Avoiding collapse: managing your property chain in 2022

You’ve found your ideal property, you’re just about ready to exchange contracts, and then you get the call: your buyer has pulled out, leaving your own transaction in jeopardy. Unfortunately, many property transactions are interlinked in this way, with the decision of one buyer having a knock-on effect on the whole chain, with the worst …

Tackling pension scams head on

With pension scam losses totalling millions each year, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has reaffirmed its commitment to tackling scams in order to ensure the long-term health of the pensions market. In a speech to delegates at the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association, the FCA’s Executive Director of Markets Sarah Pritchard said steps have been …

Lights, camera, action!

Jackie Chan’s Stunt Team may be blacklisted by all insurance companies, but for most people life insurance is an easier task to tick off the to do list, no excuses. With one in three people more likely to buy protection insurance because of experiences during the pandemic1, the devastating impact of COVID has clearly led …

Investor income boosted by ‘special dividends’

UK dividends climbed to £34.9bn in Q3 2021, an 89% year-on-year rise, according to the latest UK Dividend Monitor1. Sizeable one-off special dividends were partially responsible for the increase, a trend expected to be evident in Q4 too; however, the underlying total in Q3, excluding specials, leapt up 52.6% to £27.7bn. In context, this large …

Consider all the variables

From many people’s perspectives, the Autumn Budget may have left a feeling that nothing much had changed in the world of personal financial planning, as there were no major changes announced to Income Tax, Capital Gains Tax, Inheritance Tax or pensions. However, the key consideration is how outside factors such as higher inflation could affect …

Home Finance – In the news

BoMaD boom  Half of all first-time buyer transactions were supported by the Bank of Mum & Dad (BoMaD) in 2021, according to analysis1. BoMaD contributions of £9.8bn helped 169,000 first-time buyers onto the housing ladder. Surging BoMaD contributions could become the norm, analysts suggest, after Help to Buy is withdrawn completely from March 2023 onwards.  Time to negotiate?  Six in ten …

Residential Property Review – January 2022

Strong end to record-breaking year – but uncertainty ahead As Big Ben’s bongs rang out, a record-breaking year for the residential housing market gave way to an uncertain New Year. Completed transactions to November totalled 1.36 million, which means the number of homes sold in 2021 will reach levels not seen since before the global …

Property Market Review – January 2022

Upbeat tone in new year forecasts 2022 could be a year of recovery for the commercial property market, two leading forecasts have suggested, with Colliers’ ‘Forecasts for 2022’ predicting investment volumes will reach £65bn and CBRE’s ‘UK Real Estate Outlook’ also foreseeing strong growth despite lingering risks. According to CBRE, the office market is predicted …

Money – In the news

What’s on your playlist this year? Over the years, several studies have proven that investors can enter emotional relationships with the stocks in which they invest. Research has reinforced the concept that equity prices are not only driven by analysis of a company’s prospects but also by external factors which can directly impact investor mood. …

Wealth – In the news

Scam victims suffer a £9.3bn hit to wellbeing Scams unfortunately continue to be rife. The financial impacts can be devastating, but a new study has sought to quantify the cost to scam victims’ wellbeing. By using a model that allows researchers to value changes in wellbeing in monetary terms, they have calculated the impact of …