Rents on private accommodation fell by 0.6 per cent last month, to an average of £707, according to the latest Buy-to-Let Index from LSL, a provider of residential property services. The agency suggests that the fall is likely to be temporary as it is related to an increase in the number of tenants deciding to [...]
Gross mortgage lending fell to £10.5bn in January, 12 per cent lower than the total for December. However the figures represent a year-on-year increase of 10 per cent, the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) said. January was the sixth consecutive month of higher lending compared with the previous year. Home loan approvals also increased in [...]
The cost of moving house is 69 per cent higher than it was in 2001, according to Lloyds TSB, with estate agency fees, mortgage fees and stamp duty responsible for most of the increase. A typical house move cost nearly £9,000 in 2011, £3,632 more than it did a decade ago. Some regions have experienced [...]
HSBC has announced plans to lend more than £15 billion in mortgages this year, with £3m of this ring-fenced for first-time buyers. This should provide mortgages for up to 150,000 home buyers during 2012, including 27,000 people buying their first home. The sum amounts to 11 per cent of all the mortgage borrowing predicted for [...]
In a move that could cause sales of first-time buyer properties to rise sharply early next year, the current exemption on stamp duty will not be extended as hoped. In his Autumn Statement yesterday, the Chancellor said that this concession has proved ineffective in increasing the number of first time buyers entering the market, therefore [...]
The latest house price figures from Nationwide Building Society contradict yesterday’s news from the Land Registry that house prices have fallen over the past year. Nationwide today said that house prices are ‘surprisingly resilient’ with November’s figures showing a year-on-year increase of 1.6%. In contrast the latest Land Registry figures showed a 3.2 per cent [...]
The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has today reported mortgage lending remained weak in December. However, the month is traditionally a quiet one as prospective buyers opt to wait until the New Year to purchase a home. The number of loans approved for those buying a new home stood at 39,000 during the month – [...]
The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has today reported mortgage lending remained weak in December. Mortgage lending fell by 6% in December compared with November, said the Council. According to the CML, mortgage lending totalled £11 billion - this was 18% lower compared with December 2009 - when buyers were rushing to beat the end [...]
The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) is predicting that the housing market will remain subdued in 2011, due to uncertainty surrounding the economy and the ongoing mortgage rationing by lenders. Over recent times, demand has been weak as many buyers have adopted a “wait and see” approach as uncertainty continues to surround the economy and [...]
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has suggested the UK property market could experience a double dip. In its latest World Economic Outlook, the IMF highlighted that despite Government efforts to boost the housing market and encourage first-time buyers, UK house prices could still be in line for “further correction”. The IMF was referring to the [...]
UK house sales rose in February, according to HM Revenue & Customs. The month saw 58,000 transactions completed on properties worth over £40,000, up 14% from January. The total fell well below December’s tally of 103,000, when sales activity clustered as the end of the stamp duty holiday loomed, but showed a significant improvement on [...]
The Pre-Election Budget has been delivered today by Chancellor Alistair Darling with items such as stamp duty changes confirmed. The Chancellor said stamp duty will be abolished on house purchases up to £250,000. The change, which will apply this year and next year, means 90% of first-time buyers will not pay the duty. Furthermore, Mr [...]
The Pre-Election Budget will be delivered today by Chancellor Alistair Darling but he has repeatedly said there will be no “giveaways” ahead of the general election. What we can expect to see, though, are more details of how the Government expects to trim the budget deficit. Mr Darling has previously pledged to halve the budget [...]
Banks would be encouraged to lend more easily to home buyers if stamp duty was changed to work like income tax, a mortgage expert has claimed. Catherine Hearnden, director of MyMortgageDirect, said stamp duty should be calculated relative to the house being purchased. “I think it should work like income tax, where it is staggered [...]
With the stamp duty holiday due to end on 31st December, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) is warning that a return to the previous structure of the tax could have a detrimental affect on the UK’s fragile property market. According to the body, regions that are already lagging behind in the recovery will [...]
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. [...]
