UK mortgage approvals hit highest level in two years August 27, 2019 British high street banks approved the highest number of mortgages for house purchases in over two years in July, according to financial services body UK Finance, in a sign of life in a housing market which has struggled under the weight of Brexit. Read more: London house prices continue to slide under Brexit pressure There [...]
Why you should be worried about the rise of the Bank of Mum and Dad August 16, 2019 The yearning to own one’s home is as British as a piping hot cup of tea, cricket, or a traditional roast dinner, and the UK’s rates of ownership-occupancy have traditionally been among the highest in Europe. Unlike many traditions, this desire hasn’t been dented by the complexities of modern life either. One recent survey revealed [...]
Rabobank profits fall by a quarter as lender hit with charges August 15, 2019 Pre-tax profit at the Dutch lender Rabobank fell by 26 per cent in the first half of the year, the company said today, after it was hit with impairment charges and struggled with low interest rates. Read more: Four lenders awarded £40m from RBS banking competition funds The figures Rabobank’s operating profit before tax dropped [...]
Co-op Bank narrows losses but warns over mortgage competition August 8, 2019 The UK’s Co-operative Bank cut its losses in the first half of the year but said “margin headwinds” due to mortgage competition were holding it back. Read more: Metro Bank share price plummets in wake of profit drop The figures Co-op Bank made a statutory pre-tax loss of £38.5m in the first half, its interim [...]
Rics: UK house prices ‘flatlining’ over no-deal Brexit concerns August 8, 2019 UK house prices are “flatlining” in a weak housing market, according to an influential group of chartered surveyors. A headline price indicator slipped deeper into negative territory in July, according to the latest survey by the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (Rics). Read more: UK house prices ‘tread water’ as they slip for another month [...]
UK house prices suffer surprise July fall as housing market ‘treads water’ August 7, 2019 UK house prices continued to “tread water” in July as they slipped 0.2 per cent month on month, Halifax warned today. However, annual growth rose 4.1 per cent thanks to the housing market’s poor performance in 2018, the bank’s latest house price index found. Russell Galley, managing director of Halifax, said: “The average UK house [...]
Bailey’s FCA is in need of a remit reboot August 2, 2019 Several months ago it felt as if the top job in Britain’s banking system was Andrew Bailey’s to lose. A veteran of Threadneedle Street who is at ease among top City bosses, the head of the City watchdog has been the bookies’ favourite to replace Mark Carney as governor of the Bank of England as [...]
Growth falters as UK house prices stuck in ‘Brexit limbo’ July 31, 2019 UK house prices’ rate of growth slipped in July, falling to a “modest” 0.3 per cent annual rise to stay below one per cent for the eighth month in a row, according to Nationwide’s latest data. However, the 0.3 per cent month-on-month growth outstripped June’s 0.1 per cent to leave the average UK home worth [...]
UK manufacturers gloomy but consumers more upbeat July 31, 2019 Optimism among UK manufacturers has fallen rapidly but British consumers have become more positive, two surveys showed today, in the latest sign of a big divide in the economy. Read more: UK mortgage approvals rise but consumer lending slows Business optimism among small and medium-sized (SME) UK manufacturers fell at its fastest pace in three [...]
UK mortgage approvals rise but consumer lending slows July 29, 2019 Britain’s housing market received a modest lift in June as mortgage approvals increased by more than analysts had expected, Bank of England figures showed today. Read more: UK mortgage approvals hit two-year high following Brexit extension Annual lending growth to UK consumers slowed from 5.7 per cent in May to 5.5 per cent in June, [...]