The Hub, explained — who we are, how we work, why it's free
The Newcastle Property Hub is an independent Newcastle property guide: 12 area guides, live market numbers, honest service reviews and the homes to match — free to read, no ads, no paywall. This page is the full working — what we are, who we work with, and why the verdicts stay blunt.
What is the Hub?
An independent publishing project about one city's property: every Newcastle area guided street by street, the market tracked in numbers, the services reviewed honestly, and the homes themselves — marketed through our partner agents — gathered in one place. Not an estate agency, not a portal: the guide we wished existed when we were the ones moving.
Who do we work with?
A small set of Newcastle firms we trust and chose ourselves: HM Residential market the homes listed on the Hub, Home Claims Assist run the claims desk, and the services directory recommends one firm per trade. The rule that protects you: recommendations are written before any commercial conversation, and the editorial never changes for anyone — several pages on this site say uncomfortable things about industries our partners work in. That's the point.
Where does the data come from?
Current price, rent and yield figures are indicative neighbourhood averages compiled from sold-price patterns, live market observation and the rent ranges our partner agents see daily — always dated, always labelled indicative. A direct Land Registry sold-price feed arrives with the Hub's full launch, at which point every figure on the site updates monthly and the methodology page grows with it.
Why trust the verdicts?
Because they cost us something. Saying Byker's Shields Road struggles, that Gosforth evenings are quiet, or that quick-buy firms will cost you £30,000 makes some readers — and some potential partners — uncomfortable. We write it anyway, because a guide that's nice about everywhere is useful nowhere. Find an error and we'll correct it publicly; the contact page is the door.
The partners
- HM Residential — Newcastle estate and letting agents; the homes on the Hub are marketed through them, and our valuation referrals go to their team.
- Home Claims Assist — the Hub's claims desk: loss assessors with £50M+ recovered for policyholders. How the claims desk works →
- Dominate Media Group — builds and runs the Hub itself.