My partner and I are retired, and we own two properties in York. One is the family home which is mortgage-free, but another is by the university, which we let out to students during term time.

I am thinking of buying my first house with my boyfriend. We have been to see a mortgage advisor and can get a mortgage. However, I am a bit concerned because I have received conflicting advice from other people. Some think it is a good time to buy because house prices have dropped whereas other think I should hold out for them to drop further.

It's now been a year since the credit crunch took hold -  are you struggling to meet your mortgage repayments and feeling the pinch of rising food and fuel prices, or have you seen your savings soar or prospered from sky-high annuity rates?  

My mortgage has been paid off early and we have left the endowment policy, designed to pay it off, running.

It has 4 years to go, the current originating company "sell it now" price is £20,000 ish.

The final return is a bit of a "wait and see" amount. So we are tempted to sell it now and invest in a know result investment.

If I sell it to a specialist company instead of cashing it in is tax due? as opposed to the official tax free status if cashed in via the usual method.

Sorry to ramble, i've turned this into a ten question question.

Hi guys,

6 months ago i got into a deal to but -to let a one bed off plan for 177,500. Developer was giving 5%, i gave deposit back then 5% (9k), and the rest 5% (15% total) was supposed to give on completion which is september 2008.

I got a mortgage deal from the prefered fianancial advisor of the developer so I could get the incentives the developer was offering. The mortgage i got back then was for the remaining 85% (150,000) of the value of the property, only after the mortgage provider did survey the property. As my financial advisor advised me back then, this offer could only last for 6 months, and send me a letter at the end of the deal saying (to cover him self) the least i will have to pay when i will renew my mortgage will be 5%.

Walking around my local area at the weekend I noticed that lots of houses seemed to have stuck up "for sale" signs... no sign of any "Sold" signs though. I keep hearing that its a buyers market and that the time isn't a great time for selling, but I am keen to offload a flat before the summer - any tips on how to find a buyer?

Also, I want to invest in more property for my kids - ie rent it out on their behalf and then hand it over to them in a few years when they have time to manage them properly... it is legal to advertise looking for people to sell me a home at below market value?

Anyone else tried doing this?

My mum and stepfather have recently remortgaged. They have a relatively small amount outstanding but have been told by their lender that it is better not to pay off the amount fully and just leave a small amount outstanding. My In- Laws have done the same and their title deeds remain with the lender. Neither my parents or in- laws could tell me why they were advised in this way. Could anyone help? Thanks

Well, this post is pretty much summed up in the subject!

I managed to sell my girlfriend's place (well, we managed to sell it) at the end of November and gota good deal. We've since been trying to get rid of my two bed flat in SW London so we can buy our own place. However, the offers are rolling in about as often as they do for a date with Anne Widdecombe.

Should we accept one currently on the table for less than we'd hope (and expect), or hold out for what is an offer for what is generally considered it's true value?

Buying in London is suddenly not such an appealing prospect

Anyone else got an offset mortgage with Intelligence Finance? it hasn't passed on the rate cut to its customers and now brokers are saying that its going to be hard for people with offset mortgages to go elsewhere because of the complications of the mortgage. I am coming up to the end of my discount period, anyone know where else does good offset mortgages and how hard it is to transfer?