New Year’s resolutions over the Christmas period

The festive period seemed to start early this year with Christmas music played in stores from the middle of November.  It seems to indicate that people are starting their Christmas preparations well in advance – or certainly that the shops would like them to.

As we go into the Christmas break and towards the period of New Year, many of us look at what other preparations we need to put in place and we want to achieve in the year ahead.

Upsizing, downsizing and relocation

There is always a s...

Stamp Duty relief is changing – what first-time buyers need to know

If you’re a first-time buyer, there are two words that you might not be familiar with – stamp duty. When you are thinking about buying your first home you'll have been saving for a deposit and thinking about how you will pay to kit out your home but there are other costs to account for when buying a property.

It’s important to note that changes are coming to stamp duty very soon for those buying in England and Northern Ireland, changing the amount of relief available to fi...

New Year’s resolutions over the Christmas period

The festive period seemed to start early this year with Christmas music played in stores from the middle of November. It seems to indicate that people are starting their Christmas preparations well in advance – or certainly that the shops would like them to.

As we go into the Christmas break and towards the period of New Year, many of us look at what other preparations we need to put in place and we want to achieve in the year ahead.

There is always a surge of people wanting to move house in ...

• £435m more funding to cut NHS waiting times, improve mental health services and women's health.
• £175m to invest in NHS infrastructure and digital technology.
• £25m of funding to repair and monitor coal tips.
• £81m more capital funding to build more homes for social rent.
• Over £100m for a package of improvements to the education budget.
• Transport receives the largest uplift of any department, with 12% in revenue.
• £3.7m to accelerate planning decisions and digitise planning services.
• £52m to maintain Wales’ road network – fixing pothole...