Latest Expert Witness News

Don't let fears of the credit crunch put you off buy-to-let

People who have only recently bought a buy-to-let property or have been thinking of becoming a buy-to-let landlord may be having second thoughts about whether this is likely to be a good investment. But recent changes to CGT could influence the timing of buying or selling rental property, depending on their circumstances.
The latest monthly survey on the UK housing market from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors showed a further rise in the number of UK surveyors reporting house price falls, but tight supply is limiting the extent of the decline.
House price balance in Scotland turned negative for the first time where previously it was the only part of the UK where the majority of surveyors were still reporting house price increases.
This survey is cited by the Bank of England's monetary policy committee at its monthly interest rate setting meetings. Following the governor of the Bank of England's recent comments on the outlook for the UK economy for the next two years, the City is not expecting any further interest rate cuts this year and some commentators do not expect any further cuts until 2010.

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