Brownonomics makes a shock return November 21, 2011 AT one point yesterday, I had to pinch myself to make sure I wasn’t having a nightmare. Is Gordon Brown still Prime Minister, I asked myself? The reason for my madness, dear readers, was the coalition’s dreadful neo-Brownite plan to part-guarantee 95 per cent mortgages. It was the kind of policy reminiscent of tax credits [...]
Brownonomics makes a shock return November 21, 2011 AT one point yesterday, I had to pinch myself to make sure I wasn’t having a nightmare. Is Gordon Brown still Prime Minister, I asked myself? The reason for my madness, dear readers, was the coalition’s dreadful neo-Brownite plan to part-guarantee 95 per cent mortgages. It was the kind of policy reminiscent of tax credits [...]
House prices supported by rising activity November 7, 2011 HIGHER activity in the property market has propped up house prices, according to two leading surveys of the industry. Yet while the market has perked up, activity remains slow by historical standards, with prices largely remaining flat over recent months. The Halifax reported a surprise 1.8 per cent spike in house prices last month compared [...]
Third way for London 2012 ticket hopefuls May 8, 2012 LONDON 2012 ticket applicants who failed in the first two rounds of sales are to be given first refusal on the next batch of 90,000 seats, which will be released from Friday at 11am. The 20,000 Olympics fans who missed out in the initial ballot and second chance sale will have 31 hours of exclusive [...]
BOOST FOR MORTGAGES November 21, 2011 THE GOVERNMENT will today launch a scheme to encourage first-time buyers to take out 95 per cent mortgages even as new figures show the largest monthly drop in house prices since before the financial crisis. Prime Minister David Cameron and his deputy Nick Clegg will today unveil a plan to “help people get on the [...]
Housebuilders to get £900m subsidy November 21, 2011 THE GOVERNMENT put its balance sheet at the disposal of thousands of would-be homeowners yesterday, unveiling what it called an “innovative” scheme that will see the state underwrite mortgages for buyers of new-build homes. It also announced that it is earmarking £900m in subsidies for housebuilders on the grounds that building homes creates jobs and [...]
NAB’s British business drags down profits May 10, 2012 NATIONAL Australia Bank (NAB), the country’s top lender by assets, yesterday posted record first half earnings as higher trading, fee income and a rising share of the mortgage market countered losses in its UK operations. While NAB and rivals ANZ and Westpac have reported strong headline numbers for the half-year, all saw margins squeezed as [...]
Barclays to offer 90pc mortgages October 26, 2011 BARCLAYS launched a new bid to entice prospective house-buyers back to the market yesterday by offering no-fee mortgages needing only a ten per cent deposit. The bank has refused to offer 90 per cent loan-to-value mortgages since 2008 when it pulled them during the financial crisis, but is now following rivals such as NatWest and [...]
Barclays to offer 90pc mortgages October 26, 2011 BARCLAYS launched a new bid to entice prospective house-buyers back to the market yesterday by offering no-fee mortgages needing only a ten per cent deposit. The bank has refused to offer 90 per cent loan-to-value mortgages since 2008 when it pulled them during the financial crisis, but is now following rivals such as NatWest and [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING May 24, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES EDF warns Hollande on nuclear plant Henri Proglio, chief executive of EDF, has warned France’s new president that he will need to discuss compensation with the nuclear power group if he presses on with plans to shut the country’s oldest atomic plant. Dow Chemical wins Kuwait damages Dow Chemical of the US has [...]