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Homebuyer turn-offs

New research by Yes Homebuyers has revealed the biggest homebuyer turn-offs and how much they can wipe from the value of your property.

- Subsidence is estimated to reduce the value of a home by an average of -20%. For the average property which, in the UK, is currently valued at £254,624, this -20% loss equates to £51,000.

- Second on the list is Japanese Knotweed, a

destructive plant that can grow up to 10cm in a single day. It can cause severe damage to the structural integrity of a property and thus reduces the value of a home by -15% - a drop of just over £38,000.

- If a property is suffering from poor upkeep

or the garden has been allowed to overgrow it

could reduce the value of a home by as much as -14% on average, or £36,000.

- New power lines, mobile phone towers, or

wind turbines can see an average of -13%, or £33,000, wiped off in value.

- Both nuisance neighbours and flood risks or

water damage can reduce a property’s value by -10%, equal to just under £25,500; lack of convenient parking can reduce value by -7.1%, or £18,000; and unlucky house number, such as 13, can, believe it or not, reduce the value of a home by -6%, just north of £15,000.

- Structural issues (-£13,500), local power stations (-£12,700), damage or odours left by pets in the home (-£10,200), cluttered rooms (-£10,200), damp and mould (-£2,500), asbestos (-£2,500), and woodworm (-£1,300) can also have a negative impact on the value of your home.

Say what?

DVLA launched an online service to get a replacement vehicle registration certificate (V5C) last year, which is the quickest way to replace the document. Motorists can order a replacement no matter the reason, but here’s a few funny ones shared by DVLA on why people needed a replacement….

“I wasn’t concentrating and shredded it.” “It was in my trouser pocket and went through the washing machine.” “My parrot destroyed it.” “My child covered their school book with it.” “I left it at a hotel in the Gobi Desert when driving across Asia during my gap year. “Someone bought me a car for my birthday – they wrapped the keys in the V5C and I tore it open without knowing.” “It blew out the window and when I went to look for it, it was gone.” “My grandchild took it to play outside and buried it in the mud.”

It’s cheaper to run your washing machine in ‘offpeak’ hours – between 10pm & 8am.

New life-saving cholesterol jab

An expensive but "gamechanging" anti-cholesterol drug could soon be offered to hundreds of thousands of people in England and Wales on the NHS. NHS England says inclisiran, given as a twice-a-year injection, could save about 30,000 lives within a decade. It normally costs nearly £2,000 per dose but Novartis, which makes it, has agreed an undisclosed discount. The health watchdog NICE is recommending it as an option for people who have already had a stroke or heart attack and are not responding to other cholesterol-lowering treatments.