Unsettling news for Britain’s roughly six million caregivers, roughly one in every three individuals providing care and support for others is struggling financially as of late. In a survey conducted by the Princess Royal Trust for Caregivers nearly half of all correspondents reported earning of less than £10,000 a year, 60% of whom dedicate their life savings to taking care of those they are charged over. Even worse, roughly 10% have reported that they have been forced to take out debilitating high-interest loans in order to continue providing necessary care for individuals while 62% have borrowed money from friends or family to continue their necessary support.

While this may not seem to be particularly troubling to the housing market on its own when coupled with the fact that a growing number of pensioners maintain a level of debt on their home – particularly in households where older individuals must support younger generations to purchase a home of their own – these figures become especially troubling. Additional restrictions placed on obtaining funds from lending institutions in the form of various housing mortgages with the cooling property market and degenerating economic environment making even remortgages a difficult prospect and many first-time buyers being forced out of consideration add to the troubles faced by families in a large number of areas.

Currently pressure remains on the new coalition government to provide additional financial support for many of the suffering care givers to alleviate this burden however whether or not this is to be seen in the foreseeable future still remains uncertain. With an allowance currently set at £53.90 a week a raise to £100 to bring support into a more reasonable level would work greatly towards providing for many of their current needs, yet opponents feel that at the current time this may put too much financial strain on the government during its recovery period and as such may not be the best course of action at this particular moment. If a change is not made soon, however, roughly two million care givers may be forced into poorer economic conditions that would only serve to damage the country as a whole.

The Bank of Mum and Dad, one of the most supporting lending groups for many prospective home owners on the market today due to the high costs associated with many new first-time buyers entering into the market, has recently been reported to be calling in greater debt relief from their "customers". In fact, according to recent reports roughly 10% of all residents throughout the UK have reportedly lent or outright given their parents an average of £8,250 last year – a significant increase from 2008 figures of a more affordable and flexible £6,500.

This increase in costs is seen by many as being expected in many cases, coming as the result of an entire generation needing to turn to their parents to cover various costs associated with modern living outside of the housing market as well such as education costs, general living expenses when faced with hard times and even unexpected unemployment coming their way (such as what faced many individuals in recent years due to the widespread economic recession across the globe). This has left many parents in a financial deficit that they must now call in funds from their children to help repay.

The majority of funds received by parents are typically not going to most other expenses in their lives, however, according to recent surveys on financial spending trends. In fact the majority of funds tend to be shifted away from additional expenditures and more towards paying off existing debt, as fewer and fewer households later on in life wish to deal with the additional burden a re-mortgage may have to offer even with the continued low mortgage rates set out by banks and instead simply prefer to eliminate their existing debts through other means.

As the housing market continues to require significantly higher costs associated with entering into it than typically seen in previous years these figures are expected to continue to rise, and without some sort of correction many economists are concerned about what the future may hold in terms of financial support for the current generation when their time of need comes.

New regulations being pushed for in the Community Right to Build Proposals could lead to greater flexibility and, in turn, greater development potential for many communities throughout the UK. Designed to grant greater autonomy to many developing areas throughout the country, these proposals could result in community development being able to continue even in the absence of a specific planning application being filed for review by a central committee.

For many developers around the country their hopes are that this proposal, should it go through, will grant significantly greater development potential for many areas and allow for a higher level of autonomy in many respects. This, combined with the continued low interest rates offered on many home loans – including both fixed-rate and tracker mortgages – will work to stimulate many local area developments and provide support for both existing home owners and first-time buyers alike.

This move is seen as potentially allowing villages and other housing areas to grow and evolve more along the lines of previous development trends, allowing for housing areas to evolve on par with those seen in previous years in order to allow local developments to grow and shift according to local demand.

Many opponents do feel that this may lead to excess development in some areas that may damage the overall image of some villages, yet at the same time concerns over long-term residential sustainability are strong and outweighing the costs these may pose at this time. This is particularly true in recent days where economists are expressing great concern over actual growth patterns and showing some concern over a potential recession in terms of real estate occurring in the coming months as the shift moves more away from home purchasing and towards rental living conditions instead.

