Inflation to get worse states Bank of England
August 27, 2008
Over recent months the nation has seen the rate of inflation spiral out of control, and in July inflation levels hit an all time high of 4.4%, which is the highest since records began. This is more than double the government’s 2% inflation target, and according to officials has been pushed up by factors such as the soaring cost of food and petrol. These inflation levels have also resulted in the Bank of England keeping the base rate on hold, and it is unlikely that there will be any further cuts in the base rate over the course of this year. Read more
Even wealthier borrowers are now struggling to repay their loans
August 27, 2008
A recent report has claimed that suffering severe financial difficulty is no longer a problem that affects only low income consumers. The report shows that financial difficulties are now even hitting homeowners living in fairly affluent areas, indicating that the current financial climate is also impacting heavily on the finances of those that would normally be considered to be fairly well off. Read more
HBOS sees mortgage jobs cut
August 26, 2008
Halifax owned HBOS has recently announced that parts of its mortgage operations are to close, and this will result in several hundred job losses according to industry officials. The mortgage meltdown has resulted in many different problems over recent months, with lenders unable to offer mortgages at the same level as preciously due to the global credit crunch. This has resulted in fewer people being able to get mortgages and a stark reduction in business for struggling lenders. Read more
FSA accused of making unfair assumptions by lenders
August 26, 2008
The UK’s financial regulator, the Financial Services Authority, has recently released a report that has criticised all lenders over the practices that are used when it comes to repossession proceedings. The regulator has said that if lenders do not buck up their ideas when it comes to their practices in relation in repossessions then it will take action wherever necessary, but lenders are annoyed that the regulator has tied all lenders to the same brush, and have said that the FSA should not have implied that all lenders are to blame for problems such as these. Read more
Cost of home improvements rising for homeowners
August 25, 2008
Homeowners have received more bad news recently, after a report showed that the cost of home improvements has rocketed over the past couple of weeks. This comes at a particularly bad time, as many homeowners who are unable to sell their homes due to tighter mortgage lending conditions and falling house prices have decided that they may as well stay put and improve their homes to suit their needs rather than selling up at a low price and moving on. Read more
What are payday loans for?
August 25, 2008
Have you even reached the middle of the month, when payday is still a couple of weeks off, and encountered some form of emergency where you need to raise finances that you simply will not have available until payday? This is something that has happened to many people, and something such as an unexpected bill, an emergency repair, or even an unexpected event can result in the need to find money when payday still seems a long way off. Read more
Consumers not getting effective advice from some mortgage advisors
August 25, 2008
With mortgage borrowing costs currently high and availability of mortgages very low, it has become increasingly important for consumers to obtain effective and high quality advice when it comes to getting a mortgage, and in order to do this many are turning to mortgage advisors. However, according to a recent report many consumers are being failed by mortgage advisors who are giving out the wrong advice to those seeking information. Read more
NatWest threatened cancer victim with repossession
August 22, 2008
A household name bank has been accused of being inhuman after it was found that it had threatened a cancer victim with repossession for failure to pay a loan. The seventy year old widow ran into problems paying her loan after being diagnosed with cancer, and she contacted the bank to see if they could help under the circumstances. Until then she had put her cottage up for sale, but had to take it off the market so that she could focus on her treatment. Read more
Halifax mortgage entry fee comes under fire
August 22, 2008
Leading high street lender Halifax has recently come under fire after announcing that it has introduced a mortgage entry fee on its mortgage products amounting to around £245. New borrowers taking out a mortgage will not be charged this fee, and many officials have expressed anger that the bank is fleecing people financially at a time when mortgages are already very expensive and hard to come by. Read more
Consumers looking at ways to reduce mortgage repayments
August 21, 2008
A number of mortgage brokers have said that many consumers have been looking at ways to reduce their mortgage repayments by remortgaging to different deals that could work out cheaper on a monthly basis. Many homeowners have found it increasingly difficult to cope with their mortgage repayments as costs have become higher, and rising living costs, bills, petrol prices, and food costs have contributed to the difficulties that many homeowners have been facing recently. Read more
50% drop in house sales in one year
August 21, 2008
The housing market has been experiencing major problems over the past few months, with sales activity hitting rock bottom and house prices plummeting. A recent report has shown that house sales over the past year have dropped by around 50%, further indicating the housing downturn is getting worse. There are a number of factors that have contributed to falling house sales, and estate agents have reported very poor sales figures over recent months. Read more
The benefits of an unsecured loan
August 20, 2008
There are many different loan types available these days, and consumers that are looking for finance can choose a loan that caters for their individual needs and circumstances. There are loans available for all sorts of people, including homeowners, non-homeowners, and even those with bad credit. It is important that you find a loan that is suited to your needs and your circumstances before you apply otherwise you risk wasting your time applying for a loan that you are not eligible, and also damaging your credit as a result of rejection. Read more
Is an interest only mortgage a good idea?
