Australians are permitted to purchase and/or rent property in the United Kingdom.

Buying property

Information about houses and apartments for sale in Britain may be obtained from estate agents (or from solicitors in Scotland) and from classified advertisements, particularly in local newspapers. A list of estate agents in the area of a prospective buyer's interest may be obtained from:

National Association of Estate Agents
Arbon House
6 Tournament Court
Edgehill Drive
Warwick
Warwickshire
CV34 6LG
Tel: 0844 387 0555

Additional information on properties can also be found on the following Internet sites:

• Yahoo Property UK
• Internet Property Finder

Information on the purchase of houses through building societies may be obtained, free of charge, from:

Building Societies Association
6th Floor, York House
23 Kingsway
London
WC2B 6UJ
United Kingdom

Consumer Information: 020 7520 5900
Fax: 020 7240 5290

Information on mortgages, mortgage brokers and building societies is available on the Financial Information Net Directory internet site.

Public sector housing

Accommodation owned by local government authorities in Britain is most commonly rented to qualified people living or working in the area who have registered on the authority's waiting list. Many councils require that applicants for council housing should have lived in the area concerned for a certain number of years before becoming eligible.

Information on council housing is available from the UK Communities and Local Government - Housing.

Provides a listing of community councils in the United Kingdom, who have information on council housing in each area.

Renting Property

Listings of rental housing and apartments, both furnished and unfurnished, may be found in the classified sections of local British newspapers.

In addition, many estate agents also handle rented accomodation.

Rents vary considerably, not only by the standard and locality of the property, but also by region. Prices are generally higher in London and the southern regions, and lower in the north of England and Scotland. Rents also tend to be lower in the more rural areas of the country.

Details of apartments available in London and other British cities for rent to tourists and a list of rental agencies in the United States and Britain is available from VisitBritain.