Taylor Wimpey has described UK housing market conditions as “significantly better” than a year ago. In a trading update covering 1st July to 4th November, the group said a gradual improvement in mortgage availability and a recent increase in housing starts was contributing to positive sentiment. The firm has not experience the usual seasonal slowdown [...]
The financial crisis has not changed the attitude of investors towards green and ethical investments, new research has discovered. In a poll of financial advisers just 18% said the economic downturns has impacted on the attitude of clients towards green and ethical investment. This is compared to 85% of advisers who said the crisis has [...]
Abbey has captured 20.5% of the UK mortgage market. The share is up from 16.3% of gross mortgage lending during the six months to the end of June 2009. Impressively, the bank’s prudent approach to lending meant that arrears of three months or more stood at 1.34% in the third quarter of the year, compared [...]
Despite a dip in mortgage lending during the third quarter of 2009, banks and building societies expect the availability of mortgages to improve in the months ahead. According to the Bank of England’s latest Trends in Lending report, a net balance of lenders expect mortgage availability to rise “somewhat” during the final quarter of the [...]
According to the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR), City bankers will receive an estimated £6 billion in bonuses for this year, compared with £4 billion for 2008. The estimate comes despite public outrage against bonuses after a year of multi-billion pound bailouts within the banking sector. However, the CEBR did point out that [...]
Equity Bank has secured the accolade of Africa’s microfinance bank of the year for the second year running. The Kenyan microfinance provider was announced as the winner at the 2009 African Bankers Awards in Istanbul, Turkey. Equity knocked out other leading contenders to take the award, including Accion, Nigeria, Blue Financial Services of South Africa [...]
Ethical bank Triodos increased its lending in the UK by nearly one third in the first half of this year. Current lending by the bank rose to £223 million, with a further £82 million in loan commitments that have yet to be drawn down. This £305 million total represents an overall lending increase of 29% [...]
Ecclesiastical Investment Management was named the Best Ethical Investment Provider at the 2009 Investment, Life & Pensions Moneyfacts Awards. Sue Round, EIM’s head of investments, said the company was “thrilled” to be awarded the accolade. “Not only does it reflect the excellent fund performance and high levels of client service we have achieved over the [...]
HSBC is boosting the UK mortgage market with extra cash for buyers with a 10% deposit. The bank is promising to increase mortgage lending in this category by £500 million, taking its total commitment for 2009 to £1.5 billion. The move will be particularly helpful to first-time buyers, many of whom have been excluded from [...]
Britain’s level of debt increased again the second quarter of this year, with almost double the level of borrowing compared to the first quarter of 2009. Consumers borrowed £5.5 billion between April and June, nearly twice as much as the £2.9 billion borrowed between January and March, said financial advice site unbiased.co.uk. Savings levels grew [...]
New research from the Financial Services Authority (FSA) puts the number of homes in repossession in the three months to the end of June at 13,610, representing a 9% fall on the previous quarter. However, the figure is 23% up on the same period of 2008, although the regulator says the sharp rise in repossessions [...]
In its August 2009 survey, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) reports that for the first time in over two years, a net balance of chartered surveyors saw rises, rather than falls, in house prices. The net proportion of RICS members reporting price rises actually stood at 10.7%, the highest result since May 2007 [...]
A new report from Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) is predicting that UK house prices could fall significantly over the next 18 months. According to the Nationwide Index, house prices have risen 8% since the beginning of March; however analysts at JLL see the current rally as irrational and are forecasting a W-shaped recovery of the [...]
Housebuilder Redrow has reported a 54% drop in sales income over the year to the end of June. The developer sold 2,113 homes, down 43% on last year’s total, with the average selling price falling 12% to £137,400. The group says it has refocused on a new strategy under chairman, Steve Morgan, who rejoined the [...]
The Halifax house price index shows the value of the average UK home increasing by 0.8% in August compared with July, to £160,973. According to the lender, prices have now improved for the second consecutive month and for four of the first eight months of 2009. The change eases the annual rate of decline to [...]
The annual Top 50 World’s Safest Banks list for 2009 has been published with the HSBC and the Nationwide Building Society rated 18th and 46th respectively. The two banks are the only two UK financial institutions to make it into New York-based Global Finance Magazine’s annual Top 50 list, which is in its 18th year. [...]
