Moving into a new property at a new location can bring a whirlwind of emotions, including stress, excitement, and a slight apprehension, but it’s essential to create a positive impression on your new neighbours.  

Your neighbours play a vital part in keeping you and your property safe, so it's crucial to create a good, solid relationship.  

Start with a simple introduction  

When relocating into a new home, you should approach your new neighbours at the first chance and introduce yourself. A great way to confidently do this is by approaching them and beginning your relationship with a kind, simple smile and introduction, creating a solid foundation.  

Having this first interaction creates an important first impression and can help you identify what your new neighbours are like, potentially preventing future disputes.  

Keep your surrounding property tidy  

Whether you live in an apartment, a terraced, semi-detached, or detached property, you may have shared-cared spaces you look after with your neighbours. This could be a shared drive, fence, or pathway, so it’s important that you communicate clearly and create a rotation of care for the shared space to avoid disputes.  

It is vital that you help maintain these spaces and create a clean environment in your community. By having an untidy entrance or drive to your home, it can imprint a negative impression on your neighbours and potentially make their property look untidy. So, by simply sweeping around your property to remove any loose leaves or debris, you can make a positive impression on your neighbours.  

Property garden maintenance  

Maintaining your property's surroundings also includes keeping your garden well-groomed to produce a beautiful appearance. You can simply care for your garden by ensuring your grass doesn't overgrow with a weekly cut and potentially planting some bulbs, which will allow effortless flowers to appear every year. Don't become the property that everyone avoids; instead, impress your neighbours with a well-cared-for garden.  

Neighbouring hedges and fences  

When it comes to first impressions with your neighbour, disputes can easily be encouraged if you are sharing a fence or hedge. This is extremely common, so before making any changes to any hedges or fences, it is key to discuss your options with your neighbour and ensure you receive the green light. Your neighbours will appreciate the discussion, demonstrating clear communication from your end and an excellent first impression.  

Home improvements  

When moving into a new property, sometimes you want to make slight home improvements, which can potentially cause disruption to your new neighbours. Keeping your neighbours informed and providing them with notice of any completed work is crucial.
Being a good neighbour means being considerate of others and being aware of the little things. For example, outdoor flood lighting can shine into your neighbouring homes, disturbing their privacy, or an outdoor shed could disturb their garden's sunlight. Being aware of the little things can create a good first impression on your neighbours.  

Be a considerate neighbour  

When moving to a new home, it’s vital to be a good, kind neighbour and considerate of your surroundings. This can be as simple as not being disruptive with noise pollution, taking your rubbish bins out at the correct times, parking in the correct place; there are so many unwritten rules of being a good neighbour and creating a good first impression.  

Clear communication is a key rule to maintaining a positive relationship with your neighbours and keeping you and your community safe. Exchanging numbers with your neighbour allows you to communicate clearly if you feel something suspicious is occurring. The more people you know in your area, the safer you and your property will be.  

If you're considering upgrading a potential property through a home renovation, it can be an exciting process, but it can also present challenges. Instead of buying a move-in-ready property, you have the option of renovating a character-filled, fixer-upper. We have compiled 10 steps to follow to guarantee success throughout a home renovation.

Step one: Find a property and make a renovation plan

With our 10 steps to successful renovations, you can easily lay out a plan and begin your renovation journey. But to begin your renovation adventure, you need to find the right property. Study potential properties and uncover their hidden value.

Make sure to have a survey completed. The most detailed survey you can receive for a property is a level 3 survey, which is the most thorough analysis of the entire property’s building structure and condition. The overall report provides extensive details, including recommendations, estimated costs, and a timeline for any necessary work. This can help you produce a solid plan and give you an idea of where to start.

Step two: Understand your legalities

When you decide to complete renovations on a property, you need to understand the legalities. This will include ensuring you have planning permission in place (if needed). Even though plenty of home alterations don’t need planning permission, it’s always beneficial to check before diving straight in. You can apply for planning permission before you purchase a property.