It seems very much as though there can rarely have been a more difficult time for market conditions for tenants. At a time when mortgages are incredibly difficult to get hold of, they cannot begin to consider buying a property as a first-time buyer or even with the assistance of a re-mortgage through a family or friend and, at the same time, two very important factors have pushed the lettings market markedly in monetary favour of landlords.

The first factor is that, currently, demand is outstripping supply across the country. According to the most recent survey from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors published back in May, the trend for demand outstripping supply is being further exacerbated by potential buyers being either incapable of raising a deposit or to secure a mortgage-or both.

"A large stock of properties to let rapidly disappeared as demand for rented houses dramatically increased," according to Philip Greenaway from Chesterton Humberts in Somerset.

According to Stuart Allen from Broadley and Coulson lettings agency in Durham, "buoyant market with large numbers of tenants who’d otherwise be first time buyers."

The inevitable result if this is that rents will certainly rise. Landlord yields, which are the proportion of the purchase cost of a rental property taken back every year in rent, have risen from 2% back in 2008 to between 4.5% and 7% currently. Exceptions to this are such places as Haringey and Havering in London, which have 10% yields, and Greater Manchester which stands on 9%, according to recent figures.

Another dash to the hopes of tenants is the lack of protection they are afforded. The previous Labout government was due to introduce mandatory regulation of property and lettings management agents, however the current coalition government ditched the proposal a short time after assuming office.

As a result, Christopher Hamer, who is the Property Ombudsman, belives that tenants have been left "exposed to the rogue element in the lettings sector, particularly in relation to client money protection". Despite the fact that his office’s Code of Practise, which offers anywhere up to £25,000 in compensation for tenants being ripped off by rogue lettings agents, has been accepted voluntarily by 7,500 agents, he says that this still results in many more being outside the scheme and means that, consumers have no way to obtain compensation or redress when things go awry. The past 18 months have seen lettings-related complaints to the Property Ombudsman’s Office climb far more quickly in number than figures for people either selling or buying a house.

There is no question for visitors that York is one of the UK’s most beautiful cities, packed with culture, scenery and history. York is also, according to a new survey conducted looking at the most affordable city in the UK in which to rent your home – excellent news for those looking to take advantage of the excellent mortgage rates in the area to secure a buy-to-let mortgage, especially with excellent fixed-rate mortgages still on the market in most areas.

The survey examined the average rent as well as the average earnings for all of the UK’s 55 biggest cities in order to determine which city in the UK is the most affordable. In this survey, York finished in first place, with the average room rental coming in at £270 per month. This figure represents only 13% of York’s average monthly wage, hence its value and affordability. The figure for rental in York of is also roughly £78 cheaper than the UK average.

York’s excellent value for rentals is due, in part to the fact that the city has been fairly heavily hit as a result of the recession. Some of the regions biggest employers, such as Network Rail and Norwich Union have been pushed in job cuts, and this has resulting in many York residents needing to seek new ways to supplement their income.

As a result of this, there has been an increase in the number of house owners seeking to rent spare rooms in York. Also, despite the fact that the economic situation has improved in the city, rents have not risen similarly. Due to this, York presents an excellent proposition for those looking to rent, with rents being cheaper than in any other UK city, with the average income being only just a little below the national average.

At the other end of the rental spectrum, the survey show s that, perhaps unsurprisingly, the UK’s highest rental rates can be seen in London. Despite this, however, the generally higher income levels in the city means that it does not take the top spot on the list of least affordable cities. The least affordable city in which to rent is Southampton, where, if you wish to rent, you will be charged over one-quarter of your monthly income in rent-a huge 27%.

What about the other end of the spectrum – the least affordable city in which to rent.

Nobody will be surprised that the highest rents in the UK are charged in London. However, the higher income levels within the capital prevent it from taking top spot in the least affordable city.

Instead, it’s the one city where I have personal experience of the rental market that is officially the least affordable to rent – Southampton. The actual rental payment in Southampton is only a little less than you would need to pay in London, which is amazing due to the almost £700 disparity in monthly incomes between the two cities.

