Both the Nationwide and the Halifax reported last week that average UK house prices are now lower than they were this time last year (but around one per cent), although separate figures for Scotland are not available.

More good news for landlords. According to research from Paragon, average rents have risen by four per cent in the last three months and by 12 per cent in the last six months.

As expected, the Bank of England announced a major intervention in the banking system last week, allowing mortgage lenders to swap some of their mortgage assets for what is effectively cash.

Just two per cent of buy-to-let landlords are planning to sell property when the current leases run out according the RICS (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors).

Scotland's missives based house-buying system will protect the property market from the woes affecting the rest of the UK, according to a group of Edinburgh based solicitors.

A new TV series due for broadcast this autumn on Channel 5 is looking for homeowners who would like expert advice on how to make the most of their home improvements.

Once again, evidence from the RICS (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors) suggests that the property market in Scotland is doing better than the market south of the border.

Is the Bank of England about to step in with a major intervention in the financial markets? Rumours of a move by the Bank to improve liquidity have been circulating for days.

With talk of recession in some quarters, the Office for National Statistics picked an opportune moment to announce that unemployment fell slightly for the three month period up to February.

Tracker mortgages are seeing a boom in popularity, suggesting that homeowners and buyers are increasingly confident that interest rates will fall in the near future.

Fulfilling the predictions of most pundits and analysts, the Bank of England last Thursday announced a drop in interest rates of 0.25 per cent.

With apocalyptic news reports dominating the media, there's no doubt that in many parts of the UK, house prices are turning downwards, but the reports and data currently being released for Scotland continue to show a much more stable situation compared to the traditionally more volatile English housing market.

The fluctuating nature of the mortgage market continued to generate news last week, with the final 100 per cent mortgage withdrawn by Abbey on Tuesday.

As the press report ever-darkening moods among experts and economists, the International Monetary Fund threw its hat into the ring late last week.

Mervyn King, the governor of the Bank of England, told a committee of MPs last week that the Bank would provide more liquidity to the financial sector if required.

In the meantime, however, homeowners may find it more difficult to get a mortgage and may find that their mortgage costs them more.

Scottish business seems increasingly optimistic about the future despite a broad based slowdown in the economy.

The introduction of Home Reports later this year could have an adverse impact on Scotland's property market.

Despite a sharp increase in inflation last month, two members of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee voted to cut interest rates at their last meeting.

The Bank of England must take more action to ease the credit crises according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML).

One consequence of the credit crises could be a move among borrowers back to interest only loans in an attempt to cut monthly mortgage costs.

Scotland was one of three areas to have posted record returns for landlords in the last five years.

Hopeful home buyers should resist the temptation to fritter away their savings if they are hoping to get the best deal on their mortgage.