House prices rose 8.4pc in 2013 January 3, 2014 The end of 2013 saw UK house prices up 1.4 per cent month-on-month, and increasing 8.4 per cent year-on-year. London continued to lead annual price growth, with an increase of almost 15 per cent in the fourth quarter. And things aren't expected to slow down this year. IHS Global Insight predicts price increases of eight [...]
What will December’s house price rise mean for this year? January 3, 2014 The end of 2013 saw UK house prices up 1.4 per cent month-on-month, and increasing 8.4 per cent year-on-year. And things aren’t expected to slow down this year. IHS Global Insight predicts price increases of eight per cent in 2014, with gains across the whole of Britain. Moreover, says chief European and UK economist Howard [...]
Thomas fears dream of riding to Tour victory will never come true May 21, 2014 Welsh cycling star tells Josh Richards he’s contemplating a bold move away from Team Sky AS EVER-IMPROVING road racer Geraint Thomas ponders his future with Team Sky, the Welshman insists even next year’s Tour de France will come too soon to follow in the footsteps of Sir Bradley Wiggins and Chris Froome. Thomas played a [...]
Bank use of Funding for Lending surges but business loans drop March 3, 2014 USE OF the Funding for Lending Scheme by banks surged in the last part of 2013, with nearly half of the borrowings made so far coming in the year’s final quarter. Banks drew down £18.79bn in the final three months of the year, out of £41.92bn in the six quarters the scheme has been active. [...]
Cameron pledges £5,000 for UK homeowners hit by flood damage February 12, 2014 DAVID Cameron said yesterday he would make £5,000 available to every home and business hit by flooding, as gale-force winds disrupted trains, closed roads and cut power to vast swathes of the country. The Prime Minister reiterated his pledge to spend whatever it takes to help get communities back on their feet after heavy rain [...]
Cost of a London home climbs to over £400,000 January 29, 2014 THE AVERAGE price of a London home broke through the £400,000 mark at the end of last year according to official figures published yesterday, while prices across the country continued to grow this month. Two separate surveys – released by the Land Registry and Nationwide – told a familiar story for the residential property market, with [...]
Virgin Money’s profits jump on mortgage loans March 4, 2014 BOOMING mortgage lending drove up profits in 2013 at challenger bank Virgin Money, the lender said yesterday. The bank, which was built out of the remains of Northern Rock, made a pre-tax profit of £179.4m in 2013, up 23.5 per cent on the year. Mortgage balances jumped 17 per cent on the year to £19.6bn, [...]
EasyGroup to take car-sharing idea on the road across the UK February 2, 2014 EASYGROUP is rolling out its car-sharing project across the country, following a trial in London. EasyCar, which has offered traditional rental cars since 2000, started work three years ago on a peer-to-peer car-sharing project in the city. EasyCar Club now has hundreds of car owners and thousands of members borrowing their vehicles in the city, [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 09 April 2014 April 8, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES Heartbleed bug threatens web A flaw has been discovered in a encryption method used on about two-thirds of all websites, including Google, Amazon, Yahoo and Dropbox, potentially exposing web traffic, user data and stored content to cyber criminals. The heartbleed bug was found in the OpenSSL software by a team of security engineers [...]
Housing boom as deals near pre-crisis high February 13, 2014 HOUSE sale volumes hit their highest level in seven years in January, and are now just four per cent below the average seen in the boom years of 2000 to 2007, according to figures out today from LSL Property Services. Last month 73,000 properties changed hands, rocketing up 67 per cent compared with last January. [...]