The Southampton situation is fuelled, in part to the high demand for rental properties from the two large universities in the city as well as the fact that it is a relatively small city.

There have also been predictions that the situation is likely to worsen, with rents set to rise by a huge 10% across the country during the upcoming two years. The reasons are manifold: Rising unemployment, and first-time buyers’ struggling to obtain mortgages are greatly exacerbating the situation, along with the generally poor supply of rental properties.

There are suggestions that any cuts in government support for housing associations in England may well risk pushing the associations deeper into debt as well as forcing them to sell property assets. This view is particularly espoused by Moody’s in their post-Budget overview of the social housing sector.

The agency, despite these fears, has not gone the whole way towards downgrading the investment grade ratings of the ten housing associations it is responsible for as it feels that the current regulatory framework will still be strong enough – even after changes are implemented – to support the sector’s credit strength in regards to both standard and bad credit dealings. The planned changes that were unveiled in the recent Budget caused some alarm among associations and have led to fears among some that, as a result of the proposed cuts in housing benefits, more than 200,000 people could find themselves homeless. The representative body of the housing associations, The National Housing Federation, also fears that a large number of tenants will find it difficult to pay their rents and will subsequently fall into arrears.

As a result of these fears, the Treasury has proposed to reduce the level of proposed cuts by roughly £400 million. It also appears that the Treasury may well have stepped in to prevent the dismantling of the Tenants Services Authority which is the
regulatory body for the associations and may negatively impact the buy-to-let market. The proposed dismantling was as a result of the government’s announced intention to cut back on the number of quangos. It is understood that the Chancellor, George Osbourne, has had doubts about the move as dismantling the body might put at risk the £50bn of mainly bank borrowing held by the associations. It is widely expected that, over the course of the next five years, associations may well be in the market to raise a further £20bn for the purposes of social housing whilst also refinancing £5bn of existing debts.

It is also expected that M&G Investments will step into new territory by raising £1bn in order to invest it in index-linked social housing debt. This initiative comes on the back of discussions with associations and pension funds regarding the plus points of matching funding with index-linked rents paid by tenants.

UK property owners are currently being cautioned as to the potential dangers of subsidence as talk of a summer drought looms large over the country. Dry, arid conditions are also liable to affect property sellers and buyers and they also are advised to ensure that their insurance policies are fully up to date in time for the commencement of their purchase procedures.

There appears to be industry-wide evidence mounting that incidents of subsidence are on the rise, and this may be in part due to climatic change. Halifax Home Insurance reported that they received around 3,000 insurance claims for subsidence in 2009, a figure that is up 22% on the figure for 2008, and the company paid out more than $2 million for subsidence claims.

With respect to subsidence, repair costs can often spill into hundreds of thousands of pounds, with homes needing to be pulled down in the most extreme cases. According to Halifax, roughly 70% of all subsidence damage is the result of shrinking clay soil, and, due to the effects of moisture being taken from the soil by hedges and trees standing close to the property affected, the ground then shifts which results in the cracking of the foundations which causes very serious structural damage.

‘Trees and shrubs close to buildings are not generally a problem during the winter and spring as there is plenty of rainfall to satisfy the vegetation and keep soils stable. As drier warmer weather arrives, clay soil can become unstable as it dries out and shrinks. The larger and closer to the property trees are, and the older and shallower the foundations of the home, the greater the recipe for damage,’ commented Neil Curling, senior claims manager.

Perhaps the most visibly obvious sign of subsidence damage is the appearance of cracks in the walls of the property. Despite the fact that the majority of cracks are not especially significant, subsidence-relating cracking is often expensive to put right as the root causes must be addressed in order to solve the problem. The cracks from subsidence also tend to get wider from one end to the other.

The Halifax recommends that, for the sake of security and peace of mind-as well as financial reasons, prospective buyers should not cut corners with regards to searches and surveys.

UK residential property lettings agents are now being persuaded to encourage landlords to think about renting properties to pet-owning tenants on the back of the great success of a new scheme. The newly-unveiled Dogs Trust Lets With Pets campaign, which has been put together to persuade rental agents to accept pet-owning tenants, and the scheme has certainly proved to be a resounding success-and the National Approved Letting Scheme (NALS) licensed companies have warming embraced the scheme and its aims.

