News Tag: first time buyer
March 12, 2010
There were 49% fewer house purchase loans approved in January than in December, the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has reported.
According to the body, the steep decline "emphatically demonstrates" the impact of the end of the stamp duty holiday, in December.
First-time buyers recorded the largest drop among house purchasers: in January, approvals were down to 11,300 compared with 24,800 in December.
However, January first-time ...
New mortgage lending plummets
by Gill Montia
February 17, 2010
Latest UK house price statistics from the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) show the value of a typical home up 2.9% in December, compared to a year earlier.
The month saw a 0.8% increase on November, taking the average house price to £200,307 and completing a 2.9% gain for the final quarter of 2009.
However, the three-month ...
Official figures show 2.9% house price gain for 2009
by Gill Montia
February 13, 2010
First-time buyer mortgage approvals hit a two-year high in December as those buying properties costing up to £175,000 rushed their purchases through before the end of the stamp duty holiday.
According to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML), 24,900 first-time buyer loans were sanctioned worth £2.9 billion, leaving both figures up 26% on November.
In December, house purchase approvals in general totalled ...
First-time buyer loans hit two-year high
by Gill Montia
January 25, 2010
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) has today revealed a sharp fall in sales of previously owned homes in the US for the month of December.
The industry body said sales fell 16.7% to an annual rate of 5.45 million units in December, down from 6.54 million the previous month. Analysts had expected a rate of 5.90 million units.
However, ...
US home sales in sharp decline in December
by Kay Murchie
January 3, 2010
Potential first-time buyers on average earnings can now afford to buy a home in nearly four out of 10 regions of the UK, the Halifax has reported.
According to the lender's research, 39% of the UK's local authority districts are accessible to those wanting to buy their first property, compared to 6% when the housing market peaked in 2007.
Halifax housing economist, ...
First-time buyer affordability best in 25 years
by Gill Montia
December 23, 2009
Yorkshire Building Society is responding to the end of the stamp duty holiday by increasing the cashback offer on its first-time buyer mortgages.
From 1st January 2010 the threshold for the tax reverts to £125,000 (from the current £175,000) and to compensate, the lender is returning 1% of the total loan, rather than a set £500.
The enhanced offer applies to a ...
Yorkshire BS raises cashback for first-time buyers
by Gill Montia
December 9, 2009
Potential first-time buyers who are dreading the end of the stamp duty holiday are being cheered on by moneysupermarket.com.
The price comparison website has calculated that the number of mortgage products available to those keen to get a foot on the property ladder has risen to 1,354, up 18.3% on August's low.
The firm's mortgages channel manager, Hannah-Mercedes Skenfield, says: "It is encouraging to ...
Rise in first-time buyer mortgages
by Gill Montia
November 11, 2009
Latest figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) show that in September, one third of first-time buyers benefited from the current stamp duty holiday.
There were 6,200 first-time buyer loans for properties priced between the old starting rate of £125,000 and the temporary threshold of £175,000, representing 32% of 19,700 first-time buyer loans approved.
September 2009 saw lenders sanction 50,600 loans ...
Mortgage lending holds up in September
by Gill Montia
September 2, 2009
A new report from professional advice website, Unbiased.co.uk, show mortgage enquiries from first-time buyers regaining ground, after a slight fall in June.
The firm recorded a 43% increase in July, indicating that some of those aspiring to homeownership are convinced the UK housing market has bottomed out.
Unbiased chief executive, David Elms, comments: “Many first-time buyers who are able to ...
Baffled first-time buyers seek whole of market mortgage advice
by Gill Montia
June 17, 2009
Financial website, Moneyfacts, has named the UK's top mortgage providers in its 2009 awards, which were presented in London last week at a ceremony that recognises the best products and services in the personal finance world.
HSBC swept the board, named winner in the Best Remortgage Provider; Best First Time Buyer Mortgage Provider and Best Bank Mortgage Provider categories.
