Customers can no longer use legal representation of their own choice when getting a mortgage through HSBC
Homebuyers who take a mortgage from HSBC will be forced to use one of a panel of 43 firms chosen by the bank to do their legal work, or face paying more for their conveyancing, after a change in the lender's rules.
Previously, customers could choose their own legal representation and the firm would act for HSBC too. However, following warnings over mortgage fraud from the National Fraud Authority, which puts the cost to the...
Q My parents have recently downsized and have money in the bank which is far beyond what they need, so they have said they would like to give some of it to me and my sister – it would be in the region of £50,000 each.
I understand that if neither of them survive beyond seven years then tapering inheritance tax (IHT) will apply, but what I am not sure of is whether I will be liable for income tax on what amounts to unearned income? My personal tax allowance is used up within my earnings....
While there are still significant opportunities for real estate investment in Brazil, it is important to exercise caution before entering the market.
This is the opinion of Ruban Selvanayagam, who wrote in Global Property Guide that there are signs some areas of the Brazilian property sector are not faring as well as others.
He highlighted the performance of certain developers in the nation, pointing out that the rapid growth in the industry has priced many local buyers out of the market.
Mr Selvanayagam remained optimistic about the future of Brazilian...
The value of real estate in South Africa is likely to fall by three per cent in real terms over the course of 2012, it has been predicted.
John Loos, household and property sector strategist at First National Bank (FNB), made the assertion after the FNB House Price Index revealed a "flattening out" of the residential market during 2011.
He explained the three per cent decline is based on consumer price inflation averaging at five per cent over the coming 12 months.
Mr Loos added forecasts of lower global economic growth than previously...
British buyers may find investing in Spanish real estate is an increasingly attractive prospect as the year progresses, it has been claimed.
Mark Stucklin, head of Spanish Property Insight, explained downward price movement and the relative strength of the pound against the euro have combined to make the market more appealing to Brits.
"Now you have prices in coastal areas that are not difficult to find with a 50 per cent or more decline. The British pound is up above 1.20 [against the euro] and it looks like it is just going to head up all year," he...
