Nearly one million five-year mortgages could be up for renewal this year, with many homeowners facing much higher costs, a comparison site has warned. 

In 2021, 971,105 five-year fixed rate mortgages were taken out, according to data from the Financial Conduct Authority analysed by Compare the Market. 

At the time, interest rates were significantly lower, with sub-2% rates widely available.

Since then, mortgage rates have increased, with the average five-year fixed residential mortgage rate standing at 4.86%, according to Moneyfacts. 

Calculations by Compare the Market indicate that more costly rates could potentially push some households' annual mortgage payments up by as much as £2,124, based on average house prices in 2021 and someone buying their home with a 25% deposit. 

Borrowers letting their five-year mortgage roll on to a standard variable rate, which happens when initial mortgage deals end, could see bigger cost jumps.

Borrowers looking for their next deal will need to factor in the overall cost of the mortgage, including fees, as well as the rate.

David Hollingworth, associate director at L&C Mortgages, said: "Homeowners that locked in a super-low rate five years ago have been sheltered from the ups and downs in interest rates in recent years.

"Although a hike in payments is inevitable once the fix ends, the good news is that mortgage rates have improved substantially recently and are much lower than at the peak.

"That will help to limit the increase, but it makes shopping around for the best deal even more vital. Starting the process several months in advance will help borrowers prepare for higher rates and enable a smooth transition to a new deal." 

By James Sillars, business and economics reporter 

There's movement for shares linked to housing this morning.

Companies exposed to the government's proposed cap on ground rents for leaseholders are starting to report what it could mean for their incomes.

M&G, an asset management firm, warned of a £230m one-off hit.

It also said that should the plans go ahead in their current form, annual adjusted operating profits in 2028 would be knocked by an estimated £15m.

Its shares were down by around 1.5% in early trading.

Elsewhere, news of the EU-India trade deal has failed to widely lift stock market values for major exporters.

BMW and Mercedes, for example, were among stocks to record declines in early deals.

The trade deal, which follows a similar agreement between the UK and India last year, will see reduced tariffs on nearly 97% of EU exports and the bloc cut tariffs on 99.5% of Indian goods.

Stock markets across Europe all opened in mildly positive territory.

In London, the FTSE 100 was 0.2% higher at 10,171. Banking shares were leading the way.

The BBC is working on ways to use iPlayer to find households that haven't paid for a TV licence, Money understands. 

Online BBC accounts could be linked with home addresses for the first time to help find licence fee evaders. 

Any household that watches or records live TV on any channel or uses BBC iPlayer must have a TV licence, which costs £174.50 a year. 

The BBC has a duty to collect the licence fee, and sends targeted letters or emails to those it believes are not paying it and should be. 

There are concessions available for people who are aged 75 or older and receive Pension Credit, blind people, those who live in qualifying residential care and are disabled or over 60 and businesses that provide overnight accommodation. 

Failing to pay the fee can result in a £1,000 fine. 

A TV Licensing spokesperson told Money:  "We always look at ways to improve how we collect the licence fee. This includes using the data available to us to get a better understanding of viewing habits and use of BBC services."

The BBC collected £3.8bn from sales of more than 23 million TV licences in 2024–25, but around £550m is thought to have been lost through evasion. 

Ground rents for leaseholders are to be capped at £250 a year, dropping to a peppercorn after 40 years, the government has announced.

A peppercorn is a nominal amount, usually meaning nothing.

The change will come into force from 2028.

New leasehold flats will also be banned.

The government says it is overhauling a dysfunctional and unfair system.

There are five million leaseholders in England and Wales - and the government says 900,000 will benefit during this parliament.

The reforms will come as part of the government's Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill, due to be published later today.

The announcement will be seen as a big win for former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner, who championed the reforms.

Every Tuesday, we answer a reader's financial problem or consumer dispute - you can email yours to moneyblog@sky.uk. Today's is...

Our neighbour painted their house an ugly shade of purple. It's an eyesore. You see drivers slow down as they pass and people walking past laughing. They didn't ask any of the neighbours. A few months ago we put my house on the market, and despite similar homes further down our street selling quickly, and being priced similarly, we haven't had a single offer. One person told my wife explicitly the only reason they were not putting in an offer was because of the house next door. Is there anything I can do?

Prefer to remain anonymous

Thanks for getting in touch and sorry to hear about the problems you're having selling your home - living next to a purple house doesn't sound like much fun! 

I understand why you're concerned. We often buy homes with the hope of making money on them when we come to sell, and struggling to find a buyer is stressful, especially when the thing stopping them making an offer is out of your control. 

Unfortunately, the law gives homeowners a lot of discretion over how they decorate their property. 

In most cases, you don't need planning permission to paint a house, regardless of colour. 

That said, Mary-Lou Press, president of the National Association of Estate Agents, told me there were a few occasions where it would be needed, so it's worth checking if they apply to your situation. 

