It is a topic that is very much at the forefront of many contractors minds – whether you are a home owner or looking to take that fist step on to the property ladder – what will happen to house prices?
There is speculation to suggest that London is in its very own bubble – where the seemingly volatile housing market has had little impact on the property prices in London. But then on the other hand, there are suggestions that the house prices in London are ‘overpriced by 500%’, and there will be a drop in house prices by the end of the year.
There are so many conflicting articles in the press; it is difficult to know what or who to believe. Although most articles do suggest that decreases or increases in house prices have very much become a post code lottery, and location certainly is a key driver in terms of price trends.
Some statistics suggest there was a 5.6% increase in house prices in London for the month of March, whereas the Nationwide House Price index suggests an increase of 2.3% for London over the quarter, and the Lloyds House Price Index claims a 1.08% quarterly change. The good news is that London significantly outperformed the rest of the country over this period, with prices up 17% over the last five years, making London statistically the most expensive region, with the outer Metropolitan region showing the strongest growth.
The demand for property in London is greater than supply, so there will always be competition from prospective buyers, meaning vendors can command higher selling prices. This will naturally have an impact on the overall house prices in the coming years.
With this increasing demand, and the house prices here and in the surrounding areas steadily growing, does this mean that London is in its own right a separate market from the rest of the UK? And with contractor mortgage rates decreasing recently is now not the perfect time to buy?
The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has recorded a 14% decline in gross mortgage lending in April. The estimates fell from £11.4bn in March to £9.8bn in April but much of this can be attributed to seasonal demand changes.
Even the 5% drop in gross mortgage lending, as measured between April last year and this year, cannot be used to determine a trend as we had an unusually high amount of time off this year.
CML chief economist, Bob Pannell, commented:
“Statistical noise, associated with extended holidays around Easter and the royal wedding, makes it harder to read the immediate market situation. This represents an unfortunate temporary loss of signal, at a time when it would be useful to gauge the resilience of house purchase demand to economic uncertainties and the pressure on household incomes.”
“Levels of activity look set to remain broadly flat over the near-term. It now seems unlikely that interest rates will rise much, if at all, this year and this should help keep the market on an even keel.”
The markets remaining flat can produce levels of stability that are appealing to contractor mortgage borrowers. The markets do look flat but this remains a vague prediction as we wait for May’s lending data.
Rebecca Sidwell – About the Author:
Article written by Rebecca Sidwell, Senior Mortgage Consultant at Contractor Mortgages Made Easy
To contact us regarding this article e-mail: media@contractormortgagesuk.com
Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/mortgage-articles/whats-in-store-for-house-prices-in-london-4811045.html
According to Foreclosure Defense Secrets, a whopping 112% of American homes faced foreclosure in 2008. That means one in every one hundred and ninety four houses will receive a foreclosure filing!
Are you at risk of foreclosing your house as well?
If you happen to owe mortgage payments, then Foreclosure Defense Secrets is the right book for you! Even if you happen to be paying your bills on time, wouldn’t it be nice to know that even if you happen to lose your income, you’ll still be able to have a roof over your head?
I never thought I would have to worry about mortgage payments because I was a star MVP at work. If I didn’t go to work, the office simply couldn’t function. Unfortunately for me, I never considered that maybe I would get into a car accident bad enough that I simply couldn’t go to work!
After three months of being in the hospital, it was only natural for the company to let me go with a severance pay and while I knew I didn’t have to worry about my mortgage for awhile, the fear started nagging in my brain.
Suddenly, I had no income coming in but my bills still had to be paid on time! My credit ratings would plummet and I suddenly had no future!
Because giving up my house was simply out of the question, I started going on the Internet to seek out answers on how I could keep my house and live a relatively normal life until I found the next high paying job. It took awhile to weed out the random answers from the gold mine, but I’m glad to say that I finally found my answers in Foreclosure Defense Secrets.
You see, in the event that the bank wishes to seize your property, there are countermeasures you can take to make sure that the bank will never win the case. The reason why most homeowners lose their homes so quickly is because they don’t know anything about foreclosure and what the process entails.
The book tells you everything from what to do if you already have a mortgage, what to do if you are sued and how you can readjust your mortgage rate and IRS tax lien. The system also takes you one step further and educates you on what to do should you decide to sell your house as well (as opposed to giving it away to the bank).
