FCA to take swift action against firms flouting consumer duty rules, lawyers warn January 29, 2023 The Financial Conduct Authority is expected to take swift action against firms that fail to comply with new rules to protect savers and retail investors, City lawyers have warned. The City watchdog announced a major overhaul to consumer regulation last summer in the new Consumer Duty, which is set to shift greater onus onto companies [...]
The mortgage ‘moron premium’ and why home loans may get (slightly) cheaper despite an expected hike in interest rates January 28, 2023 The Bank of England is expected to increase interest rates next month, making borrowing more expensive for both businesses and individuals. Although the rate decides how much businesses and individuals pay to borrow money, mortgage experts believe that the cost of home loans may actually come down, because the derivatives used by mortgage lenders have [...]
Record profits place TSB on course for £50m dividend but impairment charges rise on recession fears January 26, 2023 TSB Bank proposed a £50m payout to its parent company in the first quarter of 2023 as its yearly pretax profit increased to a record level. Pretax profit in the 2022 financial year rose to £183.5m from £157.5m in 2021, reflecting lending growth, higher interest rates and higher deposit margins. This figure includes the costs [...]
House price sentiment at its weakest in 13 years, as fears of recession blight market January 19, 2023 House prices continued to fall towards the end of 2022, according to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics). The Rics house price balance fell to -42 in December compared to -26 in November, and meant that 42 per cent of surveyors who took part in the survey noted a fall rather than a rise [...]
LendInvest: Property fintech brings Lloyds funding deal to £300m for mortgage market push January 17, 2023 LendInvest has secured a new £120m funding boost from Lloyds Bank today as it prepares a push into the UK’s £1.2tn homeowner mortgage market for the first time. The London-listed property fintech firm said Lloyds had now offered up a credit facility worth £300m after striking a deal for an initial £180m in October to [...]
House prices back on upward march to race past £667,000 in London January 16, 2023 House prices are back on an upward march, sending the cost of the average home in London to over £667,000, a new survey out today shows. Search site Rightmove said today house prices in the capital jumped 0.2 per cent over the last month and 6.1 per cent annually. On a nationwide basis, prices climbed [...]
Why UK banks are not going to cause another financial crisis January 15, 2023 UK banks are better prepared to withstand a jump in home loan defaults, cooling fears of a repeat of the financial crisis, analysts have told City A.M. Strict affordability rules implemented after the 2008 banking crash have strengthened lenders’ loan books, meaning they are well insulated from a potential rise in defaults caused by last [...]
First-time buyers spend 39 per cent of take home pay on a mortgage – Nationwide January 13, 2023 Homes for first-time buyers are at their most expensive as a proportion of take-home pay since the financial crisis. The proportion of monthly income that first-time buyers are having to put towards mortgage repayments is returning to levels last seen in the 2008 financial crisis, according to Nationwide. Nationwide, the UK’s third largest lender has [...]
Londoners face unprecedented rent increases in 2023 as mortgage rates for landlords skyrocket January 13, 2023 Tenants are struggling this January. Along with the rest of the nation, they’re dealing with a cost of living crisis, driven by rising energy prices, and adding to this pressure is the rising price of rent. Moreover, landlords face unprecedented increases in mortgage rates, forcing them to up the rent. Tenants in London have endured [...]
Lender owned by feared investor Elliott appoints ex Close Brothers chief as chair January 9, 2023 A specialist property lender owned by feared investment firm Elliott has snagged former Close Brothers chief executive Preben Prebensen as its chair, the firm announced today.