Month: September 2026

Every homeowner arrives at this question eventually, usually standing in a kitchen that has stopped working for the family in it.

Do we spend the money here, or do we spend it moving?

There is no universal answer, but there is a much better way to reach yours than by feel. It comes down to five questions, and most people only ask the first one.

Question one: is it the house, or is it the location?

Start here, because it settles a surprising number of cases on its own.

If the house is too small but you love the street, the school, the neighbours and the walk to the station, improving is worth serious thought. Those are the things money cannot easily buy back.

If what you actually want is a different area, a shorter commute or a different kind of neighbourhood, no extension will deliver it. People spend a great deal of money extending their way around a problem that was never the building.

Be honest with yourself about which it is. The answer is usually available if you sit with the question for a week.

Question two: what does moving actually cost?

Moving costs are widely underestimated because they are spread across several invoices.

• Stamp duty on the property you are buying, which on a larger home is often the biggest single figure.

• Estate agency fees on the sale, plus legal fees on both the sale and the purchase.

• Survey, mortgage arrangement and any early repayment charge on your existing mortgage.

• Removals, storage, and the immediate spending that always follows a move. Blinds, carpets, decorating, the thing that turns out not to f

• The cost of the process itself. Months of viewings, uncertainty and a chain you do not control.

None of that means moving is wrong. It means the comparison has to be against the full figure, not against the price difference between the two houses.

Question three: what does improving actually cost?

Also underestimated, and for a different reason. People price the build and forget everything around it.

• Design and professional fees. Architect or designer, structural engineer, planning application, building regulations.

• The build itself, and a genuine contingency on top. Ask anyone who has done it, and they will tell you the contingency was not optional.

• VAT, where it applies.

• The finishing that never appears in the quote. Decorating, flooring, the kitchen or bathroom that now has to match, the landscaping where the garden was dug up.

• The disruption. Weeks or months of living in a building site, possibly without a kitchen, possibly with small children.

That last one is a real cost even though it never appears on paper. Some households take it in their stride. Others find it genuinely miserable, and it is worth knowing which you are before you start.

Question four: What is the ceiling price on your street?

This is the question almost nobody asks, and it is the one that costs people the most money.

Every street has a level beyond which buyers stop paying, no matter what you have done to the house. Spend £80,000 extending a property in a road where nothing has ever sold above a certain figure, and a good deal of that money does not come back.

That does not make it a bad decision. Improving your home so it suits your family for the next fifteen years can be excellent value even if it never shows up in the resale price. But you should know which one you are doing. Spending for love is fine. Spending for love while believing you are investing is how people get a nasty surprise later.

This is the single most useful thing to ask a local agent, and it takes one phone call.

Question five: how long are you actually staying?

The maths changes completely depending on the answer.

If you plan to be there ten or fifteen years, an extension that suits you and does not fully return its cost is a reasonable trade. You are buying fifteen years of a better life, and the cost per year is modest.

If you might move in three, the numbers get harsh. You would carry the full cost and the disruption, recover only part of it, and then pay the moving costs anyway.

How do you actually settle it?

Get two real numbers before you decide anything, and get them in this order.

• A proper builder’s quote for the work you actually want. Not a rough figure over the phone, and ideally more than one.

• A valuation of your home as it is now, and an honest view of what it would be worth with the work done. Any decent local agent will give you both, and should tell you plainly if the second figure is not much higher than the first.

Put those beside the total cost of moving, including stamp duty, and the answer is usually obvious within about ten minutes. It is the guessing that makes this decision feel impossible.

Want both numbers before you decide?

We are very happy to tell you what your home is worth now, what it might be worth improved, and where the ceiling on your street actually sits, with no expectation that you are going to sell. Plenty of the people we have this conversation with end up extending, and we would far rather they decided with real figures.

Frequently asked questions

Is it cheaper to extend or to move?

It depends on the cost of the work, the stamp duty and fees on a move, and the ceiling price on your street. The only reliable way to know is to get a builder’s quote and a valuation of the improved property, then compare both against the full cost of moving rather than the price gap between houses.

What is a ceiling price?

The level beyond which buyers on a particular street stop paying, however much has been spent on the house. Improving past it means much of the money does not come back on resale, which can still be the right choice if you are staying long enough to enjoy it.

