Osborne could finally be seeing sense over Help to Buy September 27, 2013 Analysts have welcomed reports that Osborne's Help to Buy mortgage backing scheme could be watered down, as data this morning shows house prices hitting a 2008 high. It was reported in City A.M. today that the programme's upper limit – providing mortgage support for homes worth as much as £600,000 could be reduced on recommendation [...]
Watchdog fines Clydesdale for account mix-up September 26, 2013 CLYDESDALE Bank is paying £42m in a fine and compensation to customers after a mix-up in the amount it charged more than 40,000 mortgage clients. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) fined Clydesdale, owned by National Australia Bank, £8.9m for the error, which dated back several years. Clydesdale discovered in April 2009 it had miscalculated the [...]
Regulator fines Clydesdale for botched mortgages September 26, 2013 Clydesdale Bank has been fined £8.9 million for failing to treat its mortgage customers fairly. The Financial conduct Authority (FCA) issued the fine after customers were not informed clearly their rights following the bank's miscalculation of repayments on over 42,500 mortgages. In April 2009, Clydesdale discovered an error in its repayment calculation method for customers [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 26 September 2013 September 25, 2013 FINANCIAL TIMES Nokia asked Elop to give back €18m Nokia’s chairman asked Stephen Elop, the Finnish group’s former chief executive, if he would forgo part or all of his €18.8m pay-off several days ago as the furore over it grew. People close to Nokia said that as pressure mounted over the weekend from Finnish politicians, [...]
Top regulator to keep its eye on hedgie rate risk September 25, 2013 THE BANK of England’s new superregulator will keep a close eye on potential vulnerabilities at hedge funds and in the UK housing market, it said yesterday, despite playing down the risk of a housing bubble. Hedge funds may be particularly vulnerable to sharp upward movements in long-term interest rates, the Bank’s financial policy committee (FPC) [...]
House sales in US pushed up by rising interest rates September 25, 2013 The number of homes bought in the US in August has jumped up 7.9 per cent to 421,000 exceeding expectations of 420,000 and a July figure of 390,000 (revised from 394,000). Despite Fed uncertainty, US residents have still bought more houses, with rising mortgage rates prompting sales. The figure still remains well below the 700,000 [...]
Mortgage deals strike a four year high in August September 24, 2013 THE SURGING housing market has pushed mortgage lending to a four-year peak, according to the British Bankers’ Association (BBA), while lending to businesses remains anaemic. The BBA said that last month its members approved 38,228 mortgages, an increase of just over 25 per cent from the same month last year, highlighting the recent boost to activity [...]
RBS pins hopes of turnaround to profits on rising interest rates September 24, 2013 RISING interest rates would quickly make RBS billions of pounds, the bank’s finance chief revealed yesterday, raising hopes that the economic recovery will boost the taxpayer-backed lender. If rates are hiked one percentage point, incomes would rise £450m in the first year, £640m in the second and £860m in the third. And a gradual rise of [...]
Consumer confidence and personal deposits up as business borrowing increases September 24, 2013 (BBA) Personal deposits have risen by almost five per cent over the year to August, says the BBA. (Release) BBA statistics director, David Dooks said: These figures suggest that consumer confidence is growing. For the first time in four years, annual growth in household borrowing on credit cards and personal loans has turned positive and [...]
Number of mortgages in the UK rise to December 2009 high September 24, 2013 The number of mortgages issued by the BBA was 38.2k in August. The figure was down on expections of 38.6k, following July's 37.2k, but still at a high last seen in December 2009. UK unsecured lending is rising, the BBA have said, although 'There was a fall in total business borrowing levels in August.' Net [...]