The worst thing that can happen to you right now is if you lose your house and cause plenty of trouble to your loved ones. Why not take a moment to read this book and figure out how you can protect everyone’s best interests? Log on to http://bit.ly/BuyForeclosureDefenseSecretsSafelyHere and find out how you can make sure that you will always have a house to live in.
Michelle Pammerson – About the Author:
Michelle likes to help people by writing quality reviews on self help products and post them here on ArticlesBase.com so buyers can make the best decision.
Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/mortgage-articles/foreclosure-defense-secrets-review-never-worry-about-house-repossession-ever-again-4810478.html
If you’re searching to refinance your house loan loan, there are lots of things to take into account. The question you have to ask yourself is, when to refinance home mortgage in today’s economy? According to what your goals are and what your situation is will depend on regardless of whether or not it’ll be clever to refinance. Should you wish to refinance as a way to decrease your interest rate, it can be critical to wait until you are able to get your rate lowered by at least 2% because each time you refinance, it truly is very pricey. Thus, the extra times you refinance, the much more it will backfire on the quantity you might be capable to conserve. Therefore, you only want to refinance once you feel it is completely the very best time to do so. Each and every time you refinance, anticipate to pay out around 3% – 6% in the whole amount of income borrowed for your mortgage (the cost in the house). In the event you do not spend this much when refinancing, you may be having to pay the difference some way or one more, that will ordinarily be through a slightly greater rate of interest for your duration from the term of your new mortgage loan loan that you simply refinance to.
For those who have to have your payments to get a lot decrease simply because you’ll be able to no longer afford your payments, it will be a lot more sensible to refinance to a much longer phrase, even though you’ll be paying additional in interest general, then to just not make your payments. Should you can afford significantly higher payments every month, on the other hand, it’ll also be smart to refinance if it will be the cause of being capable to very own your home significantly faster. The quicker you might be in a position to shell out off your loan, the a lot more cash you preserve in interest. While it really is necessary to pay out off your mortgage as fast as it is possible to to conserve extra revenue in interest, and to not have a mortgage loan payment (which might be a monetary safety to you in case your income decreases, or else you shed your position temporarily), it really is also significant to make sure it is possible to also place at least a little bit of income into cost savings every month in situation some thing happens. Even for those who won’t be able to place pretty significantly dollars into financial savings every month, that cost savings will carry on to accumulate so you will hopefully have the ability to stay out of financial debt, and be able to proceed generating your home loan payments if a monetary emergency or monetary obligation happens.
In case you pretty much very own your house, it’ll not be wise to refinance, even if the current interest rate is incredibly minimal. Mortgage loans tend to be quite large the first part with the expression of the loan. Consequently, toward the end on the expression, you no lengthier pay out fairly significantly in curiosity. When you refinance whenever you are toward the finish of one’s expression, you might wind up paying out a great deal far more interest all over once again. Should you be on a balloon sort of house loan where you are only spending curiosity for your length for the entire phrase for the mortgage, it truly is almost certainly most sensible to wait until the expression ends just before you refinance. Considering that you are only paying curiosity, terms for these sorts of loans are a lot shorter than terms for other kinds of mortgages and consequently, it really is ordinarily best to wait until the term ends should you want to refinance to a several type of loan considering that you’ll have to refinance once the phrase ends anyway to pay off the remaining balance, which will probably be the principal.
Next home purchasers looking for Brisbane home loans have a wide array of functions to select from, like offset accounts and characteristics that enable them to decrease their mortgage loan interest or quickly mix all their accounts directly into one. Other features include:
• Professional Package
• Direct salary credit
• Loan portability
• Offset account
• Redraw facility
Regarding the majority of second home customers, below are two of the most typical inquiries they’ve got in mind:
1. Would it be possible if I buy a fresh house even though I have yet to sell my present household?
Well, you should have bridging finance though this needs to be negotiated before enrolling and signing a purchase contract.
2. Are there several types of bridging loans?
You bet, although each of them is modeled on a short term mortgage loan because rates of interest could be huge and you will be servicing a pair of mortgage loans while the bridging home loancontinues to be active.
Important Hints
In spite of whether you are a trader or not, you certainly want your next property acquisition to be a solid investment move. Below are some areas to consider before selecting your next property:
1. Give Consideration To the kind ofDistrict and property YOU’LL Purchase
A house located in a badly selected vicinity isn’t going to be a good investment. If you are an investor, you may have complications in the coming years should you want to auction off the house. Combining your own personal desires with a bit of market survey might help you hinder complications down the road. The same goes for the sort of residence you would be interested to buy.