August 20, 2008
For many consumers and lenders the idea of an interest only mortgage is a worrying one, as these mortgages are often seen as higher risk mortgages, and are frowned upon by some lenders who refuse to offer them in the current, riskier financial climate. However, for some people there may be no other option apart from an interest only mortgage, and this is because the repayments on a capital and interest mortgage – also known as a repayment mortgage – are simply too high to afford. Read more
Central bank keeps base rate on hold again
August 18, 2008
The Bank of England has announced that the base rate will be kept on hold for the third consecutive month following this week’s Monetary Policy Committee meeting. The decision has come as no great surprise to most analysts and economists, who had been predicting that the base rate would stay at 5% amidst fears over soaring inflation levels. Inflation now stands at 3.3%, and this is far higher than the government target of 2%. Read more
Searching for the right loan
August 18, 2008
In the past finding the right loan could be a difficult and time consuming process, even though credit conditions were pretty relaxed and there was a wide range of loan products on the market to choose from. These days things have changed for the worse when it comes to finding the right loan, with the global credit crunch resulting in such tight credit conditions that the whole process has become increasingly difficult and time consuming, particularly for those with less than perfect credit. Read more
Sharp rise in mortgage fees
August 15, 2008
According to a recent report there has been a sharp rise in the cost of mortgage related fees over the past year, making affordability for potential buyers even more difficult. The rocketing fees are likely to further impact on the slowing housing market, with even fewer buyers able to get onto the property ladder. Over the past year mortgage fees have gone up by around 20%, and many consumers will find that they have to shell out thousands of pounds simply to get a mortgage, and then may high interest rates and put down a large deposit on top of these fees. Read more
One in four buyers pulls out of buying a home
August 15, 2008
The situation in the housing market has been going downhill rapidly over recent months, and estate agents have reported very poor sales figures, with many sellers finding it difficult of even impossible to sell their homes. Many would be buyers have fund that they are unable to get a mortgage to buy a home due to the tighter credit conditions that have come about as a result of the global credit crunch. Many others have decided not to take the plunge because they are fearful that house prices could continue falling once they have purchased the property. Read more
Bank of England claims that many will be able to cope with increased repayments
August 10, 2008
The Bank of England has stated that whilst many homeowners are soon due to come off cheap fixed rate deals over the coming months, many will be able to cope with the rise in repayments. Over one million homeowners are due to come off cheap fixed rate deals in the coming year, but the Bank of England states that many of them will be okay when it comes to dealing with increased repayments. Read more
How long will it take for the mortgage market to settle down?