Once you exchange contracts and have secured your property, it will be your responsibility to have the right insurance in place. Home insurance during renovations can come at a higher expense, but it is worth every penny as it provides you with peace of mind throughout the entire process.

Although a house warranty is not a requirement when renovating your property, it protects you from any flaws in the potential design, materials, or overall build quality, and will also cover any problems that occur for 10 years as a result of these factors.

Step three: Calculate your costs

Correct cost alignment is crucial for delivering a successful renovation project. You're looking to get the best value for money. Being vigilant about potential hidden costs is crucial to staying within the right budget. Always overbudget by 10% to provide yourself with flexibility, and you can utilise any remaining funds for enhancing your home's interior design or landscaping your ideal garden.

Step four: Understand EPC and ways you could improve it

If you’re renovating your home, consider the future and its resale value. Energy Performance Certificates (EPC) are now more important than ever in terms of increasing value; the future may create difficulties for homes without a good EPC score, so the quicker you take this into account, the better.

You can enhance your EPC rating by installing insulation in your home and surrounding pipes, replacing light bulbs with energy-efficient ones, upgrading your boiler and heating system, installing solar panels, a smart meter, and installing double or triple-glazed windows.

Step five: Discover a trustworthy contractor

This is a crucial step because this individual will bring your ideas to life. Become your own project manager and oversee the entire project, and if you’re a seasoned pro, get stuck in and knock a few walls down. Shop arounFd, gather ideas from different contractors, and take into account positive references and reviews.

Step six: Organise the removal of materials

A renovation project always leads to plenty of waste, especially if the demolition of walls is part of the plan. By organising a skip hire for the property, you can create less hassle for everyone involved, and the skip hire company will be able to dispose of the materials. You could potentially sell certain elements of the property to generate additional revenue.

Step seven: Protect the property’s original features

The main attraction when you buy a fixer-upper is the original character features. These can easily be rediscovered and highlighted throughout the home renovation, adding a timeless charm to the property. By utilising these original features, you have a chance to save some money on new materials. Particular attention should be paid to certain features such as:

While renovating, remain careful around these areas to avoid potential damage to the original features.

Step eight: Update your plumbing and electrics

Even though rewiring and plumbing are expensive renovations, they're definitely worth it. This allows you to add certain light features or bathroom looks that suit your lifestyle. By completing this, you could also add characteristics that cut down your energy bill and increase your EPC rating, improving the property’s end value.

Step nine: Turn structural problems into upgrades

While the property is stripped back, this gives you the perfect opportunity to fix or improve any structural issues in the home. This allows you to match the home to modern-day living, potentially creating an open-plan living space or inserting large bi-fold doors leading to the garden.

Take a look at the floor plan, external and internal features, and identify the potential characteristics it could offer. Is there conversion potential for the loft, basement, or garage?  Identifying these key potentials can present a substantial increase in your property’s value.

Step ten: Create a snagging list

As you finalise the property by adding all your interior and décor, you finally see the light at the end of the tunnel.

What is a snagging list?

A snagging list typically indicates that the home renovation is complete. This is an inspection completed at the end of building work to identify any minor defects and meet the standards you expect, potentially achieving perfection.

Examine your completed project and pinpoint any minor issues you wish to address or monitor to allow issues to be flagged up in a timely manner. The contractor can assist in resolving these issues, ensuring a flawless completion of the project.

The resolution trap

New Year property resolutions follow predictable patterns. "I'll list in spring when the market's better." "I'll wait for interest rates to drop." "I'll get round to those repairs eventually." Then March arrives, nothing's changed, and the planned spring sale happens in rushed panic mode with half-finished preparation because you've spent three months waiting instead of acting.

Here's what separates sellers who achieve strong 2026 sales from those still waiting in December: resolutions focused on controllable actions, not hoped-for market conditions.