Painting a house can require consent if:

• The property is listed;
• You live within a conservation area;
• There is an Article 4 direction restricting external alterations;
• The property is subject to specific conditions in the original planning permission (rare, but possible).

You can confirm these with your local planning authority.

If restrictions apply and consent was required but not obtained, the council may be able to take enforcement action, Press says.

If that doesn't work, consider whether the issue meets the legal threshold for "nuisance" - a bright or unusual colour doesn't normally meet the criteria, though. 

For a statutory or private nuisance claim to succeed, the issue would need to:

• Unreasonably interfere with the use or enjoyment of your home; and
• Cause more than annoyance or dislike.

Courts and councils rarely consider colour alone to meet this threshold, Press adds.

Of course, you could always talk to your neighbour and ask them politely if they could repaint in a more muted shade. 

"However, be mindful not to imply they have done anything unlawful unless you have confirmation from the council," she adds. 

It is especially important to be polite and to avoid confrontation during the conversation. 

This is because if a prospective buyer asks whether the relationship with your neighbour is problematic, you have to give them an honest answer. 

"Cosmetic disagreements are not normally something you need to declare on the TA6 form, unless they have escalated into a formal dispute," Press says.

"Avoid taking any action, such as making a complaint to the council, unless you understand that this will need to be disclosed to future buyers." 

If all your attempts at getting your neighbours to change the colour, lean on your estate agents to draw attention away from next door. 

Press says there are some practical steps they can take, like improving curb appeal on your own property to draw a buyer's focus, or providing buyers with information that highlights the home's strengths and local comparables.

"If one buyer explicitly mentioned the neighbour's house negatively impacting the saleability of your home, your agent should record this as feedback to help guide your strategy," she adds. 

This feature is not intended as financial advice - the aim is to give an overview of the things you should think about. Submit your dilemma or consumer dispute by emailing moneyblog@sky.uk with the subject line "Money Problem".

We start each Monday with our What it's really like to be a... feature that delves into different careers - and we're signing off today with a reminder that you can catch up with the entire series here...

A total of 3.3 million people still need to file their tax returns before the deadline on Saturday. 

Some 8.6 million people have already filed their return for the 2024-25 tax year, HM Revenue and Customs said.

It is urging taxpayers who are yet to file to act now or risk missing the deadline and face an automatic £100 penalty.

The penalties for late tax returns are:

• An initial £100 fixed penalty, which applies even if there is no tax to pay, or if the tax due is paid on time;
• After three months, additional daily penalties of £10 a day, up to a maximum of £900;
• After six months, a further penalty of 5% of the tax due or £300, whichever is greater;
• After 12 months, another 5% or £300 charge, whichever is greater.

Last year, HMRC issued £325m in fines and interest charges to taxpayers who paid their self-assessment bills late last year, the national accounting firm UHY Hacker Young found. 

At least 600,000 taxpayers failed to pay their self-assessment tax by the deadline last year, according to the firm. 

HMRC estimates that £8.7bn of self-assessment tax went unpaid last year, 12.5% of the £69.6bn it expected to collect.

In total, £44bn in business and personal taxes are overdue, of which 86% or £37.8bn is now ready for debt collection processes. 

If you are one of the people who still hasn't filed their return, read our 10-step checklist...

Cheaper flights from the UK to the US could be on the way after Wizz Air applied to the US Department of Transport to start operating flights between the two countries "as soon as possible". 

In a filing to the government department, the budget airline said allowing it to launch flights would offer "increased travel choices, greater service options, and enhanced competition". 

It made several arguments for why its request should be approved, including the chairman of WizzAir Holdings, William Franke, being a US citizen, and having a clean safety and tariff record for the past five years.

No potential destinations have been named in the filing, but it does note that its primary base for aircraft maintenance is London Luton Airport. 

If Wizz Air were granted permission, it could mark the return of competition and low-cost flights to the US after Norwegian ceased transatlantic operations in 2021. 

The airline hasn't released any information about the filing and has not provided a comment to Money, but it will be reporting its Q3 results later this week, so we could get more details then. 

Ryanair expects its air fares to rise by more than expected this year, up by as much as 9%. 

The budget airline said average fares rose 4% in its third quarter to the end of December. 

Chief executive Michael O'Leary said: "While the fourth quarter doesn't benefit from Easter, fares are trending ahead of prior year and we now believe full-year fares will exceed the 7% growth previously guided by 1% or 2%." 

Ryanair has also upped its annual outlook for passenger growth and said full-year profits should increase. 

It flew 47.5 million passengers in the third quarter, up 6% year on year, and says it now expects 2025-26 passenger growth of 4% to almost 208 million. This is up from previous guidance for 207 million passengers.

It added it was "cautiously guiding" for full-year underlying profits after tax of €2.13bn to €2.23bn (£1.84bn to £1.93bn).