Proposed Basel changes could distort UK mortgage market, warns Council of Mortgage Lenders March 14, 2016 Proposed reforms to financial regulations would have “negative and unintended consequences” for the UK mortgage market, the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has warned today. The CML said proposed reforms to Basel rules, a set of global rules adhered to by countries voluntarily, were "unduly harsh" on prime residential and buy to let mortgages. The reforms [...]
Remortgaging activity: Homeowners slow to switch from standard variable rate mortgages to fixed rate mortgages March 12, 2016 Homeowners are failing to lock into low repayment rates by switching from a standard variable rate mortgage to a fixed rate mortgage, research by high street bank Halifax has shown. Although housing transactions in 2014 exceeded the one million mark for a second consecutive year, and fixed rates continue to fall below the standard variable rate, remortgaging activity remains subdued, it [...]
EU referendum: Housebuilders, mid-caps, banks and retail will be the sectors worst-hit by a Brexit, says UBS March 11, 2016 The Brexit debate continues apace – and now UBS Wealth Management has waded in on the argument, pointing out some of the sectors most at risk if the UK votes in favour of leaving the European Union. The good news is fears around Brexit have already been priced into the market, said Caroline Simmons, deputy [...]
Buy-to-let tax changes: A perfect storm for landlords and tenants March 11, 2016 Upcoming tax changes have ignited debate about the role private landlords should play in meeting the UK’s housing needs. Focus has fallen on buy-to-let but, as the Institute for Fiscal Studies, among others, has noted, landlords are taxed much less favourably than home owners. Following last year’s Autumn Statement, which outlined plans for an additional [...]
Aldermore chief executive Phillip Monks says the challenger bank has “plenty of headroom” to grow after posting 88 per cent surge in profits March 10, 2016 Shares in Aldermore Group are down by more than one per cent this afternoon, after spiking earlier today on the news that the British challenger bank had reported a better-than-expected 88 per cent jump in profit for 2015. The bank's chief executive, Phillip Monks, told City A.M. that while the share price moves were "perhaps a little [...]
Aldermore’s share price rises after UK challenger bank delivers record profit as it increases lending March 10, 2016 Aldermore reported better than expected growth in full-year pretax profit as the challenger bank issued more loans and mortgages to SMEs. The bank's share price jumped over 3.5 per cent as markets opened on the news. The figures Aldermore reported profit before tax up by 88 per cent year-on-year to £95m for 2015. The bank delivered [...]
More borrowers opt for fixed rate deals as mortgage rates hit record low March 8, 2016 Mortgage rates have dropped to the cheapest on record, according to figures released by the Bank of England this morning. The overall interest rate on new mortgage lending in the final three months of 2015 fell to 2.71 per cent, the lowest since the series began in 2007. The interest lenders are making on the total stock [...]
Bank of England to offer extra lending to banks around the time of the EU referendum March 7, 2016 The Bank of England today announced it will offer extra lending to banks in the weeks around the EU referendum to stave off the impact of uncertainty on the financial system. Banks will be offered three additional so-called long-term repo operations. They involve swapping cash for eligible collateral, mostly government debt, which is swapped back at a later date. The [...]
Landlords are switching to company status ahead of stamp duty hike and the upcoming cuts in buy to let tax reliefs March 7, 2016 Landlords are increasingly setting themselves up as companies ahead of upcoming tax changes in the buy-to-let market. Tax breaks which allow landlords to claim for wear and tear on their properties and deduct mortgage interest from their overall tax bill are to be cut from 2017. It’s because the government wants landlords to be taxed on [...]
Shawbrook’s share price follows profits higher at the challenger bank, as small business lending and buy to let loans soar March 3, 2016 SHAWBROOK chief executive Steve Pateman has warned the bank is unlikely to see its buy to let loan book grow as quickly in 2016, amid concerns the market is getting out of control. Earlier this year, Bank of England governor Mark Carney said recent developments in the booming buy to let mortgage market posed a [...]