Bank of England imposes limits on high loan-to-income mortgages June 26, 2014 The Bank of England has introduced new mortgage controls, in an attempt to contain possible risks to the UK's financial system. New limits will apply from 1 October, and will see that no more than 15 per cent of mortgages issued should exceed a loan-to-income ratio of 4.5. Currently only 11 per cent of UK [...]
British homes gained £7,000 in value in May June 5, 2014 THE UPSWING in house prices shows little sign of slowing according to the Halifax, with a typical house adding 8.7 per cent to its value in the period between May 2013 and last month – and gaining around £7,000 in the last month alone. The Halifax index suggests that UK house prices are now back to [...]
House prices rise five times faster than expected June 5, 2014 House prices rose by 3.9 per cent in May, according to data from Halifax. Analysts had been expecting prices to rise by just 0.7 per cent this month. IHS Global Insight's Howard Archer says the increase "is a real bolt from the blue and at face value unsettling for policymakers." Values in the three months [...]
Queen denies housing bubble exists June 4, 2014 There is no housing bubble, we are all safe from the spectre of another boom and bust. Or so says the Queen’s speech and the accompanying notes the government published today. “My ministers will continue to promote the Help to Buy and Right to Buy schemes to support home ownership,” she said this [...]
Why Britain’s housing crisis risks turning into catastrophe June 3, 2014 THE HOUSING crisis – worst in London, but bad across Britain – is fundamentally driven by lack of supply. For the past five years, we have been building fewer houses than in any peacetime period since before World War One. But house building has been on a downwards trend since the 1960s. Reasonable estimates suggest [...]
Why Britain’s housing crisis risks turning into catastrophe June 3, 2014 THE HOUSING crisis – worst in London, but bad across Britain – is fundamentally driven by lack of supply. For the past five years, we have been building fewer houses than in any peacetime period since before World War One. But house building has been on a downwards trend since the 1960s. Reasonable estimates suggest [...]
UK industry and lending point to broader growth June 2, 2014 DATA released yesterday indicated a broad-based UK recovery, with British manufacturers growing apace, as figures on the housing market suggest recent regulatory changes have dampened a concerning upswing in mortgage lending. Markit and the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS) announced a figure of 57 for their purchasing managers’ index (PMI) in May, the [...]
What you need to know before the open May 28, 2014 With the S&P 500 and Dax posting record highs yesterday, today's expected to see a positive open for European markets. With no significant US data, focus will be on German unemployment, which could push the Dax towards to 10,000 level if it continues to come down. Market expectations that the European Central Bank will instigate [...]
Britain’s mortgage prisoners must act now or face financial meltdown May 22, 2014 IT’s BEEN a busy week in the world of monetary policy. On Sunday, Mark Carney said that rising house prices pose the biggest threat to economic recovery. On Tuesday, the official statistics told us what we already knew – that house prices in London are soaring, by 17 per cent year-on-year. Some homeowners are finding [...]
Homebuying faster than building May 15, 2014 PRESSURE mounted further on Britain’s strained housing market yesterday as a raft of new data showed home purchases soaring at a far higher pace than house building. Mortgage lending jumped by 17.4 per cent in the year to March, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML). The rise means 50,500 mortgages were advanced in the [...]