Since the beginning of the current extreme difficulties in the financial markets, the Financial Services Authority has worked intensively with all major UK banks to ensure they have credible capital and liquidity plans. This has left the average buyers with huge difficulties to find a good mortgage to purchase properties.

Meanwhile, in the UK recent economic news has done little to lift the gloom, with unemployment rising once again as the number of job vacancies fell. There was a real concern that this situation will last a lot longer than previously thought.

Each type of house buyer has a different set of criteria that will affect how they sell an existing property and purchase their next one.  Whether it is a first-time buyer, property developer or a couple downsizing.

First-time house buyers and those house-sharing will often over-stretch themselves in their desperation just to get on the property ladder.  Lenders don’t seem to be interested in this sector any more unless they can secure a 10%-15% deposit. 

Buy-to-let investors fall mainly into 2 categories - those who are serious about running it as a business and those who try to shore up their pension plans.  Those who don't appreciate the intricacies of the buy-to-let market can come seriously unstuck; having invested heavily from financial reserves or even re-mortgaged their family home to start up.  Problems can arise if the market is taking a sudden dive like now.

Similarly, inexperienced property developers can make the mistake of under-estimating the amount of work required in a typical project. Purchases in property auctions without a proper survey can be disasters. 

Expanding families and those down-sizing are usually at the mercy of very fragile property chains and the direction of property prices.  In the current market, by the time you reach the point of exchange, the property price has dropped.