Industry calls to limit lending won’t fix our bust housing system September 13, 2013 It's never encouraging when industry insiders fear that their own sector is overheating. That's the subtext from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), who've called on our central bank to cap annual house price inflation at five per cent. RICS suggest that the Bank of England should intervene, and attempt to curb lending in [...]
Osborne could finally be seeing sense over Help to Buy September 27, 2013 Analysts have welcomed reports that Osborne's Help to Buy mortgage backing scheme could be watered down, as data this morning shows house prices hitting a 2008 high. It was reported in City A.M. today that the programme's upper limit – providing mortgage support for homes worth as much as £600,000 could be reduced on recommendation [...]
Mortgage lending hits 2008 levels even before Help to Buy extension September 30, 2013 THE HOUSING market had begun picking up steam even before the government rushed forward the next stage of its Help to Buy scheme, Bank of England figures showed yesterday. In August, when lenders still believed that the latest set of mortgage guarantees would not be available until January, the number of mortgages approved rose to [...]
It’s time to break the Whitehall silo and put startup discipline into government December 3, 2013 THE CURSE of Norman Lamont makes politicians wary of mentioning the “green shoots” of recovery. But when the data show growth of 0.4 per cent, 0.7 per cent and 0.8 per cent in the first three quarters of 2013, it’s clear. The UK is off life support. Sure, the recovery is heavily consumption-led, with exports [...]
Foxton float set to value estate agent at £650m September 10, 2013 THE PLANNED stock market flotation of real estate agent Foxtons is over-subscribed, a source close to the process said yesterday, indicating interest in the offering may be outweighing any concerns that the London property market is looking overheated. The flotation of the London-focused group, due to happen later this month, has a price range of [...]
Virgin Money is the fourth lender to join Help to Buy October 7, 2013 VIRGIN Money yesterday became the fourth bank to sign up for the Help to Buy Scheme, which from today will offer state guarantees to homebuyers. It joins RBS, Lloyds’ Halifax brand and challenger bank Aldermore in offering mortgages with deposits worth as little as five per cent of the home’s value. However, new figures on [...]
London Report: House prices set to show strong recovery signs September 22, 2013 HOUSE price data set to be released this week is likely to show a strong month-on-month rise for September, pushing the annual increase to a three-year high. The boost, shown in Nationwide data, reflects stronger consumer confidence and a higher employment rate, but is also likely to highlight the dangers of a possible house price [...]
Number of mortgages in the UK rise to December 2009 high September 24, 2013 The number of mortgages issued by the BBA was 38.2k in August. The figure was down on expections of 38.6k, following July's 37.2k, but still at a high last seen in December 2009. UK unsecured lending is rising, the BBA have said, although 'There was a fall in total business borrowing levels in August.' Net [...]
Nationalisation of development land is hindering home building in Britain November 6, 2013 THE Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) regulations quietly dropped on the doorstep of land owners on 6 April 2010, with the property industry greeting the arrival with a weary “here we go again”. Taxes on the development of land, to pay for infrastructure needed as the result of development, have failed dismally on three previous occasions. [...]
New fears house bubble may undermine recovery September 9, 2013 PLANS to pump up the housing market could undo the UK’s progress towards sustained economic growth, economists warned yesterday after the chancellor welcomed the recovery. George Osborne yesterday said the return to growth vindicated his decisions to stick with the deficit reduction plans, and insisted he is working to improve living standards. Analysts praised the [...]