UK housing recovery running out of steam March 4, 2010 THERE were yet further concerns yesterday over a double-dip downturn in the UK housing market when mortgage lender Halifax reported that house prices fell 1.5 per cent in February, the first decline in this index since last June. The survey, which comes just days after Nationwide reported that UK property prices fell one per cent, [...]
SELLING March 4, 2010 Russell Hunt MANAGING DIRECTOR OF PROPERTY HUNT Q.Dear Russell, we are cash buyers but we keep losing out on houses. I thought cash buyers were supposed to have a better chance. Any advice? A.Buying your home is one of the biggest decisions that you ever have to make and it is also one of the [...]
House prices hit by the big freeze February 26, 2010 HOUSE prices fell back in February for the first time in 10 months as poor weather deterred would-be househunters. Nationwide’s latest monthly survey revealed that prices fell by 1 per cent to £161,320 during the month following a 1.4 per cent rise in January – the largest for five months. Economists warned that although the [...]
Redrow warns on mortgages February 25, 2010 HOUSEBUILDER Redrow slashed its first-half losses following a pick-up in the number of sales and an increase in prices but warned that a lack of mortgages is still causing problems. Completions climbed 21 per cent to 1,266 for the six months to December with the average selling price of homes rising 3.6 per cent to [...]
BUYING February 25, 2010 Camilla Dell MANAGING PARTNER AT BLACK BRICK Q.Dear Camilla, I’m buying a property as an investment and want to split it up into three or four flats to rent out. What is the procedure and the order in which I need to do this? A.The first thing you need to consider is whether splitting the [...]
Redrow reduces losses but warns over mortgage market February 25, 2010 HOUSEBUILDER Redrow slashed its first-half losses following a pick-up in the number of sales and an increase in prices but warned that a lack of mortgages is still causing problems. Completions climbed 21 per cent to 1,266 for the six months to December with the average selling price of homes rising 3.6 per cent to [...]
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. [...]
Q&A: renting February 18, 2010 James Davis MANAGING DIRECTOR OF UPAD.CO.UK Q.Dear James, I need to move for a new job, but I can’t sell my house. I’m going to rent it out for now and see if the market picks up. A friend said I have to tell my mortgage lender. Is this true? Won’t they just make me [...]
Credit card rates soar to 12–year high February 15, 2010 CREDIT card rates have reached a twelve-year high as providers become wary of borrowers inability to repay debts during the recession. The average credit card rate now stands at 18.8 per cent, a four per cent rise from 2006 when increased competition between providers drove rates down. Banks and credit companies face higher pricing for [...]