Do I count as a first-time buyer if my wife already owns a home?

I’m wondering if I’m eligible for a help-to-buy Isa and stamp duty relief

Q My wife and I are both about 50. When we met 20-plus years ago she had already bought a house which I moved into. We have decided now that we want to move and have started looking for property.

My questions are: am I classed as a first-time buyer, having never been named on a mortgage or deeds, and would I be able to start a help-to-buy Isa to save a bit of the conveyancing fees?

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Can you make an offer on a house that is under offer? Nottingham Estate Agents

One of the questions most frequently asked by house-hunters is: what is the difference between ‘under offer’ and ‘sold subject to contract’? They have seen both terms applied to properties and assume, reasonably enough, that they must mean different things. In fact, and confusingly, they mean pretty much the same thing. It just depends which […]

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More than 8 million people in England living in unsuitable housing

Research shows people in need outnumber those on social waiting lists by two to one

More than 8 million people, equivalent to the population of London, are living in unsuitable housing in England, according to analysis suggesting the scale of the housing crisis could be far worse than officially estimated.

Research by Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh suggests the lives of one in eight people in England are now negatively affected by years of fast-rising prices and missed house-building targets.

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Ease the chill by sowing for brighter days | James Wong

Poppies, radishes and spring onions – some of the cheerful flowers and veg you can plant now

I am not afraid to admit it. There are some plants that I have a troubled relationship with. While nerines and amaryllis are some of my very favourite garden flowers, for their ability to erupt like pastel pink fireworks from beneath the earth in September, their arrival is also unequivocal confirmation that the dark days of winter are just around the corner. Like that last quick dip in the ocean before catching your flight home from a summer holiday, for me it’s an emotional trigger that the months of sunshine and fun are over and only school and seriousness await.

Fortunately, for us fair-weather gardeners, there are some plants you can spark into life right now, just as almost everything else slips into a slumber, providing you with a constant reminder of new things to come. Here are some of my favourite flower and veg seeds that you can sow in the autumn.

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Ease the chill by sowing for brighter days | James Wong

Poppies, radishes and spring onions – some of the cheerful flowers and veg you can plant now

I am not afraid to admit it. There are some plants that I have a troubled relationship with. While nerines and amaryllis are some of my very favourite garden flowers, for their ability to erupt like pastel pink fireworks from beneath the earth in September, their arrival is also unequivocal confirmation that the dark days of winter are just around the corner. Like that last quick dip in the ocean before catching your flight home from a summer holiday, for me it’s an emotional trigger that the months of sunshine and fun are over and only school and seriousness await.

Fortunately, for us fair-weather gardeners, there are some plants you can spark into life right now, just as almost everything else slips into a slumber, providing you with a constant reminder of new things to come. Here are some of my favourite flower and veg seeds that you can sow in the autumn.

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Clear, eat and plan ahead, as leaves and conkers fall | Allan Jenkins

Use up veg and plant for spring as gardens begin a new year

Before the fall. It’s the equinox tomorrow (a later one this year) so I think we can all agree autumn is here and summer over. Just see the hanging spiders, feel the dew on your shoes on an early-morning walk. There is a chill in the twilight, the sun’s no longer winning. For gardeners then, it’s the time to sow hardy annual flowers for spring while the soil still holds warmth.

We will be putting in a row or two of calendula, of course, and pondering love-in-a-mist (nigella). Autumn-sown gives a stronger, better start to spring at a time to pack most flower seeds away. My bookshelves at home are making Henri anxious with multiple bowls of drying flower heads. It will get worse yet.

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10 top tips for attracting quality tenants Nottingham Estate Agents

The buy-to-let sector is highly competitive and, not surprisingly, the landlords who are most successful are the ones who appreciate the importance of making their properties attractive to tenants. “Presentation, presentation, presentation,” says Roger Wilkinson of Wilkinson Grant & Co. “If you want to attract quality tenants at the best price, it is imperative that […]

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