Housebuilders are still a risky bet February 24, 2010 DURING his election campaign, President Barack Obama told voters that America could “build itself out of recession”. That’s just what the housebuilders are hoping they can do. Barratt Developments was putting a brave face on it yesterday, as it reported higher operating margins and strong forward sales. Galliford Try and Kier Group were also cheery. [...]
Fresh fears over global recovery February 23, 2010 FEARS of a double-dip global recession intensified yesterday after a slew of depressing economic news highlighted the fragility of the world economy. Bank of England governor Mervyn King warned that Britain might have to resort to further quantitative easing (QE) if the UK economy deteriorates further. He highlighted the stalled recovery in the Eurozone – [...]
Approvals of home loans drop sharply February 23, 2010 MORTGAGE approvals fell sharply in January in response to inflated December activity and adverse weather conditions, the British Bankers’ Association (BBA) said yesterday. Data from the BBA showed that the number of mortgage approvals for house purchase fell to 35,083 last month from an elevated 45,650 in December, which had been boosted by the end [...]
Mortgage lending at a 10-year low February 18, 2010 GROSS mortgage lending fell to its lowest level in nearly 10 years last month as buyers rushed to complete purchases before the stamp duty holiday ended, the Council for Mortgage Lenders (CML) said yesterday. Total mortgage lending fell 32 per cent to £9.1bn from £13.4bn in December and down 21 per cent on January 2009. [...]
EU extends ABN Amro probe February 8, 2010 EUROPEAN regulators yesterday extended an in-depth investigation into state aid granted to nationalised Dutch banks ABN Amro and Fortis Bank Nederland and temporarily approved a €6.9bn (£6bn) recapitalisation to finance their merger. The European Commission, competition watchdog of the 27-country European Union, said it would assess the combined effect of all the aid and the [...]
Think-tank: the price of homes to jump 20pc January 31, 2010 HOUSE prices are set to rise by a fifth in the next four years as mortgage availability improves and interest rates stay low, although 2011 is expected to be tough, a survey showed. Average prices should grow more than six per cent in 2010 before slowing next year and then rising again in 2012 and [...]
Shared ownership suits City workers, not just teachers January 28, 2010 LONDON house prices might have risen some 5 per cent since last January but as any first-time buyer will tell you, it is tougher than ever to get on the property ladder. With mortgage approvals still below their long-term average and deposits often as high as 40 per cent, even young professionals earning a decent [...]
BBA: Mortgage approvals rise as buyers beat stamp duty hike January 26, 2010 THE number of mortages approved in December reached its highest level since September 2007, the British Bankers’ Association (BBA) said yesterday. Net mortgage lending rose by £3.5bn in December, which was up modestly from £3.4bn in November and above an average level of £2.9bn over the past six months. The number of home loans agreed [...]
Bradford & Bingley liquidation cleared by European Union January 25, 2010 EU REGULATORS yesterday cleared the liquidation of failed British bank Bradford & Bingley after a request from UK authorities, which broke up and partly nationalised the lender nearly two years ago. Hit by a sharp rise in funding costs during the credit crunch, Bradford & Bingley sold its savings business and branch network to Spain’s [...]
B&B, Rock on cusp of bad bank merger January 24, 2010 PART-nationalised lender Bradford & Bingley is on the brink of receiving the go-ahead from the European Commission for its package of UK state aid, in a move that will pave the way for a merger of its toxic mortgage book with Northern Rock’s bad bank. A marriage of Bradford & Bingley and Northern Rock’s bad [...]