Mortgages Uncovered

Many people don’t even realise that their mortgage includes an allowance for a mortgage payment holiday, although some lenders will remind you once you are eligible for one.

What it means is that for a set amount of time you don’t have to pay your mortgage payment.  Now that sounds great, however, there are benefits for the mortgage lender too because whilst you are not paying your mortgage the interest is still applied.

Even if you think you may not use it, the flexibility is handy.

Read the rest of this entry »

Yesterday we talked about how housebuilders are feeling the effects of the credit crunch in the mortgage market, however, what can they do?

In India, housebuilders have started to give away cars to get more business, sounds good to me.

However, so far, housebuilders in the UK have resisted following their example or offering large discounts.  As we reported yesterday, Persimmon has even said it will stop Read the rest of this entry »

Now, forgive me if this might sound a little bit obvious, but if there are fewer mortgages available and less mortgage approvals at the moment, then isn’t it going to make sense that housebuilders will also be affected?

Well, investors in housebuilding companies were apparently surprised yesterday at the effect it has had - doh! Read the rest of this entry »

Following the Chancellor of the Exchequer’s meeting yesterday with the Housing Minister, the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) released a joint press release saying that it believes cheaper mortgages are on the way shortly.

Now that the Bank of England has agreed its £50 billion bond scheme to help fund the banks mortgage liquidity, the CML believes this will help increase confidence and stabilise the market.  The organisation also agreed that more should be done to help those struggling with their mortgage repayments to try and avoid a huge increase in repossessions. Read the rest of this entry »

According to Rhiannon Davies, director of ShelterOffshore.com, any potential or current expats are struggling to raise money for international mortgages because of the current mortgage market an credit crunch. Read the rest of this entry »

According to the Building Societies Association, there is still a “very wide range” of options available for those looking for a new mortgage deal.  Although it is true that there are far less products available on the market, there are still some excellent ‘competitive’ products, in particular those on offer from building societies, which consistently appear on the best buy tables. Read the rest of this entry »

Brokers can no longer get the Abbey range of buy to let mortgages as they have withdrawn them and are only offering them direct.  The buy to let range left is a two year fixed rate mortgage and a two year tracker mortgage deal, both of which require a minimum of 15 percent deposit.  All other buy to let mortgages have been withdrawn. Read the rest of this entry »

Earlier today, Bradford & Bingley said that it had seen an increase in the number of customers struggling with their mortgage repayments, however, they also said the buy-to-let market was still doing well.

Before the Annual General Meeting (AGM), Steven Crawshaw, Chief Executive, said more customers had fallen into arrears over the last few weeks, and went on to add:

“We’ve certainly seen the sort of increase that we’d expect given the income strain that is out there. This is a general credit stress, rather than people losing their jobs. There’s a straightforward economic stress coming through the books”

Bradford & Bingley would not say how many of their customers were in arrears and possibly looking at losing their home. As with many lenders, Bradford & Bingley increased their mortgage interest rates and costs over the last few months because of the credit crunch. Read the rest of this entry »

Well, I daresay you’ve already heard much about it, it’s been in the news, on the television, radio, internet and every other medium going.  I don’t even watch that much television but even I’ve seen it three times, heard it umpteen times and am sick of it already.

The Bank of England is in negotiations today with the likes of the Halifax and the Nationwide to discuss providing £50 billion to help ease the mortgage crisis.  Originally, it was thought the money would be on offer in exchange for high quality mortgages but there has also been talk of lower quality mortgages and even credit card debts, which is pretty risky to be using taxpayers money in my opinion. Read the rest of this entry »

That’s the advice according to research from Abbey Mortgages last week.  According to the bank, first time buyers are putting off buying their house and getting a mortgage because of the current crisis and many have said they will put it off for at least twelve months.

Apparently, 67 percent of first time buyers said they would wait for twelve months or more.  Collectively, the 1.1 million first time buyers have around £31 million saved up for deposits. Read the rest of this entry »