Its subsidiary, first direct, ...
HSBC shines in Moneyfacts mortgage awards
by Gill Montia
May 14, 2009
Alliance & Leicester (A&L) has launched a new mortgage aimed at first-time buyers with a 15% deposit.
The three-year fix, which is fee free, comes with a maximum loan-to-value ratio of 85%, an interest rate of 5.99%, a maximum loan size of £250,000 and a free valuation.
Latest figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) show first-time buyer purchases at ...
A&L tempts first-time buyers with a 15% deposit
by Gill Montia
May 7, 2009
In its latest First Time Buyer Affordability Review, Halifax has reported a significant improvement in the mortgage payments to earnings ratio.
For the average first-time buyer, mortgage repayments account for 31% of average income, down from a peak of 48% in 2007 and below the long-term average of 37% recorded over the past 25 years.
Furthermore, the house price to average ...
Affordability for first-time buyers below 25 year average
by Gill Montia
April 14, 2009
The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has reported a 4% rise in mortgage approvals for house purchases in February.
During the month 24,300 loans were sanctioned worth a combined £3.1 billion.
The figure compares with 23,400 loans in January worth £3.1 billion but is around one-third of the average February total of 76,000 between 2002 and 2007.
Remortgaging approvals fell by 20% to 35,000 ...
New mortgage lending up 4%
by Gill Montia
January 16, 2009
The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has reported that in November, new mortgage lending continued to fall.
The number of new home loans approved fell 17% on October to 33,000 and was 59% below the level recorded in November 2007.
The outlook for the next few months is bleak, with the CML predicting that lending will fall further.
The organisation's director general, ...
New mortgage lending down 59%
by Gill Montia
January 1, 2009
Potential first-time buyers are in a stronger position to purchase a home than at any time in the past five years.
According to Halifax, the first-time buyer affordability ratio has steadily improved during 2008 and the trend should continue in 2009.
Research from the lender indicates that the average house price to earnings ratio has fallen from a peak of 5.84% in July ...
Affordability ratios soften for first-time buyers
by Gill Montia
December 9, 2008
The Council of Mortgage Lenders has reported that 39,900 loans for house purchases were approved in October, 14% more than in the previous month.
First-time buyers secured 15,400 loans and home movers 24,500. The value of lending was up 10% on September, totalling £5.5 billion.
However, both volume and value were down year-on-year by 52% and 57% respectively.
October remortgage approvals rose to ...
New home loan approvals up 14%
by Gill Montia
November 12, 2008
The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has reported that the temporary rise in the stamp duty threshold, to £175,000, benefited 51% of homebuyers during September.
In the same month last year, when the threshold stood at £125,000, only 22% of homebuyers escaped the tax.
The CML also notes that in September, the number of mortgages approved for house purchases fell 15% ...
New home loan approvals fall 57% by volume
by Gill Montia
November 6, 2008
The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has reported that almost 50% first-time buyers under the age of 30 look for family help to secure their first mortgage.
Financial help from relatives has always played a part in a fortunate minority getting a foot on the property ladder but the need has been increasing; in 2006, only 38% of first-time ...
First-time buyers increasingly rely on family financial support
by Gill Montia
November 4, 2008
Abbey has launched a new type of account aimed at helping those saving for a deposit for their first home.
The First Home Saver account is available to potential first-time buyers aged between 16 and 35.
It pays a variable rate of 8% in return for the commitment to save for a deposit but does not allow partial withdrawals.
Applicants will need ...
Abbey welcomes first-time buyers with 8% savings account
by Gill Montia
September 9, 2008
The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has reported that in July, 47,400 house purchase loans worth £7.1 billion were approved.
The figures are similar to June's but represents a 51% fall in volume and 54% decline in value on July 2007.
Remortgages rose by 14% to 85,000 but in value terms were 16% down on June, at £11.9 billion.
July saw little monthly ...
First-time buyer mortgage approvals fall 48%
by Gill Montia
