News Tag: value
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
January 28, 2010
The UK's equity release market held steady in the final quarter of 2009, taking into account seasonal factors.
According to industry body, Safe Home Income Plans (SHIP), volumes declined by 1.9% on the previous three months while the value of the average advance showed a 4% increase.
With more homeowners seeking flexible deals, the number of drawdown mortgages sold rose by 5% to 3,057, or 54% of the ...
Equity release holding steady
by Gill Montia
November 30, 2009
Figures from the Bank of England show the value of mortgages approved for house purchases rising for the 11th consecutive month in October, to £8 billion.
The total is up from £7.6 billion a month earlier and compares with a previous six month average of £6.7 billion.
Volumes increased to 57,345, up from 56,205 in September and 18% higher than a year ...
New mortgage lending still nudging ahead
by Gill Montia
November 26, 2009
Being near a top performing primary school in England can add as much as £19,500 to the value of a home, research by Nationwide Building Society has found. Houses near a school where every 11-year-old achieves at least a level four in their Sats exams are worth 11% more than average, Nationwide discovered. However, just 2.4% of primary schools in England achieve this 100% pass rate. A 10% increase in Sats pass rates ...
Homes near top schools worth £20,000 more
by David MastersBeing near a top performing primary school in England can add as much as £19,500 to the value of a home, research by Nationwide Building Society has found. Houses near a school where every 11-year-old achieves at least a level four in their Sats exams are worth 11% more than average, Nationwide discovered. However, just 2.4% of primary schools in England achieve this 100% pass rate. A 10% increase in Sats pass rates ...
November 5, 2009
New research has revealed that property-ladder obsessed Britons are changing their priorities, as a result of the economic downturn.
In a study by insurer Aviva and psychologist Dr Paul Keedwell, 74% of people questioned said they were happy to remain in their current home and 68% admitted to seeing their home as an emotional investment, rather than a money making commodity.
In ...
Emotional value of home ownership revealed
by Gill Montia
September 8, 2009
The price of gold, which is seen as an attractive investment in times of inflation, has briefly hit the $1,000 mark - it’s highest level in six months - before slipping back to $999.0 per ounce.
Gold has been growing in value for the last 8 years and peaked at $1,032 an ounce in March last year. So far this ...
Price of gold hits 6-month high of $1,000
by Kay Murchie
July 13, 2009
Halifax is recommending that "straightforward" home improvements are most likely to offer the highest return in terms of adding value to a home.
According to the lender's research, fuel efficiency and energy saving measures head the list, with the potential for more than double the amount laid out to be reflected in a property's value.
Home security measures and redecorating follow. Garden improvements rank ...
Halifax ranks home improvement returns
by Gill Montia
February 17, 2009
As bank shares continue to plummet, the price of gold continues to soar, with prices last week hitting a seven month high of $953.30 per ounce.
Former editor of The Times, Lord William Rees-Mogg, expects this trend to continue as investors seek to protect themselves against future shocks in the stock market.
"People buy gold when they are nervous about the economy, ...
Gold provides ‘essential insurance’ against financial crises
by David Masters
January 27, 2009
Safe Home Income Plans (SHIP), the body that represents 90% of UK equity release providers, has reported that lending fell by 9% in value and 4% in volume in 2008.
New equity release plans for the year totalled almost £1.096 billion, in terms of value.
SHIP points out that the decrease is far less than that seen in the mainstream mortgage market, ...
UK equity release market shrinks by 9%
by Gill Montia
September 9, 2008
That well-worn estate agents' phrase, "laid to lawn and flower beds" takes on a new meaning in the light of research from Yorkshire Bank.
In its quarterly Homebuyers' Report, the bank has revealed that the average homeowner thinks a garden is worth over £9,000 in terms of the total price of a property.
According to Yorkshire's head of retail, Gary Lumby, recent ...
Home owners dig deep for garden space
by Gill Montia
July 24, 2008
Moneysupermarket.com is alerting homeowners to the fact that the average two-year tracker mortgage is offering increasingly good value.
The price comparison website's weekly credit crunch monitor shows that at the beginning of June, there was little difference between the cost of the average two-year fix and the average two-year tracker.
However, the latest update puts the difference at over 0.5%, in ...
Tracker mortgages provide strong competition for fixed-rates
by Gill Montia
Falling house prices leave home improvers out of pocket
by Gill Montia
June 16, 2008
Zoopla.co.uk, the property valuation website, is suggesting that UK residential properties have lost a combined £300 billion in value since the housing market peaked, in September 2007.
The firm's database contains details of 26 million dwellings and the estimate of each property's value is based on a variety of factors including current asking prices, property characteristics and economic climate.
According to Zoopla, ...
UK residential property loses £1bn a day
by Gill Montia
