Reserve release boosts Lloyds profits October 28, 2021 The release of reserves set aside to deal with an expected wave of pandemic-induced defaults boosted Lloyds’ profits. Profit before tax at Britain’s biggest mortgage lender in the three months to September climbed around £1bn compared to the same period last year. Lloyds’ bottom line was raised by the release of over £80m in reserves [...]
Santander beats forecasts following strong UK performance October 27, 2021 Spanish bank Santander smashed profit expectations for the third quarter driven by robust lending activity in its mortgage unit. The lender pulled in more than £1.4bn in pre-tax profits in the year to September, up nearly 400 per cent. Over the same period last year, profits were just £299m. A red hot UK housing market, [...]
TSB turns down ‘£1bn merger approach’ from Co-Operative Bank October 24, 2021 Co-operative Bank’s £1bn-plus offer for TSB has been rebuffed by its Spanish owners. Sabadell’s board decided to reject the offer at the end of September. The deal would have created a high street lender with 340 branches and over eight million customers, according to Sky News, which first reported the acquisition attempt. This would encompass [...]
House sales surged by more than two-thirds in September October 21, 2021 There were 160,950 residential transactions last month, considerably higher than last year, but the market is expected to slow following the stamp duty holiday stimulus. The provisional seasonally adjusted estimate of UK home transactions in September was up 68.4 per cent on September 2020, according to HMRC figures. There was a 67.5 per cent leap [...]
UK banks’ earnings season is tough one to call October 20, 2021 Wall Street’s biggest banks have reaped the rewards of a booming deal environment, the release of loan loss reserves and swelling deposits. Goldman Sachs, Bank of America and JPMorgan all flexed their muscles as they kicked off US earnings season last week. Now, it is the turn of their British pretenders, starting tomorrow with the [...]
Energy efficiency requirements may slow housing market October 19, 2021 The housing market may be stalled by government plans to require buyers to improve their new homes’ emergency efficiency under their mortgage terms. Property Mark, the trade body that represents letting agents, said the requirements – which have yet to be set out in detail – could initially deter people from moving homes. Mortgage lenders [...]
Energy efficiency requirements may slow housing market – CityAM : CityAM October 19, 2021 The housing market may be stalled by government plans to require buyers to improve their new homes’ emergency efficiency under their mortgage terms. Property Mark, the trade body that represents letting agents, said the requirements – which have yet to be set out in detail – could initially deter people from moving homes. Mortgage lenders [...]
4.5x borrower’s earnings: ‘Risky mortgages’ rising fast, mostly in Wandsworth, Walthamstow and Croydon October 18, 2021 South London is the UK’s hotspot for high-risk mortgages – with more than 6,300 mortgages written at 4.5 times the borrower’s earnings or higher in the last year, according to new research shared with City A.M. this morning. Bank of England guidance says mortgages are considered ‘high-risk’ if they are lent at 4.5 times the [...]
Find your new home by the riverside at Leaside Lock, East London’s newest neighbourhood October 18, 2021 A new collection of contemporary studios, 1, 2 & 3 bedroom apartments in Bromley-by-Bow is launching 13th November, available with the London Help to Buy: Equity Loan* scheme on selected plots. As the prices in nearby Bow, Hackney Wick, Bethnal Green and London Fields have dramatically risen in recent years, many first-time buyers are finding [...]
NatWest to launch first eco-friendly loans as part of new £100bn green funding pot October 13, 2021 NatWest said this morning it plans to bring £100bn to green funding to the market by the end of 2025 and the City bank will also roll out its first eco-friendly business loans. The bank stressed its strategy is to help small firms capitalise on the drive to tackle climate change. The pledge sees the [...]