Category: Costs & Savings
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Water UK backs £500m boost as homeowners await news on bills
Water UK has welcomed a decision by the Competition and Markets Authority to return more than £500 million in funding to five water companies. The money will supposedly help improve water pipes, treatment works and other key infrastructure that had faced spending limits. The change could mean better services for customers but may also lead…
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Kemi Badenoch unveils plan to scrap stamp duty
At the 2025 Conservative Party Conference, Kemi Badenoch announced that the next Conservative government would abolish stamp duty on primary residences. The tax, which currently generates around £8.6 billion a year for the Treasury, would remain for second homes, corporate buyers, and non-UK residents. Badenoch framed the move as a way to make homeownership more…
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Will digital IDs be good or bad for UK homebuyers?
The UK government is planning to introduce a digital ID scheme to simplify how people prove their identity. While it could make the process of buying a house quicker, experts warn there are risks around security and accessibility. Industry leaders are also exploring the idea of a “property passport” linked to digital IDs, which could…
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Can Project 28 cut property sales from months to weeks?
The UK’s property sector has unveiled an ambitious new pledge to slash home sales from months to just four weeks. Project 28, an industry-led charter, aims to reduce the average time between “sale agreed” and “exchange” from 109 days to 28. But while major players have signed on, questions remain about whether it can deliver…
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Is Britain’s cement crisis about to derail homebuilding plans?
Anyone planning to build a home today is facing a difficult mix of rising costs, longer lead times and uncertainty around key materials. Cement, the backbone of foundations, walls and floors, is now at the centre of this challenge. New figures from the Mineral Products Association (MPA) shows UK production has sunk to levels not…
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New tax could add £24,000 to the cost of a new home
The UK government is considering significant changes to landfill tax that could substantially increase costs for the construction sector. While officials argue the reforms will support environmental goals, industry leaders warn of potential negative impacts on housing affordability. Experts estimate the proposed changes could add tens of thousands of pounds to the cost of building…
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Mortgage Guarantee Scheme helps 56k get on the property ladder
The latest figures from the Mortgage Guarantee Scheme show it has helped 56,389 households buy homes with smaller deposits since April 2021. Most buyers were first-time homeowners, and the scheme supported purchases of affordable terraced and semi-detached properties. Lower-value homes in Scotland, the North West and the South East of England saw particularly high uptake.…
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Why are there so many empty homes in the UK?
A growing number of properties in the UK are sitting empty, a stark contradiction to the nation’s severe housing crisis. According to the latest government figures, Council Taxbase, which is used for tracking vacant properties, there are over 700,000 empty homes in England. Of those, 264,884 are classed as “long-term empty,” meaning they have been…
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Will Rachel Reeves abolish stamp duty?
Chancellor Rachel Reeves is considering a major shake-up of property taxes that could see stamp duty abolished for most home buyers. Instead, a new “proportional property tax” could be introduced, targeting people who are looking at buying a house worth more than £500,000. The plans, still under discussion, aim to raise more money from higher-value…