| Supply starts to outstrip demand The balance between supply and demand shifted toward the supply side as the new instructions net balance outpaced buyer interest for the second consecutive month, says RICS latest UK Housing Market survey. New instruction and new buyer enquiries rebounded in February following a weather skewed dip in January with both net balances turning positive. For the [...] Property market sales figures reveal strength in late 2009 Figures property website Zoopla.co.uk reveal the extent of the property market turbulence during 2009. While property sales in Britain in 2009 were 6.8% lower than a year earlier, Zoopla.co.uk said it was very much a year of two halves. The number of properties that changed hands in the first 6 months of last year (273,015) was [...] Natwest and RBS pledge to help homeowners in arrears NatWest and RBS have announced a new pledge for 2010 to provide real help to residential mortgage customers facing financial difficulty. The Banks commit not to commence repossession proceedings for a full 6 months after a customer first falls into arrears, easing the pressure on those homeowners struggling to meet their mortgage payments. This new pledge comes [...] House prices fall for February House prices fell by 1.5% in February, this was the first decline since June 2009 following seven consecutive monthly increases, Halifax has reported. On an annual basis house prices in February were 4.5% higher, which was the largest increase in the annual rate of change since January 2008. Prices in the three months to February were 1.8% [...] Interest rates stay at 0.5% The Bank of England has kept interest rates at a record low of 0.5%, the 12th consecutive month. The move was expected as any increase in interest rates may prove too much for the fragile economy. The UK economy grew by 0.3% in the final three months of 2009, compared with an initial estimate of 0.1% growth. The [...] Euro interest rates held at 1 percent The European Central Bank (ECB) has kept the eurozone interest rate at its record low of 1% for the 10th month in a row, as expected. The move is welcomed by mortgage holders, however Irish customers may not escape increases in mortgage repayments as many banks may yet raise their variable mortgage rates this month. Permanent TSB [...] House prices continue to rise but 2010 gets off to a slow start House prices rose by 0.3% over February, but Hometrack caution that price rises alone are not indicative of strong foundations as the 2010 housing market gets off to a slow start. February is traditionally a month when the Hometrack survey registers significant growth in the number of sales agreed – over the last eight years the [...] FSA fines and bans Bromley mortgage broker The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has fined Bromley mortgage broker, Dele MacAulay, £115,157 for knowingly submitting nine fraudulent mortgage applications for himself, his wife, and his brother. MacAulay, trading as Dele MacAulay Financial Services, has also been banned from working in regulated financial services. He is the seventh individual to receive a six figure penalty for [...] European Housing Showing Signs of Recovery Signs of recovery are visible in some European housing markets, especially in sales levels and prices, says the latest RICS European Housing Review. A significant number of European residential markets were starting to revive from spring/summer 2009 and further revival is expected in 2010. Low interest rates and reviving economies helped to avoid housing market meltdown [...] John Lewis Effect Set To Boost Croydon Plans to open the second John Lewis ‘at home’ store in Croydon later this year will provide a welcome boost to the town as well as housebuyers and property investors, says Email4Property.co.uk, the online network of estate agents. The average cost of a property in Croydon is currently down 17% on peak 2008 prices to £288,000. [...] Mutual lending figures released for January The value of mutual sector approvals in January was £0.8 billion, and gross lending was £1.0 billion. Commenting on the lending figures, Adrian Coles, BSA Director-General, said: “Although it is not possible to compare lending figures in January to previous periods it is evident that activity was subdued and this has been felt by all lenders. [...] Peak residential prices being achieved in London Prices in central London rose 3.2% in February, the strongest rate of growth in a single month since August 2007, Knight Frank has reported. Prices have now risen by 19% in the last 10 months, and are now only 10% below the market peak in March 2008. In an increasing number of cases, larger houses in [...] January mortgage lending increased Total net lending to individuals rose by £2.0 billion in January. The twelve-month growth rate ticked up to 0.8%, the Bank of England reports. The three-month