Mortgage News
MoneyExpert.com: HSBC ‘match a fixed deal’ mortgage offer
Sean Gardner of MoneyExpert.com commented: “HSBC has thrown a lifeline to hard-pressed mortgage borrowers today with the offer of matching anyone’s fixed rate deal for another two years.
HSBC offers to match existing mortgage deals
HSBC is making its Rate Matcher mortgage available to all UK homeowners, subject to clear affordability criteria and for a limited period only.
Housing wealth leaves most mortgage customers in a strong position
Data newly published by the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) shows that mortgage balances outstanding are dwarfed by unmortgaged housing wealth held by home-owners.
Bye bye first-time buyers?
Following the withdrawal of Abbey from the 100 per cent LTV market yesterday, and a hike of up to 0.37 per cent on their fixed-rated deals as of tomorrow, all eyes will now be on the Bank of Ireland as the only mainstream bank still offering 100 per cent mortgages through its own lending arm and subsidiary Bristol & West.
Borrowers opt to fix, despite expected bank rate cut
“The UK lending system is in desperate need of a Bank rate cut, preferably hand in hand with a medium-term cash loan of around £20bn to ease the pressure on mortgage lenders, because sky high mortgage costs have already started to jam up the property market..”
Fixed-rate mortgages decline in popularity
The popularity of tracker rate mortgages increased in February as the proportion of borrowers choosing fixed-rate loans fell to 52%, its lowest level since March 2005, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders.
New mortgage deals from Alliance & Leicester
Alliance & Leicester is launching a new range of residential and Buy to Let products, which are available from Tuesday 8 April 2008.
Cover your mortgage against the credit crunch
With news of mortgage arrears, repossessions and redundancies rife, moneysupermarket.com warns consumers to fully insure themselves against the effects of the ‘credit crunch’.
Moneyfacts: Halifax Mortgage Changes
Further to the Halifax mortgage changes, senior mortgage analyst at Moneyfacts.co.uk comments: "This move by Halifax reflects the mortgage changes that we have seen over the last couple of weeks.
Lenders lop off low rates as LIBOR holds high
Three-month LIBOR closed last night at six percent, some three-quarters of a percent over Bank Rate, forcing any lender with a half decent rate to price their trackers high to avoid the stampede of new borrowers looking for the best deal.
The Co-operative Bank withdraw two-year mortgage range
Mortgage commentary from John Barker, Head of Mortgages, Co-operative Bank: “The Co-operative Bank is fully committed to providing quality mortgage products in the current economic climate and developing strong and growing relationships with both new and existing customers.
Legal & General: Bank of England lending figures
Ben Thompson, Director of Mortgages at Legal & General said: “The Bank of England lending figures clearly show that the volume of mortgages taken out for house purchases is dropping, which is a further indication that the credit crunch is tightening it’s stranglehold on the market.
moneysupermarket.com: first direct temporarily withdrawing mortgage range
Commenting on first direct temporarily withdrawing its mortgage range to new customers, Louise Cuming, head of mortgages at price comparison site moneysupermarket.com, said: "This is yet another example of a lender taking action to manage volumes.
Homeowners face mortgage rate shocks
Three out of four homeowners (70%) face significant jumps in monthly mortgage repayments when their fixed-rate deals expire, according to a study by personal finance website Fool.co.uk.
John Charcol: first direct announcement
Drew Wotherspoon of John Charcol comments on First Direct’s decision to stop offering any of its mortgages to people who are not already customers: “In a market that is moving with alarming pace, it is little surprise that First Direct has made this decision.