Mortgages
Woolwich launches leading mortgages
In its second rate reduction this month, Woolwich is reducing rates to exceptional levels on some of its most popular mortgages.
First time buyers need 3 per cent less deposit per month
Mortgageforce has found that the deposits demanded by lenders have been dropping month by month: their average deposit for First Time Buyers has decreased from 28.6% (June) to 25.4% in July and 21.25% in August.
Borrowers put faith in variable rates
Search figures from moneysupermarket.com show fixed rate mortgages are becoming less popular, with more and more people attracted to tracker and discounted rate deals in the currently low rate environment.
Mortgage products slowly start to return
The number of residential mortgages available is slowly increasing, but still the market is dominated by deals for customers with more than a 25% deposit, says Moneyfacts.co.uk.
Most borrowers with mortgage arrears stay in homes
Research published by the Building Societies Association (BSA) finds that the majority of borrowers that fell into arrears in their mortgage over the last two years either have repaid or are currently repaying their arrears.
moneysupermarket.com: CML July lending figures
Commenting on the CML lending figures for July, Hannah-Mercedes Skenfield, mortgages spokesperson at moneysupermarket.com, said; "These figures provide further evidence that the wheels of the housing market are beginning to turn once more.
Mortgage lending rises in July
Although remortgaging remained unsurprisingly weak, lending for house purchase showed its first material annual growth in July for the first time since early 2007, according to the latest Council of Mortgage Lenders' survey.
No surprises from MPC but mortgage rates head south
Ray Boulger of leading UK mortgage broker John Charcol comments on the news that the Monetary Policy Committee has left Bank Rate and the Quantitative Easing (QE) programme unchanged this month.
NatWest and RBS cut the price of unarranged borrowing
NatWest and RBS have announced that they are to significantly reduce the charges for customers who go overdrawn without agreement or exceed an agreed overdraft limit.
first direct new base rate tracker mortgage
first direct has launched a new market leading offset tracker mortgage which tracks the bank of England base rate plus 2.29% for the life of the loan.
HSBC 1.99 per cent discount mortgage rate
Hannah-Mercedes Skenfield, mortgages channel manager at moneysupermarket.com, said; "HSBC has really broken new ground with its sub-two per cent mortgage deal, the first time we have seen rates fall this low in the market.
HSBC offers 1.99% mortgage
HSBC's new mortgage range features its lowest ever interest rate - 1.99 per cent on a 2-year discount loan - available to customers with a deposit of 40 per cent of their property value.
Buy-to-let time bomb as supply and demand gap widens
Research from price comparison site moneysupermarket.com shows there's a widening gap between supply and demand for buy-to-let mortgages.
First time buyer mortgage enquiries increase
New figures from Unbiased.co.uk, the professional advice website, reveal that after a lull in June, mortgage enquiries from first time buyers have once again increased to 43% of all consumer requests in July, making it the top most searched for advice criteria.
Mortgage lending increases
Gross lending by building societies in July 2009 was £2.1 billion, the highest monthly figure this year, but 42% lower than the £3.6 billion lent in July 2008, according to the Building Societies Association (BSA).