With the stamp duty holiday for purchasers of properties worth up to £175,000 coming to an end in December, Halifax has calculated that 31% of homebuyers in England and Wales have benefited from the concession. In September of last year the Government raised the threshold at which 1% stamp duty is paid from £125,000 to [...]
Entrepreneur, James Caan, has launched an attempt to kick-start the UK property market in conjunction with property portal, Look4AProperty.com. Look4AProperty Money is offering interest-free loans to cover costs such as stamp duty and legal fees, with access to the scheme through a UK-wide network of selected estate agents. According to Mr Caan, who is best [...]
Homebuyers are being reminded that time is slipping away for the stamp duty holiday on properties worth up to £175,000. The levy was suspended in September of last year when the Government raised the threshold at which 1% stamp duty is paid from £125,000 to £175,000, creating an opportunity for homebuyers to save up to [...]
Latest figures from HM Revenue and Customs show completed housing transactions rising to 60,000 in March, up from 43,000 in February. News of the 40% increase adds to other recent evidence that the UK housing market is on the road to recovery and while house sales traditionally rise in March, when the figures are seasonally [...]
ABI warns homeowners to watch out for subsidence
The UK has suffered the driest 18 months since records and with the south east and east Anglia already officially in a state of drought the Association of British Insurers (ABI) is warning home owners to be aware of the risk of subsidence. Changing water levels in the ground can cause movement in the foundations [...]
Budget brings bad news for pensioners
Changes announced in today’s budget mean that four million pensioners will be worse off. The budget included controversial proposals to lower the income tax allowance for people over 65 to £9,205 from April. This will bring pensioners in line with the general population. The over 65s currently benefit from a more generous tax-free allowance of [...]
Chancellor announces budget that rewards work
Delivering his third Budget, Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne, said that it would help those who aspired to do better for themselves and for their families. ‘Britain is going to earn its way in the world’ he said. He promised far reaching tax reform, creating a system that was simple to understand for ordinary [...]
Nationwide restricts interest-only mortgages
The Nationwide Building Society has become the latest lender to tighten lending criteria on interest-only mortgages, which are estimated to account for around 40 per cent of mortgages in Britain. The building society currently offers interest-only mortgages to residential customers with 25 per cent equity in their property. From tomorrow, only customers with 50 per [...]
The latest official figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that inflation fell to 3.4 per cent in February, from 3.6 per cent in the previous month, according to the Consumer Prices Index (CPI). Using the Retail Prices Index (RIP) measurement, which includes housing costs such a mortgage interest and council tax, inflation [...]
Property prices up 5% in March
UK house prices increased by £3,687 to £236,939 in March, a 4.9 per cent increase compared with the 2011 first quarter. The figures, from Rightmove’s house price index, represent the largest first-quarter rise in property prices since 2004, boosting hopes for an continued improvement in the market for the rest of the year. In London, [...]
Hole in the wall use reaches record levels
The use of ATMs (automated teller machines) increased to record levels last year according to the latest figures from the Payments Council. UK customers made 2.87 billion transactions at ‘hole in the wall’ machines during the year, accounting for total withdrawals of £191 billion, an average of £67 per visit. The represented the highest value [...]
Charity calls for budget to protect families
The Family and Parenting Institute has called on the Chancellor to avoid delivering a ‘Break-Up Budget’ on Wednesday. The charity, which aims to make the UK a better place for families and children, fears that a budget which puts family incomes under further pressure could threaten family life. The divorce rate in England and Wales [...]
Car insurers follow Marmalade in planning ‘black box’ policies
Research has revealed that more than 50% of drivers plan to switch to a black box insurance policy in the coming half decade. The UK’s young driver market leader Intelligent Marmalade (www.intelligentmarmalade.co.uk) is a product from the award winning young person’s car insurance provider Young Marmalade. “We have seen significant improvements in driver behavior since [...]
Chancellor determined to cut 50p tax rate
The question of whether or not to scrap the 50p income tax rate is dividing the coalition government in the run up to the budget on 21 March. Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne is determined to reduce income tax on earnings over £150,000, but the proposal has been met with disapproval by Lib Dem [...]
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