Mortgage News

Lending for house purchase increased slightly from April to May, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders. Loans for house purchase increased by 4% in volume to 52,700, and by 2% in value to £7.9 billion; although both were 44% lower than May last year.

Statistics published last week by the BoE are not for bespoke Equity Release products, but for all re-mortgages for purposes other than a new house purchase.

As the global credit crunch tightens its grip on the UK housing market and industry experts predict we are yet to see the worst, the equity release market continues to buck the trend and prosper.

Cheshire Building Society is offering a Shared Ownership mortgage for those struggling to get on the property ladder.

Abbey is reducing the rates by up to 0.20% on a number of its 75 per cent loan-to-value fixed rate and tracker mortgage deals.

HSBC head of mortgages Martijn van der Heijden said: "We would whole-heartedly agree that home buyers should shop around and compare the market because more often than not in recent months they would have come to HSBC.

Nationwide Building Society has announced that it is cutting the price of some of its fixed rate and tracker mortgage deals by up to 0.27%.

"There is clearly a lot to be said for peace of mind when it comes to financial products, after all, the King of mortgage protection - the fixed rate - is as popular as ever.

Commenting on the MarketGuard Interest Rate Insurance launch, Louise Cuming, head of mortgages at price comparison site moneysupermarket.com, said:

Commenting on HSBC's headline grabbing 4.99 per cent mortgage offer, Louise Cuming, head of mortgages at price comparison site moneysupermarket.com, said: "HSBC has continually looked to grab the headlines throughout the turbulence in the mortgage markets.

July is set to be a painful month for homeowners with cheap fixed rate mortgages, with £30 billion worth of deals due to finish this month. And a moneysupermarket.com poll of site users reveals 51 per cent of homeowners whose mortgage deals end soon haven't started looking for a new one.

Commenting on the last mainstream lender pulling out of the 100 per cent mortgage market, Louise Cuming, head of mortgages at moneysupermarket.com, said: "The withdrawal of 100 per cent mortgage products by the Bank of Ireland, which includes Bristol & West, has virtually shut the door on anyone buying a house with a deposit of less than five per cent.

A 14% fall in mortgage approvals to 179,000 in May is further confirmation that the market for home loans is shrinking quickly. Just £5.8 billion was advanced to individuals to buy houses last month, compared with £16.9 billion a year ago.

Retirement specialist LV= has launched today a new equity release product - Flexible Lifetime Mortgage - that allows homeowners to draw down funds from the equity in their home when they need to.

The increase in total net lending to individuals in May (£5.4 billion) was below the increase in April and the previous six-month average, according to figures from the Bank of England (BoE).