2. Implications on Tax
A single thing which actually concerns second-home owners is property tax (which could differ with regards to the area or province). Preparing in advance could help you save a significant amount of money every 12 months.
3. Consider short-ter, Money and long-term financing
A great number of clients establish down payments to pay for their house. Then they provide the remaining portion of the cash through ausing a loan. Be aware that a huge down payment denotes the mortgage will be drop. A house owner can easily utilize the equity in his primary home, borrow from a life insurance coverage, or refinance his car. Check around for other home mortgage alternatives when making use of a home loan to cover the rest of the cost.
4. Look For nontraditional financial Solutions
Buddies can certainly be beneficial if you are funding your second property. There’s always the alternative of getting financial help from associates or family, sparing you from the thousands of dollars worth of bank interest.
5. Secure your Other Residence
Attempting to get protection for your residence must begin even prior to the actual acquisition. Check ups should be done as early as possible to ensure that you’ll have enough a chance to accommodate repair complications. Acquiring title insurance might also be helpful just in case there be problems similar to debt claims on the property after the sale.
The number of purchases for residential land has dropped, a report has revealed.
The number of people who took out home loans and bought residential land in the three months leading up to December 2010 fell.
Earlier this week, the Housing Industry Association (HIA) released its Residential Land Report, revealing that in the last quarter of 2010, the volume of sales fell by 40.4 per cent compared with the same period in 2009.
Findings showed that this is the lowest number of transactions made on residential land for ten years.
At the same time, the value of land grew, with prices increasing by 4.1 per cent in the December 2010 quarter, taking the average price to $194,161.
Matthew King, HIA economist, said: “The escalation in land values highlights an ongoing deterioration in new home affordability driven by constraints on supply.”
As long as the prices keep going up, it is unlikely that enough people will be able to find good home loan deals to stop the number of sales from declining further.
Mr King stated that the expensive value of land causes new housing projects to “sag” due to the weight of the “excessive cost”.
Research director for RPdata.com Tim Lawless also noted the impact of land transactions for the housing market in the country.
He said: “A 40 per cent reduction in land sales points to ongoing weakness in the housing construction sector, which is already very soft.”
Mr Lawless noted the growing gap between supply and demand for land, stating that there is an imbalance between the two at the moment.
Indeed, the latest mortgages report from QBE recently revealed there has been a decline in first-time buyers on the housing market recently.
It showed that of those who are looking to purchase property soon, only 15 per cent of people are stepping on the property ladder for the first time, according to ABC news.
Meanwhile, due to the contraction to the lending market there are only 123 mortgage products currently available to home buyers, down by two-thirds since the collapse of the property market
Roy Morgan found in its monthly survey that 71.7% of CBA customers were satisfied in March, marking the group’s lowest results since 2009.
There are many things to consider when financing a manufactured home. This is particularly true for the first time home buyer. Mortgage terms, interest rates, closing costs, originator fees, the down payment, insurance, and other issues that must be thought through in order to make informed decisions.
Buying a home is the most expensive financial undertaking most people will make in their life. It only makes sense that it should be approached carefully before making a final decision.
Two of the more important things to consider when applying for a manufactured home loan are the loan terms and interest rate. These two aspects of any loan will determine how much you will pay, not only monthly but also over the life of the loan.
One thing to keep in mind is that interest rates are moving up and down everyday in conjunction with market rates. This makes locking in the lowest interest rate something of a guessing game, but since the market follows trends it’s rather easy to see which way interest rates are trending. If they are trending up then it’s a good idea to lock in; if they are trending down it can literally pay to wait until they start to go up again before locking in.
The next decision to make when financing a manufactured home is deciding what type of loan works best for your situation: A fixed rate mortgage or an adjustable rate mortgage (ARM).
For the majority of people a fixed rate mortgage is the way to go. Once the interest rate is locked in it will remain the same for the life of the loan. This means the monthly payment will always be the same making the house payment easier on the monthly budget. About the only drawback of a fixed rate when compared to an ARM is the initial interest rate at closing, with a fixed rate mortgage being slightly higher.
The ARM, or adjustable rate mortgage, has the singular advantage of having a lower initial interest rate. This can mean a lower monthly payment through the first term of the loan but since it is an adjustable rate that can change once the term is up. If interest rates go up so will the monthly payment, much to the surprise of the homeowner. About the only time an ARM makes sense is if you don’t plan on being in the home for very long, other wise stick with a fixed rate loan for the financial piece of mind it brings.