Price for the market that exists

Most sellers resolve to "get the right price" while meaning "achieve the valuation I want regardless of buyer capacity." That's not strategy - that's hoping reality adjusts to match your expectations. Properties sitting unsold for months aren't victims of poor markets. They're victims of pricing that ignores what buyers can afford to borrow today.

Price based on comparable evidence from recent actual sales, not aspirational valuations from agents competing for your instruction. If three similar properties sold for £340k in the past three months, your £375k listing isn't ambitious - it's unrealistic. Price correctly from day one or spend months reducing incrementally while buyers assume something's wrong with your property.

Fix what's broken

That leaking tap you've ignored for eighteen months? Buyers notice. The cracked window pane you've stopped seeing? Buyers photograph it during viewings as negotiation ammunition. The garden that's become overgrown storage? Buyers mentally deduct thousands for clearance costs.

Complete essential repairs before listing - not “eventually.” Professional buyers assess properties professionally. They calculate the cost of every visible defect and deduct accordingly from offers. Spending £500 fixing genuine issues before listing protects against £2,000 in offer reductions. This isn’t cosmetic perfectionism - it’s basic sale economics.

Present property like you're competing

Professional photography isn't vanity when 95% of buyers start their search online. Decluttered rooms help buyers imagine their own belongings. Clean windows, fresh paint, and maintained gardens aren’t about perfection - they’re the minimum standard for serious selling.

Your competition isn’t the average property in your area - it’s the best-presented one. Buyers will remember which home felt appealing and which felt like work.

Set actual dates

“I'll sell when the market improves” isn’t a timeline - it’s procrastination. Perfect conditions never arrive. Set specific dates: property prepared by February 15th, listed by March 1st. If you can’t commit to dates, you’re not planning a sale - you’re planning to think about selling indefinitely.

Choose an agent based on evidence

Select agents based on verifiable results: recent local sales, time from listing to completion, and achieved prices versus asking prices. If one agent values your home significantly higher than all others, they're not identifying hidden value - they're overpricing to win your instruction, knowing reductions will follow later.

Sellers who succeed in 2026

The sellers who achieve strong results won’t be the ones waiting for “better conditions.” They’ll be the ones who prepared properly, priced realistically, presented professionally, and acted decisively.

Our team provides strategic guidance and realistic market positioning - get expert advice today

The survey assumption that costs thousands

You've found the perfect property. Offer accepted. Mortgage approved. Then your surveyor’s report arrives listing essential repairs the seller never mentioned. Suddenly your dream purchase becomes a negotiation nightmare, and you’re wondering whether choosing the basic survey to “save money” was the most expensive decision of your entire purchase.

Here’s what separates confident buyers from those discovering costly problems after exchange: choosing the right survey, not the cheapest one.

The three survey types nobody explains properly

Condition reports: The cheapest option because they are the most limited. Purely visual. No testing. No deeper investigation. Suitable only for newer properties with minimal risk. For anything built before 2000 or showing wear, they are a false economy.

Homebuyer reports: The standard option for conventional properties without obvious defects. Provides valuation and highlights significant issues. Suitable for most typical homes built from standard materials.

Building surveys: The most comprehensive inspection. Every accessible area examined in detail. Essential for older homes, unusual construction, visible defects, or planned renovations. Offers repair estimates and full diagnostic reporting.

The false economy nobody calculates

Saving £200–£300 on a survey feels smart-until that survey misses thousands of pounds worth of structural or safety issues. The cost difference between surveys is tiny compared to the financial risk of undiscovered defects. Buyers rarely succeed in claiming compensation unless surveyors were clearly negligent. What you don’t pay upfront often costs the most later.

What surveys actually reveal

Structural movement, damp penetration, roofing deterioration, electrical faults, drainage problems, timber decay, early signs of subsidence-these aren’t cosmetic issues. They affect property value, mortgageability, and safety. Finding them before exchange gives you choices. Finding them after? They become your financial responsibility instantly.

