UK Mortgage approvals at ten-year low October 25, 2010 MORTGAGE lending fell to its lowest level in a decade in September, the latest figures from the British Banker’s Association (BBA) showed yesterday confirming earlier figures produced by the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) last week. Gross mortgage lending stood at £8bn last month, 10.8 per cent lower than a year earlier. The number of [...]
US foreclosures set for probe as Bernanke admits concern October 25, 2010 FEDERAL Reserve Bank chairman, Ben Bernanke, said yesterday the initial findings of an investigation by US regulators into home foreclosures would be published in November. Bernanke said federal banking agencies were conducting an “in-depth” review of practices at the largest US mortgage lenders as he addressed a joint conference of the Fed and the Federal [...]
New homes attract stronger valuations October 24, 2010 THE new homes market continued to outperform the general market in September despite an increase of almost 300 per cent in the number of homes coming to market, a study showed. The average price of a new home increased 1.3 per cent to £222,561, whereas figures from mortgage provider Halifax indicated that general market prices fell [...]
BUYING October 21, 2010 RUSSELL HUNT MANAGING DIRECTOR, PROPERTY HUNT Q.Dear Russell, I am a first-time buyer, please can you advise me on the buying process? A.Before you have found a property and agreed to buy, you need to make sure that you have your finances all in place. It is also really important to have your solicitor set [...]
PROPERTY NEWS October 21, 2010 HOME BUYERS GO GREEN It appears that Britons’ global conscience is alive and well. A new survey commissioned in advance of Energy Saving Week (25-31 Oct) says that over half of people are attracted to a new home because of its energy efficiency. Well, ok, maybe there is a little bit of self-interest there: the [...]
Mortgage lending is down 7 per cent October 20, 2010 GROSS mortgage lending fell to just £12bn last month, which was the lowest September total for a decade, figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) revealed yesterday. This was 7 per cent lower on September 2009 when lending was £12.9bn and 1 per cent lower on the previous month. The September 2010 figure was [...]
Mortgage lending in September drop October 20, 2010 Mortgage lending fell by one per cent to £11.98bn in September, according to figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML).
Bank of America scare hits stocks October 19, 2010 U stocks posted their biggest loss in two months yesterday on fears banks might be on the hook for billions of dollars in souring mortgage bonds. The afternoon selloff hit investors already reeling from an unexpected credit tightening by China and disappointing financial results from Apple and IBM. The biggest scare came on news that [...]
Bellway sales hit by government cuts October 19, 2010 Housebuilder Bellway reported full year results in line with expectations with uncertainty around the government’s spending review hitting sales. “Sales in the early part of what is traditionally an active autumn selling period have picked up, albeit only slightly, following the usual summer lull,” chairman Howard Dawe said. “It seems that potential homebuyers are awaiting [...]
Enter the corporate entrepreneur: Britain’s best hope for real recovery October 17, 2010 CO-FOUNDER, MARKET GRAVITY THE UK’s recovery from the deepest recession in eighty years is dependent on sustained private sector growth. Corporate earnings may be recovering, but too much is due to cost cutting, not real growth, and this trend is not sustainable. Recent analysis from Market Gravity illustrates that while 75 per cent of FTSE [...]