As the old saying goes, ‘a friend is one who overlooks your broken fence and admires the flowers in your garden’. But what about a friend who buys said fence and garden with you and helps spread the mortgage costs? Now that’s a true friendship. Whether it’s your partner, brother or old school pal, there are many benefits to joint ownership when it comes to buying property. On the flip side however, you’ll find a few pitfalls to avoid and prepare for should you decide to make a joint investment. Here’s how to make it work, team work style.

Turn to the left! Turn to the right! Stop traffic! It’s time to stand out from the, let’s face it, over saturated rental crowd. An audience of potential renters are numbly scrolling as we speak. Gliding their mouse over hundreds of one bed, laminate floored carbon copies and forgetting their own names, never mind their monthly budget or reason to live. Let’s give them something to really get excited about and show your property in its best light / angle. Here’s our handy guide to blasting the competition out of the water. Sashay away!

Score! You’ve landed on Piccadilly with Free Parking and a get out of jail free card. Oh, and what’s this new chance card just introduced? ‘A new government-backed 95% mortgage scheme that helps first time buyers or current homeowners secure a mortgage with just a 5% deposit’. Yes, you read that right. You can secure a mortgage with a mere 5% of the deposit saved. But why on earth would those Westminster back benchers agree on such a thing for the age old property game, particularly in this current financial climate? Well, thanks to a rarely seen but relentless enigma known locally as Corona, lenders have tightened their money belts so hard that first time buyers have all but gone extinct without a board or silver dog to play with…

Come close, friend. Closer. Batten down the hatches and lean in. We’ve got some classified information for your ear holes that will seriously help with that looming home sale you’ve got on the horizon. There’s a property sales boom going down in the UK currently, so you’re going to need to fully up the ante and make that house shine. Luckily for you, we’ve got all the industry insider tips and tricks to getting it ship shape and ready to be seen by all those potential buyers. Let’s get you ready for your close up…

Whether you’ve stumbled upon the rental home of your dreams, or daydreaming about finding one soon, you’re going to have go through the necessary evil that calls itself: tenancy referencing. *distant blood curling scream*. Pop that cushion away, for this needn’t be a nightmare filled rigmarole (that’s one pasta dish from Pappagoni’s we wouldn’t recommend). Read on for our hammer horror-free guide to passing the dreaded tenancy checks, with a little help from our friends at Goodlord. Your haunted castle awaits…

Oh security deposit, you complex creature you. Created to protect both tenant and landlord, the deposit is far from a simple affair. Anyone who has had any experience with retrieving or exercising deductions knows it is a veritable mind exploder. But it needn’t be this difficult. Read on for our guide to keeping things fair in the game of renting and deposits.