Every year the ugliest new UK buildings get named and shamed in the Carbuncle Cup prize, and this year is no different.

Stop being overly optimistic

Young professionals are moving outwards and creating demand for cheap homes

Sarah Beeny, Host of Property Ladder, founder of Tepilo.com and founder of MySingleFriend.com, on why going on house building binge is crazy

Check out the designers dreaming up amazing new ways to make London even better

Stuart Penney visits the fairytale Craigcrook Castle, visited by Dickens and Hans Christian Andersen, and on sale for £6m

As Baroness Rawlings sets out her cost-saving tips, Sir Richard FitzHerbert explains why he gets his pens for free and re-uses postage fliers as printing paper

Property sleuth Graham Norwood heads to the West Country in search of the best chocolate-box cottages for those fed up with London

Many mothers dream of running their own businesses but don’t know where to start. Zoe Bolechala shares her tips on time management, financial planning, and exploiting the resources around you.

Welcome to the fantastique Maison Plastique, where no colour is off-limits

David Nicholls scopes out the best interiors products. This week: affordable outdoor furniture and vibrant cushions

David Nicholls scopes out the best interiors products. This week: affordable outdoor furniture and vibrant cushions

A tree house held together with 258,000 nails? Check. A pyramid with healing powers? Check…

Property experts estimate there could be up to 1,000 JCBs buried underground because they are cheaper to bury than lift to street level following basement extensions

Alison Cork: brings you the very best that money can buy, for not much money at all.

The chief executive of one of Britain’s biggest real estate companies has said property development in the capital should be “restricted” to allow for homes for ordinary workers

In the latest sign of intense demand, Halifax registers the biggest monthly increase since a 4.2pc jump in October 2002

Stuart Penney visits the fairytale Craigcrook Castle, visited by Dickens and Hans Christian Andersen, and on sale for £6m

As the World Cup grips the planet all eyes are on Brazil. But it’s not all about football. A new book by Dominic Bradbury on Brazilian architecture shows them to be world leaders in this field too

The motor city’s descent into the abyss is the stuff of legend but it has created some extraordinary bargains for buyers with strong constitutions

Architect and television presenter George Clarke explains how men and women differ when it comes to home improvements and property programmes

Fancy being sheltered by ancient trees? We find three beautiful homes nestled in woodland

A new crop of British designers shows that sustainable doesn’t have to mean kaftans and incense

The flat, which is just a few metres wide and has barely any room to move, illustrates how desperate the housing shortage in Britain has become

Buyers must now be told of anything that could affect the value of a new home

After 12 years, Tommaso del Buono’s lush Belgravia design for former newsreader Martyn Lewis needs only a few tweaks, says Laura Silverman

As London’s housing bubble expands across many parts of the country, Caroline McGhie tracks its progress and discovers where property prices are rising fastest

Our resident builder Jeff Howell solves your problems. This week: the risks of sprayed-on foam insulation

Shore-footed Liz Meek tracks down 15 private islands which are just waiting for your boat to make landfall

Markit/CIPS construction PMI slips as growth slows in commercial space such as offices, shops and warehouses

British construction grew at the slowest pace in seven months in May but economists said the outlook remained strong amid a boom in housebuilding.

The Markit/CIPS construction PMI, which measures building activity, edged lower to 60 in May from 60.8, mainly reflecting slowing growth in commercial space such as offices, shops and warehouses.

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No matter where the energy is coming from, commercial buildings should be using less of it, CEO says

Swapnil Shah doesn’t have anything against cleaner-burning fuels or renewable energy. He just thinks North American businesses and the buildings they operate in should be using less energy, no matter the source.

“The ability to reduce consumption in those buildings can have a huge impact”, both economically and environmentally, said Shah, the CEO of First Fuel. The young software company in Lexington, Massachusetts, was founded with exactly that goal in mind.

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