What costs do people forget when moving?

Design and professional fees, planning and building regulations, contingency, VAT where applicable, and the finishing work such as decorating, flooring and matching the rest of the house. Plus the disruption of living through it.

What costs do people forget when extending?

Design and professional fees, planning and building regulations, contingency, VAT where applicable, and the finishing work such as decorating, flooring and matching the rest of the house. Plus the disruption of living through it.

Does an extension always add value?

No. It usually adds some value, but not always as much as it cost, and rarely beyond the ceiling price for the street. Ask a local agent what the realistic improved value would be before you commit.

If you know someone who would find this useful, please share it with them.

Why we are proud to be an Ethical Agent

We belong to the Ethical Agent Network (EAN), a national group of independent agents who have passed an independent assessment on honesty, service and community care. Membership is earned, never bought. When you see the EAN logo, you know that the agent has chosen to be held to a higher standard and to be accountable for it. If you would like to know more about the Ethical Agent Network, please get in touch or visit www.ethicalagentnetwork.co.uk.

Most people choose an estate agent on a feeling.

Three agents come round, one of them seems the most confident, or the most likeable, or quotes the highest figure. A contract gets signed at the kitchen table that evening, often without being read properly.

We are an estate agent telling you to slow that down. There are a handful of checks that take about twenty minutes, and they apply to us as much as to anybody else. If an agent minds you doing them, that is information too.

Is the agent a member of a redress scheme?

Start here, because this one is not a nice-to-have. It is the law.

Under the Consumers, Estate Agents and Redress Act 2007, every estate agent doing residential work must belong to an approved redress scheme. There are two: The Property Ombudsman and the Property Redress Scheme. An agent who belongs to neither is trading unlawfully.

A certificate confirming membership should be displayed at the agent’s premises and published on their website. So the check is genuinely quick. Look on the website, and if you cannot find it, ask which scheme they belong to and expect an immediate answer.  Roberts & Co are members of The Property Ombudsman.

What it gives you is a route if something goes wrong that the agent will not put right. Without it, your only option is the courts.

Is your money protected?

This matters most in lettings, and it is worth understanding if you are a landlord as well as a seller.

Letting and property management agents in the private rented sector who hold client money have been required to belong to a Client Money Protection scheme since 1 April 2019. That is what stands between your rent, or a tenant’s deposit, and an agent’s business going under.

Ask which scheme, and ask to see it. Any agent holding other people’s money should be able to answer that without hesitating. Roberts & Co are members of Client Money Protect (CMP).

What should you actually read in the contract?

This is where sellers lose money, and it is almost always because of something they did not notice rather than something they were told.

• What type of agreement is it? Sole agency, sole selling rights and multi-agency are different things, and sole selling rights can mean a fee is due even if you find the buyer yourself.

• How long is the tie-in? A long minimum period is not automatically wrong, but you should know it and agree to it deliberately rather than discover it later.

• What is the notice period, and when can you give it? 

• What exactly triggers the fee? “Ready, willing and able purchaser” wording can mean a fee becomes payable even if the sale does not complete. Ask for it in plain English.

• Are there withdrawal fees, marketing charges or costs if you take the property off the market? Get the total, in writing.

• Could you end up owing two agents? If you switch, ask how an introduction by the previous agent is treated. This catches people out regularly.

None of these questions is rude. A good agent answers them clearly and puts the answers in writing without being asked twice

What should you expect as standard?

• A valuation explained with evidence. Comparable properties, what they actually sold for, and how long they took. Not just a number.

• The fee stated plainly, including VAT, with no vagueness about what is and is not included.

• Time to read the agreement. Taking it away overnight is entirely reasonable.

• Straight answers about who will actually handle your sale, and who you call when something goes wrong.

• Honest feedback after viewings, including the feedback you would rather not hear.

Why did we join the Ethical Agent Network?

Because everything above is a test the customer has to administer, and that has always struck us as the wrong way round.

You should not have to interrogate three agents to work out which one will treat you properly. But there is no single qualification that tells you, and the legal minimum, a redress scheme, is only a floor. It tells you an agent has somewhere for complaints to go. It does not tell you they are good.

