climb. The plans do not include any specific measures for buy-to-let investors.

Skipton Building Society has launched a five-year fixed deal at a 5.49% rate with a maximum term of 35 years for tenants who can borrow up to 4.49 times their income up to a maximum of £600,000 to enable them to get onto the property ladder without a deposit.

From Monday 9 January 2023, lenders will be able to consider mortgage applications in England on domestic properties within residential blocks of five or more storeys or 11 metres or taller.

The UK Government has today, 19 April, opened a Mortgage Guarantee Scheme to help first-time buyers and current owners with 5 per cent deposits buy a house up to £600,000.

The Chancellor has listened to Propertymark’s calls to avoid a cliff-edge deadline to the Stamp Duty Land Tax holiday in the UK Government’s budget, today, 3 March 2021. The nil rate band up to £500,000 will end on 30 June, instead of March. A transitional nil rate band up to £250,000 will be in place until September and then return to £125,000 from October.