‘Since the launch of the campaign the interest and support from agents and landlords looking to make properties available to pet owners has been really strong. This campaign has raised awareness of the challenge pet owners face and has demonstrated there is a very real opportunity for landlords and letting agents to tap into, if they take the right precautions. We are, after all, a nation of animal lovers, with more than 43% of the population owning pets,’ explained Caroline Pickering, who is the chairman of NALS.

It can certainly be very difficult to find accommodation that will also allow your pets free range of the property explains Paul Martin, who presents Flog It, which is a popular show on BBC television. ‘In the past I have experienced problems trying to find suitable rental accommodation for me and my pets and most landlords were very negative. This not only severely limited the market, but was difficult emotionally as my pets are very much part of the family,’ Paul explained.

Paul went on to say that, in general, pet owners are perfectly happy to pay slightly higher rents in order to get a suitable rental property, as well as arranging for the property to be professionally cleaned when the tenancy is over. Paul also concluded that landlords should be actively encouraged to rent to pet owners, as they make excellent, responsible long-term tenants.

The scheme, which was the brain child of the canine welfare charity, landlords can access something called a Pet Information Form, which gives details of tenants pets as well as their veterinary practise. Advice booklets can also be downloaded from the charity’s website.

How often do you actually take to make a decision about what to do with your life? According to a recent survey conducted by major mortgage lender ING Britons take a considerable amount of time pondering over some new purchases or changes to take place in their lives – and considerably less time than may be expected in others. When deciding what satellite TV package to purchase, for instance, the survey showed that on average consumers will spend approximately 217 minutes making up their mind. This is a fair bit shy of the 284 minutes they spend in deciding upon which new television to purchase, though is still more than the 164 minutes used in deciding what coffee table would look good in their home. When deciding whether to purchase a home, however, consumers are the most thrifty with their time, using a mere 21 minutes to decide whether or not to buy a house.

This may come as a shock to many people, yet at the same time given recent market trends it can’t be too unexpected. Fueled by low mortgage rates, various incentives targeted at supporting first-time buyers and some of the lowest fixed-rate mortgages available on the market today many people feel that it is indeed a buyer’s market and as such need to make up their minds quickly and decisively or lose out on a potentially good deal. This was somewhat encouraged by some agents as well, with roughly 26% of all respondents in the survey saying that the agent in charge of the sale made a point of how other parties are interested in the home and roughly 21% of all respondents reporting that they felt pressured into making a decision.

The longest average time in deciding on which home to purchase was actually found in Yorkshire and Humber, though their overall average was not much off from the national average at 23.54 minutes. London buyers came in second in terms of caution at 23.25 minutes, though the most impulsive buyers can be found in East Anglia with an overall average of only 18.87 minutes needed before deciding to seal the deal.

Recent figures gathered throughout the country indicate and overall drop in the number of repossessions occurring in the first quarter of the year of 11% over the previous quarter, bringing the total number of repossessions having taken place to a total of roughly 10,500. This is coupled with a drop of roughly 2% over the previous quarter as well of the number of borrowers holding mortgages going into arrears on their payments, with a total of roughly 40,500 home owners throughout the UK joining the heavily indebted social niche.

These figures are quite optimistic and positive compared to predictions that were made earlier in the year of up to 53,000 homes expected to be repossessed this year, with actual reports now painting all earlier expected figures in a pessimistic light. The primary reason for this significant drop in actual repossessions and new borrowers falling into arrears is seen by most experts to be the result of the continued low mortgage rates and interest rates in general on loans offered by most institutions and continued to be supported by the central England banks.

Other factors that have contributed to the recent drop in mortgage arrears and repossessions lie in many lending institutions becoming more lenient in recent months in regards to many borrowers in order to allow more flexible repayment terms, especially for those that have had to rely upon bad credit mortgages in the past in order to secure their homes. This has worked to help lessen the overall financial strain on the general populous and increase the overall financial wellbeing of many areas while allowing others to also utilize lower-rate re-mortgages to pay off other debts that they may not have been able to eliminate otherwise.