So we chose to be assessed against something higher, by somebody independent, and to be accountable for it. That is what EAN membership is. It cannot be bought; it has to be earned, and it can be taken away.

We would still rather you did the twenty minutes of checks. Do them on us as well.

There is another way.

We are proud members of the Ethical Agent Network (EAN). A national group of independent agents who have been independently assessed to ensure we meet strict standards of honesty, service, professionalism and community care.

To find out more about what we do and why we passed the EAN, and why we are the only local agency in the network, contact us today.

Frequently asked questions

Do estate agents have to belong to a redress scheme?

Yes. Under the Consumers, Estate Agents and Redress Act 2007, every estate agent carrying out residential work must belong to an approved redress scheme. The two approved schemes are The Property Ombudsman and the Property Redress Scheme, and membership should be displayed at the premises and on the website.

What is Client Money Protection?

A scheme protecting money an agent holds on your behalf, such as rent or deposits. Letting and property management agents in the private rented sector holding client money have been required to belong to one since 1 April 2019. Ask which scheme and ask to see the evidence.

What is the difference between sole agency and sole selling rights?

They are not the same. With sole selling rights, a fee can be due even if you find the buyer yourself, so check carefully which one you are being asked to sign.

Can I be charged by two estate agents?

It can happen if you switch and a buyer introduced by the first agent goes on to purchase. Ask both agents how introductions are treated before you sign anything new.

What are the warning signs when choosing an estate agent?

Pressure to sign on the day, a valuation well above the others with no evidence behind it, vagueness about fees, reluctance to name their redress scheme, and any insistence that you use a particular solicitor or broker to get the deal.

If you know someone about to choose an estate agent, please share this with them.

About the Ethical Agent Network

We are members of the Ethical Agent Network (EAN). Membership cannot be bought. Every agent has to pass an independent assessment on honesty, service and the way they treat people. So when you see the EAN logo on an agent’s window or website, it is a signal you can trust before you have even walked through the door. To find out more, please get in touch or visit www.ethicalagentnetwork.co.uk.

Sources: Consumers, Estate Agents and Redress Act 2007 (mandatory redress scheme membership for residential estate agency work; approved schemes are The Property Ombudsman and the Property Redress Scheme). Client Money Protection requirement for letting and property management agents in the private rented sector holding client money, in force since 1 April 2019. Checked July 2026.

No change. Again.

On Thursday 17 September 2026 the Bank of England held Bank Rate at 3.75%. If you have been waiting for a clear signal before making a move, that can feel like another month of nothing happening.

It is not quite that. Inflation rose to 3.1% in the twelve months to August (ONS, 16 September 2026), and the price of a new fixed rate mortgage has been creeping up for months, even while Bank Rate has stood still. Here is what the hold means for your mortgage, and what is worth doing while things are steady.

What does a hold actually change?

Nothing overnight. Tracker rates stay where they are, standard variable rates have no new reason to move, and fixed deals were never going to change mid-term anyway.

Bank Rate is the interest rate the Bank of England pays commercial banks on the money they hold with it, and it sets the tone for what lenders charge everyone else. Holding it means the Bank has judged that 3.75% is the right setting for now.

What does a hold mean for the average mortgage?

For the average homeowner, this month’s payment is the same as last month’s. The real question is what happens when their fixed deal ends.

Most people are on a fix. Figures from the Financial Conduct Authority show that 91% of the money owed on regulated UK mortgages was on fixed rates in the first three months of 2026 (FCA, published in the Scottish Government’s Housing Market Review, July 2026). A hold changes nothing for them until their deal runs out.

The catch is that the deals waiting for them have been getting more expensive. Moneyfacts put the average two-year fixed rate at 5.63% on 7 September 2026, compared with 4.96% at the start of September 2025 (Moneyfacts).

In July, the Bank of England projected that the typical homeowner coming off a fixed rate in the next two years would see their monthly payment rise by around £45. For people still on very low rates from a few years ago, the jump is bigger. The same report said nearly 750,000 households paying less than 3% would roll off their fixes during 2026, with an average rise of £170 a month (Bank of England Financial Stability Report, July 2026).