Mortgage lending activity in Scotland has begun to stabilise, the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) reports. In the second quarter of 2009 there were 11,400 house purchase loans taken out across the region, a 50% rise from 7,600 during the previous three months, but nevertheless 39% below the figure for a year earlier. The increase [...]
Persimmon has joined Bovis Homes in reporting signs of stabilisation in the UK housing market, with selling prices holding their own across the UK and sales ahead of expectations during the summer months. According to the group, the mortgage market and the downward pressure of valuations on prices have both shown signs of improvement, although [...]
In presenting its interim results Bovis Homes has reported signs of house price stabilisation, during the second quarter of 2009. However, the housebuilder describes the UK market as remaining “fragile” with “mortgage valuations continuing to place downward pressure on negotiated prices”. The company completed 754 homes during the first six months of the year, compared [...]
House building in England has surged, with figures from the Department for Communities and Local Government showing a 63% quarterly rise in the number of new starts. During the three months to the end of June work began on an estimated 29,980 homes although the figure fell 9% short when compared to the same period [...]
Phone fraudsters stealing bank card pins
Fraudsters using a phone scam to trick bank card holders into revealing their pin numbers stole £750,000 in the first four months of this year. This is the same amount stolen through this scam in the whole of last year. The fraudster telephones a bank customer, often someone elderly or vulnerable, telling them that their [...]
FSA rules out ban on interest-only mortgages
Speculation that the Financial Services Authority would ban interest-only mortgages as part of its Mortgage Market Review has proved to be unfounded. However, lenders will be required to monitor the performance of the investment product taken out by the customer to repay the mortgage at the end of its term. Investments are performing poorly because [...]
Bank of England may end free in-credit banking
A director of the Bank of England has warned that official intervention could be considered to end the ‘dangerous myth of free in-credit banking’. Andrew Bailey has already spoken out against free banking in relation to the mis-selling of financial products. In a speech made available to media, he reiterated his concern, saying that it [...]
Bank of England votes against more economic stimulus
The Bank of England voted against a further round of quantitative easing, at its latest Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting. Just one member, David Miles, voted for further asset purchase to encourage growth in the UK economy, while the other eight members voted to keep the Bank’s quantitative easing programme steady at £325bn. The minutes [...]
Catalogue debt growing says helpline
Calls from people concerned about their debts with mail order catalogues accounted for more than 12 per cent of all calls received by National Debtline last year, compared with just 8 per cent in 2007. More people were concerned about catalogue debt than about payday loans, mortgage or rent, according to the Money Advice Trust [...]
Homeserve faces mis-selling investigation
HomeServe, which provides emergency insurance cover and domestic repairs to households in the UK, is to be investigated by the Financial Services Authority (FSA). Issues over the possible mis-selling of household emergency policies were uncovered last October during an internal review at the Walsall-based company. Homeserve’s call centre staff were found to be selling ‘Complete [...]
OFT warns Wonga over debt collection methods
Payday loan company Wonga used aggressive and misleading methods to collect debts from customers, the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has found. Wonga sent letter and emails to certain customers suggesting they had committed fraud and threatening to report them to the police if they did not act in the way Wonga suggested. The company [...]
NS&I re-launches investment account
National Savings & Investments (NS&I) has re-launched its Investment Account at a higher interest rate than it previously offered. The account now offers 0.75 per cent before tax, compared with between 0.2 and 0.3 per cent previously, depending on the account balance. Deposits and withdrawals on the account can no longer be made at Post [...]
Rightmove reports property downsizing trend
Two in five property owners planning to sell in the next year are planning to ‘trade down’, compared with one in four who plan to ‘trade up’. A survey by property website Rightmove found that moving to a smaller home is the main reason for moving in nine out of the ten regions in the [...]
More people failing to save for retirement
The proportion of people with no pension savings has grown from 20 per cent to 22 per cent over the past year, according to Scottish Widows’ latest survey. The pension provider surveyed 5,200 adults in the UK, aged 30 or over, and earning at least £10,000 a year, for its annual review of pensions. Ian [...]
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