Leave the buy to let market alone, Britain needs more landlords September 6, 2016 Twenty years since buy to let took off, landlords are now a crucial part of Britain’s housing ecosystem. The private rented sector, accounting for around one in five properties, provides much-needed homes for those people who are not ready to buy or do not want to purchase a property. However, the sector sometimes comes in for stick, [...]
RBS and Lloyds shares tumble after Deutsche downgrade September 5, 2016 Shares in banks RBS and Lloyds tumbled to the bottom of Britain's blue-chip index today following a downgrade by analysts over at Deutsche Bank. RBS slumped 2.99 per cent to 198.30p per share in mid-afternoon trading, while its peer Lloyds fell 1.92 per cent to 59.79p. Read more: Standard and Poor's attacks negative interest rates as desperate and damaging [...]
More than a third of corporate debt is now with challenger banks, but London firms yet to be convinced September 5, 2016 Challenger banks are giving the incumbent players a run for their money, as figures out today show over a third (34 per cent) of UK business mortgages and charges are now issued by the smaller, newer lenders. In particular, 32 per cent of corporate debt is handled by what Avention, which carried out the research, classifies as smaller [...]
Now the Bank of Mum and Dad will consider lending to other people’s children August 30, 2016 If millennials are not able to access the so-called Bank of Mum and Dad, they might find solace in the Bank of Other People’s Mums and Dads. Over a quarter (27 per cent) of parents and grandparents in the UK would consider funding other people’s children in their home ownership ambitions – in exchange for a [...]
Lending to London’s home movers sinks as first-time buyers edge onto the property market August 24, 2016 Home movers are releasing their grip on London's housing market, as data released from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) shows they took out fewer loans in the second quarter. CML said home movers withdrew 6,700 loans in the second quarter, a fall of 37 per cent as compared to the first quarter of 2016. [...]
One Savings bank shares are up nine per cent after releasing “another strong set of results” August 24, 2016 Shares in specialist lender One Savings bank jumped over nine per cent this morning after it released half year resilient results that it said were meeting all its targets. The figures Although statutory profit before tax leapt from £46.6m to £100.0m, underlying profits were less dramatic, increasing from £47.6m to £64.6m. New lending increased by 25 per [...]
Learning the hard way: As the interest on student loans rises further, should parents help their children cut the cost of going to university? August 24, 2016 As school leavers jumped for joy at their A-Level results last week, parents may have had cause to grimace. Despite the government’s emphasis on apprenticeships, a university degree remains a passport to higher paid employment. Nevertheless, the costs of higher education have spiralled in recent years, and students are having to take on much larger student [...]
Bank of America escapes $1.3bn fine after court declines to go back on decision August 22, 2016 Bank of America has dodged a $1.3bn (£990m) fine, after a US court decided to drop the issue. The 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals in New York opted not to reconsider its previous decision to overturn the bumper penalty the bank had been initially slapped with after a jury decided the lender was liable for mortgage [...]
The government’s high-profile Help to Buy scheme has come under fire because extra financial support cannot be used towards deposits August 20, 2016 A government scheme to support first-time buyers has been blasted by political rivals because a so-called "top-up" on savings cannot be used towards the deposit on a new home. Revealed in the pre-election 2015 Budget, the Help to Buy ISA provided a government boost to savings at a rate of 25 per cent. So a saver [...]
Bringing home the bacon: Three ways you can use alternative finance to invest in property August 18, 2016 Property crowdfunding and marketplace lending aren’t for everyone. The former can involve high fees, and you won’t know what your investment is worth without selling it – which can be hard if you’re buying a stake alongside numerous other people. There are risks even with the latter. The property market is very sensitive to the [...]