If you are on a tracker or your lender’s standard variable rate, a hold simply means your payment stays put for now.

Why are fixed rates rising when Bank Rate has not moved?

Because fixed deals are priced on what the money markets expect to happen next, not on today’s Bank Rate.

Lenders fund fixed rate mortgages at rates set in the money markets, and those rates reflect where investors think Bank Rate is heading over the next two or five years. At the start of September, financial markets were pricing in three rate rises through to the middle of 2027, starting in November (Reuters, 8 September 2026). Those expectations are already baked into the price of a new fix.

Forecasts are just that, forecasts, and expectations can change quickly in either direction. But it explains why the word “held” and the price of a new mortgage can tell two very different stories.

Where is the real news in a hold?

In the vote, and in the Bank’s wording.

Nine people sit on the Monetary Policy Committee, and each of them votes. In July the Committee voted 6 to 3 to hold Bank Rate at 3.75%, and all three members in the minority wanted to raise it to 4%, not cut it (Bank of England, July 2026). A split like that tells you far more about the direction of travel than the word “held” ever will.

So when you read about this decision, look for how the nine voted and what the Bank says about inflation. Those are the clues to what might happen in November.

What should you do if you are buying?

Use the calm to pin down your real numbers.

Lenders test affordability against a stress-tested rate that is higher than the one you would actually pay, so your ceiling is rarely the figure you have in your head. A steady month is a good time to find out the real one.

• Get your decision in principle refreshed, especially if your last one is more than a few weeks old. Fixed rates have moved even though Bank Rate has not.

• Ask your broker whether you can secure a rate now and still switch to a cheaper one if it appears before you complete.

• Be ready to move when you find the right home. In a steady market, the prepared buyer is the one a seller takes seriously.

What should you do if you are selling?

Price on evidence. A hold gives the market no new push in either direction.

• Ask your agent for the recent comparable sales behind your asking price, not just the number.

• Remember your buyers are paying today’s fixed rates, not last year’s. Their monthly budget may well have tightened, even though Bank Rate has not moved.

• Make the first two weeks count. Good photography, accurate information and a sensible price will do far more for your sale than any rate decision.

What does a hold mean for landlords?

Predictable costs for now, which makes this a good month for the planning jobs rather than the dramatic ones.

• Diarise every buy-to-let deal end date six months ahead. That is the window when you still have choices rather than a default rate.

• Before you commit to anything new, ask a broker how the interest coverage calculation looks at today’s rates. Buy-to-let borrowing is assessed against the rent, and that test often limits what you can borrow more than the monthly payment does.

• Review your rent against genuine local evidence, and follow the rules on how and when it can change. Since 1 May 2026, rent can normally only go up once a year, using the section 13 procedure with at least two months’ notice.

And a good tenant in a well-run home is still worth far more to your year than a rushed rent review.

And what does a hold mean if you are renting?

Your landlord’s mortgage costs have no new reason to change this month, which is usually the calmest backdrop for a tenancy.

If a rent increase does arrive, the rules give you some important protection. Since 1 May 2026, under the Renters’ Rights Act, a landlord can normally only increase the rent once a year, must give you at least two months’ notice using the proper section 13 procedure, and you can challenge an increase you believe is above the market rate.

If you are saving to buy, a steady month is a good time to ask a broker what you could borrow, so you know exactly what you are working towards.

Sources: Bank of England, Bank Rate decision of 17 September 2026, and Monetary Policy Summary and minutes, July 2026 (published 30 July 2026). Office for National Statistics, Consumer price inflation, UK: August 2026 (released 16 September 2026). Reuters poll of 65 economists, 4 to 8 September 2026 (published 8 September 2026). Financial Conduct Authority data on fixed-rate mortgage balances, Q1 2026, as published in the Scottish Government’s Scottish Housing Market Review Q2 2026 (July 2026). Bank of England, Financial Stability Report, July 2026. Moneyfacts, Hopes dashed as mortgage rate rises loom (7 September 2026) and Number of deals soars as rate cuts slow (9 September 2025). GOV.UK, Implementing the Renters’ Rights Act 2025: our roadmap for reforming the private rented sector (rent increase rules from 1 May 2026). Checked 16 September 2026.