Property Digest Issue 3: New Enquiry Form

Our biggest news this fortnight is at OMB itself: a new online enquiry form means you can start a mortgage, protection or commercial enquiry on our upgraded website in as little as five to ten minutes. On the market, average fixed mortgage rates have edged up towards 6% and UK house price growth has slowed to its weakest pace in months.

Here's what's new at OMB, followed by the headlines for homeowners, landlords, developers and commercial clients.

What's new at OMB

A new online enquiry form. You can now start an enquiry on our website in five to ten minutes. Just tick what you need — buying, remortgaging, buy-to-let, HMO, holiday let, bridging, development, commercial, second charge, protection and more — mostly via simple dropdowns, and you'll only ever see the questions that apply to you. You can choose the adviser you'd like to deal with, you'll get a copy of your answers by email, and one of our advisers will come back to you.

An upgraded website. We've rebuilt ourmortgagebroker.co.uk to make the client journey simpler, with clearer service pages for every type of mortgage and protection, "Start your enquiry" buttons on every page, case studies, reviews and a glossary.

16 free guides, refreshed for 2027. Our library of 16 free property and mortgage guides has been refreshed as 2027 editions — still free to download from the free guides page.

Homeowners & Buyers

House price growth has stalled. The Lloyds House Price Index (formerly Halifax) showed UK prices flat in September 2026, with annual growth at 0.0% and the average home at £298,441 (Lloyds, 7 October 2026).
More flexibility on high-income-multiple lending from this month. The FCA and PRA have confirmed that the firm-level cap limiting how much "high loan-to-income" lending (4.5 times income or more) each lender can do will be removed from 28 October 2026, replaced by a requirement to lend this way "in a prudent manner." This doesn't guarantee any individual borrower a bigger loan — lenders will still assess each case on its own affordability (Mortgage Solutions, 14 October 2026).
Flood risk is about to get an EPC-style label. The Government and Flood Re announced plans to pilot new Flood Performance Certificates in flood-risk areas from 2026, intended to show a property's flood exposure and resilience much as an EPC shows energy efficiency (Water Magazine, 13 October 2026).

Takeaway: With price growth flat and lending rules shifting, it's worth getting a mortgage health check before you buy or renew.

Buy-to-Let Landlords

Landlord confidence has taken a hit. A SpareRoom survey found 78% of landlords in England have no confidence in the lettings sector since the Renters' Rights Act, with 36% reducing their portfolios and 27% planning to leave the market altogether (Landlord Today, 1 October 2026).
But yields are at a 15-year high. Paragon's average gross buy-to-let yield reached 7.22% in Q3 2026, up from 7.00% in Q2 — the strongest level in more than 15 years (Letting Agent Today, 14 October 2026).
Rents keep climbing. Rightmove's average advertised rent reached £1,418 a month outside London (up 2.4% year-on-year) and £2,825 a month in London (up 3.2%) (Property Investor Today, 15 October 2026).

Takeaway: Strong yields and rising rents make this a good time to review your portfolio finance.

Property Developers

Build costs set to keep climbing. BCIS forecasts tender prices rising 3.0% annually in Q4 2026 and by 14.1% cumulatively over the next five years to Q3 2031, with building costs up 14% over the same period (BCIS, 8 October 2026).
Lenders are still backing smaller schemes. Shawbrook provided £3.1m of development finance for a 33-bed student accommodation scheme converting a former pub in Bristol, with a gross development value of around £4.6m (The Intermediary, 8 October 2026).
And bigger ones too. United Trust Bank provided a £5m development bridge to McLaren Property against its £74m, 334-bed student scheme in Leeds (The Intermediary, 14 October 2026).

Takeaway: With costs rising, the right finance structure matters more than ever — talk to a broker early about development and bridging options before you tender.

Commercial Property & Retail

Retail is leading commercial returns. CBRE's UK Monthly Index recorded a 0.9% fall in capital values across commercial property in Q3 2026, but retail delivered the best total return of all sectors at 1.8% (The Intermediary, 9 October 2026).
Mixed-use lending is growing. Lenders advanced £250m of semi-commercial mortgages in Q3 2026, up 3% on the previous quarter, according to TAB's Mixed-Use Mortgage Monitor (Mortgage Solutions, 14 October 2026).
Build-to-rent investment at a record pace. UK Build-to-Rent investment passed £900m in Q3 2026, taking the year-to-date total above £4bn — the strongest pace on record with a quarter still to go (Savills, 6 October 2026).

Takeaway: Whether you're financing a mixed-use purchase or a build-to-rent scheme, speak to a broker about commercial mortgage options early — timing matters in a shifting market.

Sources

To talk through what this means for you, start your enquiry, contact us or call 0203 971 1234.

Important: This guide is general information, not personal advice. Rules, rates and lender criteria change; speak to an adviser about your circumstances. Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.

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Property Digest, Issue 3: Our New Enquiry Form, and the Latest Market Headlines