Deciding on the term, or length in years, of the loan is another important consideration. For fixed rate mortgages the two most common are 15 and 30 year terms. Many lending institutions also offer 20 and 40 year fixed rate loans.
Adjustable rate terms offer an initial fixed rate of 3,5,7 or 10 years. Once the first term is up the interest rate will adjust to whatever the current market rate is at. Depending on the terms of the loan the interest will continue to adjust at set periods of time as was agreed upon in the loan terms.
Another factor that will help determine your monthly payment and in some cases the interest rate is the size of the down payment. Most lenders want a down payment of at least 20% of the total value of the home being bought. This allows the new homeowner the opportunity to get into a home with a certain amount of equity already there and avoids the mortgage insurance for all loans that don’t meet the 20% requirement.
This doesn’t mean that you have to have a 20% down payment as many lenders will help prospective homeowners get a loan with a smaller down payment, but there can be additional fees, a higher interest rate, and the aforementioned mortgage insurance that will raise the monthly payment.
When you are getting ready to sign the final contracts be sure to read through everything carefully. There could be clauses, stipulations, and hidden fees that weren’t considered during the review process before closing. There are two clauses that you need to wary of; a balloon payment at the end of the term and any “pre-payment penalties” that may occur if the mortgage is paid off early.
Financing a manufactured home is much the same as financing a conventionally built home. The same considerations need to be made during the loan process to ensure that the mortgage fits your financial needs.
Once you have determined the type of loan program that suits your needs, the next step for your mortgage professional (MP) is to begin to secure documentation from the borrower and third party entities, coordinating inspections, appraisals, survey’s, etc. In the mortgage industry this is called “home loan process“. We will discuss what exactly is involved in the processing of the loan and break it down in to five sections. Three of which will be covered in this article.
An additional step that your mortgage professional will have taken is to have priced your loan and advise you on whether you should “lock-in” you interest rate. Since pricing and rate lock information are very important aspects of your loan, I will save this topic for another discussion. For the sake of this particular conversation, we will assume that your MP has provided you with a favorable rate, your loan has been locked, and the processing has begun.
Insight: What does a rate lock mean? When a rate is locked, it means that you are committed to that particular rate and you and your MP have the allotted days to close the loan. Your typical lock period is 30 days, but can go up to 45 days and as low as 15 days. Anything over the selected lock period will typically cause your rate to increase. As I mentioned, we will talk more at length about this topic and pricing in the articles to come.
Behind the Scene – On to processing
Now that your loan application has been signed and you have submitted the required documents, your MP begins the processing. Depending on the office set up, some loan officers turn the file over to a processor, someone designated to handle the file from that point on, or out source the processing to a company that specializes in mortgage processing, or they may process the file themselves.
Section 1 – File Submission
Your loan package is submitted to the lender. Here the lender will begin preliminary underwriting. In finance terms, underwriting means that the lender will analyze the credit risk of the borrower. By this time your MP should have requested your financial documents, identification information, supporting documentation regarding your financial stability, and all necessary loan apps and disclosure information related to the loan process. It is important to have all this info ready and submitted to your MP so there is no delay for the lender to review the file.
There are times when underwriters request additional information from the borrower depending on the situation. Since all loans and borrowers are different, the information that is requested, if any, will vary. This is called a condition, and we will discuss this is section three.
Section 2 – Third Party Documentation
In all home loan transactions there is third party involvement that must be coordinated through out the process. These parties include, but are not limited to appraisers, surveyors, insurance agents, Title Company, attorneys, inspectors, etc. These industry partners help with assuring the lender that the property meets the lending criteria. With a typical home loan transaction, all lenders will require this information before the lender will fund the closing of the property. Depending on how your MP organizes their work, and what lenders require at the time of file submission, will determine when these industry partners are contacted.