The negotiation power surveys provide

Survey findings aren’t just information-they’re leverage. Major rewiring, roof repairs, or damp remediation are negotiation grounds. Before exchange, they can reduce the asking price or become the seller’s responsibility. After exchange, you carry the full cost while servicing a mortgage based on the property’s pre-issue valuation.

The questions that protect you

Ask your surveyor: based on the property’s age, condition, and construction, which survey level is genuinely appropriate? Not which is cheapest- which is adequate.

Request clear explanations: when reports say “further investigation recommended,” ask what that means specifically, what the likely costs are, and how urgent the issues may be.

Our team helps buyers understand survey implications and protect their interests - get expert advice today

The dust is settling on the 2025 Autumn Budget, and property market experts are now assessing what the announced measures mean for house prices, buyer behaviour, and rental demand in the coming year. Whether you're a landlord, tenant, or prospective buyer, understanding these trends will help you make smarter decisions. 

Clarity brings market stability 

The most significant development is the confirmation that there will be no annual tax on properties above £500,000. This brings clarity to owners of roughly 210,000 homes currently on the market above this threshold. With certainty established, buyer interest is expected to strengthen heading into 2026, particularly across London and southern England. 

The existing stamp duty system remains intact, providing continuity for the market. Market analysts expect this clarity to support renewed activity after a period of waiting. Properties priced appropriately for current conditions will continue to transact, and buyers with financing in place can move forward with confidence. 

What landlords need to consider 

From April 2027, property income tax rates will adjust by 2 percentage points across all bands, basic rate moving to 22%, higher rate to 42%, and additional rate to 47%. This follows last year's stamp duty adjustment on additional homes (from 3% to 5%), alongside the Renters' Rights Act and energy efficiency regulations forming part of the shifting landlord landscape. 

Significantly, rents have risen 25% over the last five years, which has supported landlord income during this period of change. This rental growth has provided returns that help landlords navigate the new regulatory and taxation environment. 

Landlords can focus on properties with strong rental demand fundamentals, good employment prospects, transport links, and practical layouts. The April 2027 implementation date provides time to review portfolio performance and consider strategic adjustments where beneficial. 

The targeted mansion tax 

From 2028, a high-value council tax surcharge will apply to properties worth over £2m, an estimated 0.5% of UK homes, with 85% in London and the South East. The annual charge of £2,500 for properties between £2m-£5m, rising to £7,500 above £5m, is more modest than some predictions suggested. 

For a majority of the market, 99.5% of homes, this measure will have no impact. The targeted nature means typical buyers, sellers, and homeowners can proceed with their plans unchanged. 

The rental market perspective 

For tenants, the 25% rent growth over five years reflects strong underlying demand in the rental sector. As buyer confidence returns following budget clarity, the balance between renting and purchasing becomes clearer for those weighing their options. 

With the existing stamp duty system maintained and no new barriers to homeownership introduced, the path to purchase remains consistent with pre-budget conditions. This allows for informed decision-making based on personal circumstances and financial readiness. 

The year ahead 

The post-budget outlook centres on targeted adjustments rather than dramatic change. The confirmation about the £500,000 threshold removes uncertainty for 210,000 homes currently on the market. The existing stamp duty system provides continuity for most market participants. Targeted adjustments affect specific segments, 0.5% of homes above £2m and landlords planning for April 2027 changes. 

This creates a more predictable environment for planning. Buyers gain certainty about purchase costs. Sellers understand the landscape for marketing their properties. Landlords have a clear timeline for adjusting to new income tax rates. Homeowners below £2m see no changes to their position. 

The market rewards those who understand these specifics and act on clear information. With speculation about sweeping property tax changes now resolved, participants can make decisions based on actual measures rather than anticipated scenarios. 

Contact us for guidance based on current conditions and forecasts 

The 2025 Autumn Budget marks an important moment for the property market as we close out 2025. With targeted changes to taxation, maintained stability for most homeowners, and evolving market dynamics, understanding what's happened and what's coming will help everyone make smarter property decisions in the year ahead.