annualised growth rate was 1.3%, a 0.4 percentage point increase from a revised 0.9% for December. Within the total, net lending secured on dwellings increased by £1.5 billion, above the December increase of £1.2 [...] House prices slip during February The cold weather wasn’t the only thing cauing slips during February, house prices fell by 1.0% month-on-month during the month. A series of one off events were listed as most likely to have contributed to the price drop, most notably the end of the stamp duty holiday, but also the cold and icy weather. However, Nationwide did [...] First Direct launch new tracker mortgage first direct has introduced a new Life Tracker mortgage with a loan to value of 85% at 3.49% above base rate, currently 3.99% (a 75% LTV at 2.89% and 65% LTV at 2.39% are also available.) first direct mortgage expert, Jimmy Kelly, said: “first direct is traditionally recognised for its remortgage products rather than purchase products, [...] Scottish mortgage market recovering House purchase activity in Scotland continued to pick up in the final three months of 2009, according to new data released by the Council of Mortgage Lenders. There were 14,200 loans for house purchase in the fourth quarter (worth £1.6 billion) – up 4% by number and 5% by value from the preceding three months. [...] AIB ‘less inclined’ to take on mortgage switchers AIB Bank, one of the largest in Ireland has said it is ‘less inclined’ to take on new customers who are only interested in gaining a better interest rate for their mortgage. AIB said that it remains open to those looking for a mortage but appears to be changing it’s focus to first time buyers only. Mortgage [...] Threefold Increase in ‘Sale Agreed’ Properties Data from MyHome.ie has shown a three fold increase in the number of ‘Sale Agreed’ second hand residential properties in January 2010 compared with the same month last year. MyHome.ie’s data has seen a consistent month on month increase in the numbers of Sale Agreed second hand residential properties since September of last year, which [...] Weak January for mortgage lending Mortgage lending in January was relatively weak, showing a reaction to the inflated December market and the adverse weather conditions which impacted on activity. The figures, from the British Bankers Association reveal that mortgage lending increased by 4.8 percent annually, with gross mortgage lending at £ 8.0 bn. Gross mortgage lending was much weaker in January; some [...] Home buying goes on-line with auctions Following the success of its first online auction, where 57 properties were sold either in the run up to or during the live online bidding over the weekend, Zoopla.co.uk has announced that it will be conducting further online auctions weekly on its website from Feb 25th onwards. Zoopla.co.uk said that following 75,000 visitors to the auction [...] More innovation needed in home buying and selling A shake-up in how homes are sold, including updating legislation to allow new entrants into the market, could lead to a better deal for house buyers and sellers, the Office of Fair Trading has said. The OFT’s study into home buying and selling found that the housing market remains dominated by traditional estate agents with weak [...] Two thirds of people aiming to be mortgage free by age fifty New research by The Co-operative Bank Mortgages reveals that almost two thirds of mortgage holders (62%) are aiming to be mortgage-free by the time they reach 50 years of age. The findings reveal how paying off the mortgage would change peoples lives with over half of people (52%) stating that they would take more holidays, just [...] Post Office updates mortgage range The Post Office has cut the rates on its fixed and tracker mortgage products. The rate changes will take effect immediately and will coincide with the launch of a new range of 75% loan-to-value (LTV) mortgages. Following cuts to the range at the end of January, the Post Office has further reduced the rates on its [...] Buy-to-let remortgaging activity declines The proportion of landlords remortgaging their investment properties continued to decline in the final quarter of 2009, research from Paragon Mortgages has revealed. Paragon Mortgages’ Financial Adviser Confidence Tracker (FACT) Index, a panel-based survey of mortgage brokers, found that 30% of landlords obtained a buy-to-let mortgage via a financial adviser for remortgage purposes in the final [...] Estate agents react to mortgage lending figures In response to the latest repossession statistics from the Council of Mortgage Lenders, which reports a fall in mortgage lending during January, Peter Bolton-King, Chief Executive of the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) comments: “The Stamp Duty Holiday has been a source of respite for beleaguered buyers who have been trying to achieve something that [...] RSS Software |