Section 3 – Conditions
Meeting conditions is another term used in the mortgage industry. A “condition” is a item of information that the underwriter feels they need in order to satisfy the risk level assessments. Conditions will vary. Sometimes there may be a lengthy list of conditions or just one that your MP may have already anticipated, for instance an updated appraisal or bank statement or contract. What ever it is, these conditions must be meet before the underwriter will sign off on the file and move it to the closer. There is much more to cover about conditions, so come back next week so we can finish this topic
In an economy dominated by consumer debt and doubt, the principle of healthy skepticism has snowballed into an avalanche of outright paranoia. The market has proven itself far flimsier, far more fickle than we’d hoped, and in the wake of its wavering reliability, many people are choosing to hold fast to their funds and equity rather than risk the unpredictability of weighty financial decisions. In the wake of our floundering economy, reverse mortgages as well as countless other major financial commitments are not even considered for their merit.
Enter accomplished actors Pat Boone, Fred Thompson, and Robert Wagner. They’ve been making noise, news, and movies for many years now, each in his own respective sphere. But recently, all three have come together in a common cause, becoming spokespersons for reverse mortgages and their benefits. They’ve offered their celebrity to bring credibility to a financial opportunity that, under proper circumstances, could be a godsend to seniors faced with foreclosure, mounting medical expenses, or a myriad of other financial ailments.
A far cry from the classic hollow celebrity endorsements, these gentlemen are promoting awareness and education so that seniors can know their options and make responsible decisions with their equity. Boone defined his goal as spokesperson, “…to assist… in an effort to reach and educate seniors about the benefits of reverse mortgages so that they are able to make better informed financial decisions.” Both Wagner and Thompson similarly echoed his sentiments in their own statements.
Bear in mind, they aren’t trying to discourage that healthy skepticism; loans of any kind can be tricky business, and it’s crucial to know exactly what you’re getting into and how it complements your situation. Reverse mortgages are no exception to the rule, but they’re also not the scams that some skeptics make them out to be. They’re very serious commitments of capital, but when used properly, they can be incredibly beneficial to seniors seeking to tap into their equity without sacrificing their homes.
It’s true that the market is fickle, and its eccentricity seems to have a taste for utter ruthlessness. And consumers, quite reasonably, have become very conservative and very wary with their finances. But our triad of actors has come to remind us that paranoia is no substitute for education and well-balanced planning. If you’re a senior with untapped equity, perhaps a reverse mortgage would be a wise decision for you. Or perhaps not; every situation is different.
But Boone, Thompson, and Wagner are not coaxing consumers into taking out irresponsible loans. Rather, their counsel urges the courage and good sense to at least explore the financial options and find out both their benefits and limitations. Even if a reverse mortgage doesn’t seem sensible now, it can’t hurt to know more about it. There’s nothing to lose and knowledge to gain. And in an unreliable market like ours, knowledge sure can’t hurt.
Aarkstore.com announce a new report through its vast collection of market research report :
UK Mortgage Intermediary Distribution 2010
http://www.aarkstore.com/reports/UK-Mortgage-Intermediary-Distribution-2010-118965.html
Introduction
2010 proved to be another challenging year for the overall mortgage market and for the intermediary sector in particular. Intermediaries had to deal with the declining volumes of business, falling market share as a result of the focus on direct distribution, and uncertainty over the shape of proposed regulation of mortgage distribution.
Features and benefits
* Presents findings from Datamonitor’s Intermediary Distribution Survey to highlight the key trends and issues facing intermediaries.
* Provides an overview of the main developments in the mortgage market and intermediary sector in 2010.
* Analyzes the market context in which mortgage intermediaries operate.
* Provides forecasts for the value of gross lending conducted via the intermediary channel, and for intermediary market share.
Highlights
The mortgage intermediary sector continued to contract in 2010, with many member exiting the industry due to a lack of viability. This was the result of gross lending volumes falling across all lines of business, adversely affecting income levels. However, the sector is now leaner, fitter and more efficient as a result of these changes.
Intermediaries remain pessimistic, expressing concern about poor consumer demand, the weakness of the economic recovery and stagnant property prices. They also feel that their share of the market will continue to fall, and are less inclined than last year to expect the value of business they handle to increase.
Brokers are adapting their business models to survive in the current climate and to address the impact of dual pricing. Fee charging will start to supersede commission-based models, allowing intermediaries to advise on the whole of the market. Diversification into other products and services, such as financial planning, has become commonplace.
Your key questions answered
* Gain an insight into the views, opinions and concerns of intermediaries.
* Understand the consequences of the ongoing downturn in the mortgage market for the intermediary sector.
* Use Datamonitor’s forecasts to help plan your future distribution strategies.
