Mortgage News, Insights & Advice
All the latest UK mortgage news, insights and advice from the world of mortgage lending and Oportfolio

Using Bonuses For High-Value London Property Investment
London’s elite professionals often find themselves juggling high salaries, substantial bonuses, and an ambition to own prime real estate. With property prices in London reaching unparalleled heights, using your bonuses strategically can unlock opportunities to secure...

Are HSBC Mortgage Rates Going Down In 2025?
In a very welcome introductory message for the new year, HSBC has updated its Energy Efficient Homes Cashback Mortgage (EEHC) offerings, increased cashback availability and reduced mortgage rates across its range. HSBC mortgage rates, as well as every other lender's...

UK House Prices End 2024 On A High According To Nationwide
Happy New Year! As we step into 2025, the latest Nationwide House Price Index has given us as a mortgage broker, plenty to reflect on regarding the resilience of the UK housing market in 2024. According to the report from Nationwide, against the backdrop of rising...
Do I Need An Airbnb Mortgage?
Purchasing a property for the sole purpose of letting it out for short term holidays or short term business breaks has become increasingly popular in recent years, thanks primarily to the holiday let conglomerate Airbnb. So what do you need to do if you want to...
How Age Impacts Mortgages
When it comes to getting a mortgage, there are a few rules and regulations that you need to follow and different lenders have different criteria. Each lender's criteria helps safe guard themselves from potential risks when lending money and also safe guards...
New Build Homes On The Rise
Official government figures released this week show that the amount of new build homes being built in the UK has risen by 21%, indicating that there is no slow down in the demand for buying new properties....or, is this just wishful thinking from the...
Home Buyers Common Questions Answered By Professionals
In our blog from earlier this week, we answered some of the internet's most common questions about the mortgage process when buying a property. A lot of new home buyers have questions around the process outside of mortgages too. So we thought it would be useful...
Foreign Nationals With Foreign Income – Case Study
Key facts: Clients were both foreign nationals, originally from countries outside of the UK. One is an EEA national and the other was not. They moved to London a few years ago and had been renting for a while. Now that they had both established themselves in the UK...
House Prices Expected To Fall?
According to a statement from the Centre for Economic and Business Research, house prices are expected to fall in 2023, giving hope to potential buyers who are being priced out by inflated figures. But potential bad news for people looking to sell! The CEBR...
Common Personal Insurance Questions Answered
In our previous two blogs, we answered the internets most common questions about the mortgage and the home buying process. Another extremely important of getting yourself financially secure and organised, is to make sure that you have the right relevant personal...
What Is Mortgage Porting?
Looking to move home and in need of a mortgage? Already happy with your mortgage lender and deal and don’t want to go through the hassle of applying for a completely new mortgage? Ever heard of mortgage porting? Porting your mortgage is a good borrowing...
Will The Government Announce A Stamp Duty Cut?
According to several sources from Whitehall, Prime Minister Liz Truss's government are due to announce a stamp duty cut on property purchases in their Friday mini budget announcement. What Is Stamp Duty Tax? For anyone who doesn't know what stamp duty is, stamp...
Young People Spending More On Mortgages Per Month
Young People Are Paying A Lot More On Their Mortgages Comparison website Uswitch have released figures this week from a recent study, that show young people are shockingly paying a disproportionate amount more per month on their mortgages that older people. According...
Buyers Are Reducing Property Budgets
Recent market analysis by Savills estate and letting agents suggests that new buyers and home movers are significantly reducing their property budgets because of the rising cost of living, increasing interest rates, tougher mortgage affordability rules, and spiralling...
Down Valuation Almost Ruins Remortgage Plans – Case Study
Key facts: Clients were home owners of an impressive and valuable property in London. After several years of living in the property, they decided that they would like to carry out some much needed home improvement works. Without the liquid cash available to carry out...
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