August 9, 2008
According to recent reports the mortgage industry in the UK could take several years to settle down, and industry officials have said that conditions in mortgage lending will never be as relaxed again as they have been over recent years. These relaxed conditions and the days of easy credit were brought to an abrupt halt late last summer, as the global credit crunch winged its way to the UK from the United States, and began to wreak havoc in the mortgage and finance industries. Read more
Housing market still in bad state say house builders
August 9, 2008
Over recent months the housing market has been going through turmoil, and the sale of properties has plummeted. This is because credit conditions have become much tighter, and this has resulted in fewer people being able to get a mortgage. It has also been made worse by falling house prices, as many would be buyers are nervous about taking the plunge at the moment because they fear house prices could fall further after they have purchased the property. Read more
How a home improvement loan could help you
August 9, 2008
We’ve all heard about the problems that have dogged the housing and mortgage markets of late, and for many homeowners and would be purchasers this is causing real problems. Homeowners are now often finding that selling their home has become increasingly difficult, and those wishing to move are experiencing huge delays in terms of selling their homes, as well as being beaten down in price. Read more
Borrowers accused of late mortgage payments by Northern Rock
August 8, 2008
Thousands of mortgage payers have been falsely accused of failing to pay their mortgage on time by ailing high street bank Northern Rock. The Rock, which recently became the victim of the first run on a British bank in 150 years, accused thousands of its customers of failing to pay their mortgages on time. The customers received letters stating that their mortgages were overdue and asking them to get the matter sorted out as quickly as possible. Read more
Many landlords deciding to sell up
August 6, 2008
According to a recent report an increasing number of landlords in the UK are deciding to sell up, with a number of factors thought to be responsible for this increase. The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors has stated that the level of new landlord instructions fell to the quarter ending October 2007. Officials from RICS also stated that amongst the factors responsible for the increase in the number of landlords selling up were higher interest rates and tighter credit conditions amongst lenders due to the credit crunch. Read more
Are you thinking of approaching a mortgage intermediary?
August 6, 2008
One industry official has recently stated that whilst more and more people may be thinking of approaching a mortgage intermediary for help with finding a suitable mortgage, many may find that the number of deals that these brokers have are not far more restricted than they have been in the past, which could in effect result in less choice and more expense. Read more
Brokers report on new remortgaging trends
August 6, 2008
A number of mortgage brokers have recently reported a new trend with consumers that are looking to remortgage. According to some mortgage brokers many of those that are coming to remortgage are opting for longer term mortgages, taking the loan over a longer period of time such as thirty or thirty five years instead of the usual twenty five year term. This is helping many consumers to keep their mortgage repayments costs down at a time when household budgets are being affected by rising living costs, petrol prices, and food costs. Read more
Brokers angry over lack of deals from lenders
August 5, 2008
Many consumers as well as many different industries have been affected by the global credit crunch, which made its way to the UK last summer. Credit conditions have become far tighter, consumers have struggled to get finance, lenders have struggled to fund their mortgage lending operations, and the wheels of the mortgage lending industry have come close to grinding to a halt. Recently a number of lenders have tried a new tactic, by offering better deals to consumers that go to them directly rather than going through a middle man in the form of a broker. Read more
Try before you buy housing seems a success
August 5, 2008
Most of us are only too well aware that there has been a slump in the sale of properties in the UK over recent months, with many people afraid to take the plunge due to falling house prices. However, property developers are hoping to aid the recovery of the housing market in terms of sales by allowing consumers to try the property out before they make any commitment to purchase. It is thought that this could help to sway many unsure potential buyers, particularly older buyers that may want to know more about the property or area before they reach a decision. Read more
Mortgage approval levels hit fresh low
August 4, 2008
According to recent figures mortgage approval levels for new home purchases in June fell to a fresh low, exceeding the poor approval levels that were seen in May. The report showed that compared to May there was a further 23% drop in mortgage approval levels in June, with the number of approvals falling from 27,499 in May to 21,118 in June. The figures come from the British Banker’s Association. Read more
First time buyers - do they benefit more from buying over renting?
August 3, 2008
A recent report has suggested that although house prices are falling, mortgages have become more expensive, and credit conditions are tighter than ever, many first time buyers could still be better off purchasing a property rather than renting a home. Many first time buyers have been put off purchasing a property because of the high cost of borrowing and difficulties in getting finance, and many have had to turn to renting instead. Read more
Property sector faces toughest times in thirty years
August 3, 2008
Officials from the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors have recently stated that the UK’s property sector is facing its toughest challenges in thirty years, as house prices plummet and house sales figures go through the floor. Estate agents books are filled with properties that have been left unsold, with the global credit crunch continuing to bite and make it harder for consumers to borrow, and consumers being more cautious about buying due to expectations of further falls in house prices. Read more