Surveyors say house shortage is lifting prices February 12, 2014 A SHORTAGE of homes is forcing up house prices across the whole of the UK, according to a leading survey published this morning. The alarming figures follow a separate data release yesterday which showed mortgage-lenders ramping up loans to first-time buyers who are anxious to get on the housing ladder. Demand in the market appears [...]
Lending to first-time buyers rocketed 37pc at end of 2013 February 12, 2014 Better economic conditions and Help to Buy prompted more and more Brits to take steps to become home owners at the end of 2013, according to new data from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML). Lending to first-time buyers jumped 37 per cent in December from a year earlier. Paul Smee, CML director general, said [...]
New regulation to put brakes on mortgage lending in year ahead February 11, 2014 A TRIPLE whammy of regulation is likely to significantly restrain growth in the mortgage market, which remains subdued in comparison to pre-crisis activity. According to research released by the Intermediary Mortgage Lenders Association (IMLA) today, the onset of three new regulatory schemes will significantly dampen the mortgage market. The Mortgage Market Review begins this year, [...]
Challenger Handelsbanken joins boom in mortgage loans February 5, 2014 BRITISH profits at Handelsbanken soared in 2013, the Swedish lender said yesterday, driven by strong increases in business and mortgage lending. Overall lending in the UK increased 17 per cent on the year to £12.26bn. Mortgage lending jumped 29 per cent to £3.58bn, while business lending increased 13 per cent to £8.68bn. As a result [...]
Rate hike fear drives up cost of mortgages January 30, 2014 BANKS are already starting to hike the rates on five-year fixed mortgages, new data has revealed, following hints from Bank of England governor Mark Carney that rates will rise in the coming years. Figures seen by City A.M. show the five-year swap rate, used to calculate the loans, hit 1.7 per cent this month, up [...]
Brussels tries to ban prop trading in UK and Europe January 29, 2014 BANKS face a ban on proprietary trading in the UK from 2017 under European Commission proposals published yesterday, a major shock to lenders who had not expected an outright ban. The proposals will force big banks to set up separate arms for any activity which is not standard retail or commercial banking, and could even [...]
UK house prices jump 8.8pc from a year ago January 29, 2014 Figures from mortgage lender Nationwide have shown that house prices rose 8.8 per cent in January from a year earlier. UK house prices continued their forward march this month, increasing 0.7 per cent – their thirteenth monthly increase in a row – but slowing slightly, after December’s 1.4 per cent rise. This was still [...]
RBS faces £8bn loss after adding £3bn for legal payouts January 27, 2014 RBS SHOCKED investors late yesterday, revealing another £3.1bn hit for mis-selling and poor conduct that could leave the state-backed bank facing a huge £8bn loss. The provisions dragged down RBS shares and rounded off a bad day for the FTSE overall. The lender is now expected to have made a loss of around £8bn for [...]
Lloyds pushes to pay a dividend after boosting lending in 2013 January 26, 2014 LLOYDS is in late stage talks with regulators to allow it to resume paying a dividend, City A.M. understands. A decision is expected to be made by 13 February when the bank reports its full-year results. Lloyds returned to profit in the first half of the year and expects to report stronger figures in the [...]
Letters to the Editor – 27/01 – Carney’s low rates, Bonus cap, Best of Twitter January 26, 2014 Carney’s low rates [Re: Mark Carney has been the luckiest of unlucky Bank governors, Friday] The author puts his finger right on the key point when he highlights the issue of mounting imbalances due to low rates. But by the time the pressures become serious and can no longer be ignored, we will have to [...]