Nationwide has announced that UK house prices are now at the same level as a year ago. In its latest review of the market, the lender found that the average value of a home rose by 0.9% in September, marking the fifth consecutive monthly increase and taking the year-on-year rate of change out of negative [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) has followed Halifax and Nationwide in reporting a positive outlook for the UK’s beleaguered housing market. Following a “considerable shift” in sentiment, the Rics has abandoned its forecast of price falls of between 10% and 15% for 2009 and is predicting that prices could show a rise over [...]
In the first house price survey covering the whole of July, the Nationwide has reported that the average value of a UK home rose by a seasonally adjusted 1.3% compared with June, to £158,871. According to the lender, the three-month-on-three-month rate of change, which is generally regarded as a more reliable indicator, saw a rise [...]
Monthly figures from the Land Registry show house prices in England and Wales rising in June, for the first time since January 2008. The average cost of a home jumped 0.1% compared with May, to £153,046. However, the increase leaves prices 14% lower than a year earlier and the Registry cautions that the size of [...]
Hometrack has reported that house prices in England remained level in June, as in May, easing the annual rate of decline in values to 8.7%. The housing intelligence firm suggests that a scarcity of homes for sale is propping up prices, with southern England experiencing the strongest market. According to the research, the past six [...]
Recent optimism about the UK’s housing market has been tempered by a report from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) warning that prices could fall further, albeit slowly, during the next 18 months. The firm of accountants is also predicting a very slow recovery, with a 30% possibility that prices will take until 2020 to return to their 2007 [...]
Halifax has reported that UK house prices fell back 0.5% last month, after recording a rise of 2.6% in May. Despite the June fall, the annual rate of decline eased to 15% (down from 16.3% in May) nudging the average property price up to £157,715. Taking a three-month measure the average value of a home [...]
Latest figures from the Land Registry show house prices in England and Wales declining by 0.2% in May, with the average property worth £152,497. While the monthly change remained negative, the rate of fall eased from 0.3% in April and the annual rate of decline fell back to 15.9% compared with 16.2% in April. In [...]
Halifax has reported an encouraging 2.6% rise in UK house prices in May, compared to a month earlier. The increase puts the annual rate of fall at 16.3% (down from 17.7% in April) and the average cost of a home at £158,565. The rise follows three successive monthly falls of between 1.8% and 2.3% and [...]
House prices in England and Wales fell 0.3% in April, according to Land Registry data. The shift left the annual rate of decline steady from March at 16.2% and the average cost of a home at £152,898 or £29,659 less than a year earlier. The North East saw the most significant price fall during the [...]
Nationwide’s latest house price index shows a 0.4% fall in the average price of a home in April. The decline means the average domestic residence is now worth 15% less than a year ago, at £151,861. It also scuppers hopes that the 0.9% price rise reported by the building society in March launched the UK [...]
Hometrack has reported that house prices in England and Wales fell by 0.3% in April. The monthly decline was at its slowest for a year and half that recorded by the housing intelligence firm in March. Figures for this month bring the annual loss to 10.1% and the price of the average home in England [...]
UK house prices are becoming increasingly affordable, especially for those who can stump up a substantial deposit. Research from Halifax shows an improving trend over the past 18 months, in terms of the proportion of earnings spent on mortgage payments. For new borrowers with 30% to put down, the proportion has fallen from a peak [...]
Official figures from the Land Registry show house prices in England and Wales falling a further 2% during February, taking the annual rate of decline to 16.5% and marking 18 consecutive months of sliding values. According to the data, the average price of a house now stands at £153,862, a level last seen in September [...]
The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) has released its UK house price statistics for January, based on mortgage completions during the month. The figures show the average cost of a home falling 11.5% since January 2008, to £195,724. However, the decline in prices eased during the three months to the end of January [...]
The Halifax house price index returned to its usual sombre mood in February, showing a 2.3% fall in the average house price, against a surprise 1.9% monthly rise in January. According to the lender, the value of the average UK residence fell £3,800 during the month to £160,327, a level last seen in August 2004. [...]
M&S Money launches 3% cash ISA
M&S Money has launched an Advantage Cash ISA paying 3 per cent, and which allows transfers in from other ISAs. It can be opened with a minimum deposit of £100 lump sum followed by minimum monthly deposits of £25. The 3% rate is variable, but there is no short-term bonus so the return won’t plummet [...]
Google suspends UK Compare Mortgages site
Google has closed its UK mortgage comparison site which it launched in July last year, after it proved to be less popular than expected. Mortgage comparison sites are designed to allow visitors to compare mortgages quickly and easily without having to visit each lender’s individual site. Google was competing with several well-established comparison sites, including [...]
AA launches ‘black-box’ policy for young drivers
The AA is launching an innovative car insurance policy called Drivesafe which could help younger drivers save up to £850 a year. Younger drivers already pay substantially higher premiums than other motorists and these costs are increasing. A new study by Confused.com suggests insurance costs for younger driver have gone up by 5.7 per cent [...]
ATOL scheme updated to protect online bookers
ATOL, a financial protection scheme managed by the Civil Aviation Authority, is being extended to protect up to six million more holidays a year. The scheme ensures that holiday makers do not lose out financially if a travel company collapses, and that they are not stranded abroad. An increase in the number of holidays booked [...]
Home repossessions lowest for four years
The number of UK homes repossessed fell to 36,200 in 2011, significantly below the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ forecast of 40,000, and lower than 2010 when 37,100 homes were repossessed. With interest rates remaining low and lenders adopting a sympathetic attitude to customers in financial difficulty, repossessions fell to their lowest level since 2007. However, [...]
Monthly pay lasting just 17 days
Workers are running out of money just 17 days after receiving their monthly pay, according to new research by the Halifax bank. This means that the average UK worker spends half the month worrying about money. The study, based on the responses of more than 2,000 adults, found that 10 per cent of workers start [...]
Women disadvantaged by auto-enrolment changes
Government proposals to increase the auto-enrolment threshold to £10,000 could put 1.8 million women at risk of missing out on a pension, the TUC has warned. Under the auto-enrolment scheme, which will be phased in from October, private sector employers will automatically enrol workers between the age of 22 years and the state pension age, [...]
Emergency household repairs company Homeserve is taking longer than expected to get back on track after its operations were suspended last October. The company expected customer numbers to fall by 5% this year but it has increased this estimate to 8% and announced the loss of 200 jobs. It estimates that renewal revenue in 2013 [...]
Sale rumoured for Yorkshire and Clydesdale banks
There is growing speculation that National Australia Bank (NAB) may sell Yorkshire Bank and Clydesdale Bank after the Australian parent company announced a strategic review of the two banks’ operations. The Australian economy is performing well and NAB reported strong profits for the final quarter of 2011 but with the UK economy at a virtual [...]
More women experiencing debt difficulties
Women in Debt, which offers female-focused debt advice, has warned that the number of UK women facing serious debt has grown significantly over recent years. The organisation believes that more women will need advice on solving debt problems in the future because they are building up an unsustainable level of indebtedness. Women in Debt’s director, [...]
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