The budget changes reshaping property

The most significant news is the no annual tax on properties above £500,000, bringing clarity to roughly 210,000 homes currently on the market above this threshold. The existing stamp duty system remains completely intact for all buyers.

However, targeted measures affect specific segments. From 2028, a high-value council tax surcharge will apply to properties worth over £2 million, affecting an estimated 0.5% of UK homes. This surcharge will impact 85% of properties in London and the South East. The annual charge will be £2,500 for properties valued between £2 million and £5 million, rising to £7,500 for properties worth more than £5 million.

For landlords, property income tax rates adjust by 2 percentage points from April 2027. Basic rate moves to 22%, higher rate to 42%, and additional rate to 47%. This follows last year's stamp duty adjustment on additional homes (from 3% to 5%).

These changes represent differentiated impacts across the market. For the vast majority, 99.5% of homeowners and all buyers, the budget maintains existing structures. For high-value property owners and landlords, the measures create planning considerations for the years ahead.

What landlords can expect in 2026

Landlords have a clear timeline for adjusting to new income tax rates from April 2027. Combined with ongoing regulatory developments including the Renters' Rights Act and energy efficiency requirements, this creates an evolving operational environment.

Significantly, rental demand fundamentals remain robust. Rents have risen 25% over the last five years, supporting landlord income during this period of change. This rental growth provides returns that help navigate the shifting taxation landscape.

Landlords can focus on properties with strong tenant demand, manageable costs, and reliable yields. The April 2027 implementation date provides time to review portfolio performance, calculate returns incorporating new tax rates, and determine optimal strategies for individual circumstances.

Renter and buyer perspectives

For renters, the 25% rent growth over five years reflects strong underlying demand in the sector. The budget's impact on rental supply will depend on how individual landlords respond to the taxation adjustments, creating varying outcomes across different markets.

Buyers gain clarity now that no £500,000 annual tax will be introduced, and the existing stamp duty system remains unchanged. This removes months of uncertainty that had characterised market hesitancy. With the threat of sweeping property tax changes lifted, buyer interest is expected to strengthen heading into 2026.

First-time buyers continue to benefit from existing thresholds, and those purchasing additional properties work within the established framework. The absence of new barriers to homeownership means the path to purchase remains consistent with pre-budget conditions.

Market outlook for 2026

The removal of uncertainty around the £500,000 threshold creates conditions for renewed activity. Market analysts expect buyer interest to strengthen, particularly across London and southern England where significant numbers of homes fall above this level. After several months of hesitation whilst participants waited for budget clarity, that waiting period now ends.

Properties priced appropriately for current conditions will continue transacting. The existing stamp duty system provides continuity, whilst the targeted nature of changes, affecting only 0.5% of homes with the mansion tax from 2028 and landlords from April 2027, means most market participants can proceed with their plans unchanged.

The fundamentals supporting property investment remain sound. Strong rental demand, as evidenced by 25% rent growth over five years, continues. The clarified taxation landscape allows for informed planning rather than speculation about potential changes.

Positioning for success

Whether you're a landlord reviewing your portfolio, an investor seeking opportunities, a renter considering your options, or a buyer planning your purchase, 2026 offers clearer conditions for decision-making than the uncertainty that preceded the budget.

Landlords have a defined timeline to April 2027 for adapting to new income tax rates. High-value homeowners understand the 2028 mansion tax implementation. Buyers and many homeowners know the existing structures remain in place. This clarity enables strategic planning based on actual measures rather than anticipated scenarios.

Understanding the specific impacts on your situation, focusing on strong fundamentals, and acting on clear information positions you well for the year ahead. The roughly 210,000 homes on the market above £500,000 benefit from lifted uncertainty. Regional opportunities continue to develop. The market rewards those who move forward with confidence based on facts.

Contact us today for guidance tailored to your circumstances and goals