Mortgages

Barclays cuts offset mortgages by 0.50 percentage points

Barclays is cutting its range of Offset Woolwich mortgages by up to 0.50 percentage points from Tuesday, 5 April, which could help homeowners repay their mortgage earlier and make them more tax-efficient.

‘Free to leave' homeowners driven by rises in monthly payments

According to recent research carried out on behalf of first direct, mortgage holders who have come to the end of their current mortgage deal and are ‘free to leave' appear more sensitive to a rise in their monthly payments than a rise in the Bank of England Base Rate.

Rising mortgage costs spell confusion for Brits

The price of arranging a mortgage has risen over the last 18 months, making it harder for consumers to gauge the total costs involved when applying for a loan.

Tenant demand soars in the North and Central England

Tenant demand has soared in the North and Central England over the past year, while the South and London have remained broadly flat.

First time buyers - Road blocks and ways forward

With only around 200,000 First Time Buyers (FTBs) per annum, under half (400,000 to 500,000) of those recorded in more typical market conditions, it would seem that many hundreds of thousands of ‘wannabe' buyers have been prevented from buying.

Mortgages - better protection for European consumers

The financial crisis has shown the damage that irresponsible lending and borrowing practices can have on consumers and lenders, as well as the financial system and the economy at large.

Skipton re-enters buy-to-let market

Having temporarily ceased buy-to-let lending in 2009, Skipton Building Society is returning to this market with new two and three-year fixed rate mortgages.

Mortgage approvals by mutuals increase in February

Mortgages to the value of £1.7 billion were approved by mutual lenders in February. This is 23% higher than the £1.4 billion approved in February last year. Gross mortgage lending by mutuals was £1.5 billion in February, compared to £1.2 billion in February 2010.

Leeds 10-year fixed rate mortgage with only 20% deposit

Leeds Building Society has launched the only 10 year fixed rate mortgage in the market that is available up to 80% LTV, at a highly competitive rate of 5.99%. Furthermore, there is no higher lending charge and 10% capital repayments are allowed each year, without penalty.

Northern Rock makes further mortgage rate cuts

Just ten days after its last round of rate reductions, Northern Rock has further decreased interest rates in its Everyday mortgage product range with effect from today, 25 March 2011.

Brokers’ positive outlook on the BTL market

A new survey gauging brokers' expectations of the buy-to-let market has painted a positive outlook for the coming year.

Leeds Building Society to help more first time buyers

Leeds Building Society will provide mortgages to thousands more homebuyers as it looks to increase lending by 40% in 2011, to £1.4bn. The UK's 5th largest building society, which announced record results last month, will continue to design products specifically for first-time-buyers through its range of shared ownership mortgages.