News Tag: equity
August 16, 2009
The housing market downturn has left up to 3.5 million Britons unable to move, according to research from John Charcol.
The mortgage broker estimates that one third of UK households with residential mortgages are stuck in their properties because falling prices have eroded the amount of equity they hold and restricted access to mortgage finance.
The firm has calculated that around two ...
Homeowners pinned down by shrinking equity
by Gill Montia
April 1, 2009
For the ninth consecutive month UK homeowners paid back more of their mortgage debt than was borrowed.
Before the credit crisis Britons tended to use their homes as banks, withdrawing equity for home improvements and to meet a variety of other expenses, including "champagne moments" such as holidays in exotic locations.
Recession Britain tells a different story with mortgage borrowers fearful of negative ...
Britons repay £8bn of mortgage debt
by Gill Montia
December 12, 2008
New research from Durham University shows the extent to which some UK homeowners are exposed to the credit crisis because their lifestyles have been funded by withdrawing equity from property.
The study, which examined the borrowing patterns of over 8,000 households between 2001 and 2005, revealed that in any year around 40% of homeowners increased their mortgage borrowing, despite having not ...
Mortgage equity withdrawal kept families afloat
by Gill Montia
November 3, 2008
Analysts at Citigroup are predicting that negative equity could afflict three million (one in five) UK households as the property market downturn continues and the economy enters a recession.
The forecast is based on a 30% peak to trough fall in house prices and a current negative equity estimate of around 0.5 million.
The figure compares with a record 1.8 million households ...
Negative equity could afflict three million households
by Gill Montia
October 3, 2008
Homeowning Britons have stopped using their properties as banks, according to figures from the Bank of England.
For the first time since 1998, consumers have become more focused on paying off their mortgages rather than remortgaging to fund their lifestyles, or consolidate debts.
In the three months to the end of June, the UK's mortgage borrowers increased the amount of equity held in ...
Britons stop using houses as banks
by Gill Montia
September 22, 2008
Consumer group, Which?, is warning pensioners that using equity release as a quick-fix for financial pressures in retirement can be dangerous.
Equity release schemes can provide a lump sum or regular payments in return for taking out a mortgage on a property, which does not have to be repaid until plan holders die or sell their property.
Interest accrues on the amount ...
Which? warns equity release no quick-fix
by Gill Montia
July 31, 2008
Standard & Poor's (S&P) is predicting that one in seven UK homeowners will face negative equity over the coming 12 months.
Figures from Halifax and Nationwide in April show a 9% year-on-year decline in UK house prices and the credit rating agency expects a further slide of 17%, over the coming year.
Research by CACI shows that around 70,000 ...
One in seven homeowners could face negative equity
by Gill Montia
July 28, 2008
LV= (formerly Liverpool Victoria) has launched a new equity release product.
The friendly society's Flexible Lifetime Mortgage allows homeowners to draw on the equity in their homes, as needs arise.
It also provides a 15-year guarantee on the maximum amount that can be withdrawn, which will be honoured regardless of future trends in UK property prices and interest rates.
The plan is open to homeowners aged ...
LV= launches lifetime mortgage
by Gill Montia
July 22, 2008
Friends Provident is urging homeowners to review their plans for financing retirement, if they have been banking on raising cash from property to provide a nest egg at the end of their working lives.
The firm's head of pensions, Jeremy Ward, warns that if house prices continue to fall, people could find themselves in serious financial difficulty with both negative equity ...
Home ownership no longer a pension option
by Gill Montia