Table of Contents :
Overview 1
Catalyst 1
Summary 1
Executive Summary 2
Difficult market conditions for mortgage intermediaries persisted throughout 2010 2
There are several different distribution channels for mortgages in the UK 2
The number of intermediaries continued to fall in 2010 3
Trend: Datamonitor predicts tough conditions for intermediaries for many years 4
Insight: intermediary-sourced lending will grow modestly under the neutral forecast 4
Trend: intermediaries are less hopeful about the state of the market than they were last year 5
Insight: brokers believe that a recovery is further away than before 6
Trend: intermediaries have become more pessimistic about their own prospects 6
Insight: the proportion of brokers who believe they will do more lending in the coming year has fallen 7
Trend: brokers are changing their business practices to reflect the new reality 7
Insight: brokers are starting to charge upfront fees 7
Trend: lenders are directing their efforts towards direct distribution 9
Insight: brokers feel they are losing market share to lenders 9
Trend: broker incomes are continuing to fall 10
Insight: there has been an increase in the proportion of brokers reporting falls in product commissions 10
Defining the Intermediary Sector 22
Difficult market conditions for mortgage intermediaries persisted throughout 2010 22
There are several different distribution channels for mortgages in the UK 22
The number of intermediaries continued to fall in 2010 23
The industry is now leaner but also fitter 24
Half of intermediaries report having no more than 500 clients 25
Individual brokers have seen a slight upturn in activity 26
Mortgage volumes remained steady in 2010 26
There has been an overall increase in the value of mortgages arranged by brokers 27
Individual brokers saw a fall in the value of mortgages arranged in 2010 28
Buy-to let lending was the least badly affected category of mortgage in 2010 29
The share of lending claimed by brokers has fallen drastically since 2007 and 2008 31
Quarterly lending arranged by intermediaries is two thirds lower than at the top of the market 32
Intermediary lending has fallen at a greater rate than total market lending 33
Intermediaries choose providers on the basis of rate and level of support 34
Rate, reliability and quality of service are all key to choice of lender 34
Procuration fees are of lesser importance than rate and service-based factors 35
Rate, speed and service all play a role in persuading intermediaries to switch lenders 36
Intermediaries appear to be only mildly concerned about key aspects of the market 37
Commission levels are a cause for slight concern 37
Concern with receiving adequate support from networks has declined over the last two years 37
The mortgage market is concentrated in the hands of a few large providers 38
The big banks have increased their dominance of the mortgage market since the banking crisis 38
Intermediaries are dependent on a select few lenders 39
Market Context 41
The lack of credit availability is still restricting lending 41
The aftermath of the credit crunch continued to hold back activity in 2010 41
The first time buyer market remains badly affected by the lack of mortgage finance 42
A sizeable proportion of consumers are still being refused credit 42
Consumer demand for mortgage finance was also subdued in 2010 43
A lack of both demand for and supply of mortgage finance resulted in low lending levels in 2010 44
2010 was a less turbulent year for mortgage networks 45
Far fewer networks found themselves in difficulty in 2010 than in 2009 45
Some networks have seen considerable changes in their AR numbers 46
Remortgaging activity continues to be hit by the low base rate 47
Remortgaging flatlined throughout 2010 47
The lack of consumer demand for remortgaging is confirmed by Bank of England data 49
Remortgaging is likely to remain low throughout 2011 49
The FSA is still in the process of reviewing the regulation of the mortgage market 50
The FSA has published a consultation paper on distribution and disclosure 50
Residential valuations in March this year were 7% higher than the same period last year, according to Connells Survey and Valuations. They reported that this was the fourth month in a row with an increase in valuations over the same period a year ago.
Q1 2011 had 16% more valuations than Q1 2010, and we saw an increase in the number of first time buyers (FTB’s) getting valuations, in February there was an increase of 21% and in March it was up 34% year on year, indicating an increase in FTB’s entering the housing market.
Business development director at Connells Survey and Valuation, Colin Dorman, commented:
“The real barometer of the health of the housing market is activity and this is showing signs of picking up – with a welcome boost in first-time buyer demand.”
“The government’s new FirstBuy scheme should provide added relief for a limited number, but the real lifeblood of first-time buyer market is mortgage finance, and we still need lenders to do more to fan the flames of recovery.”
This could be an early indication of growth in the contractor mortgage market. Demand has not wavered as first time buyers still wanted a home, it was the supply of credit that was holding back the market. Credit has come back slowly, but this was to ensure we did not repeat the mistakes that lead to economic collapse in 2008.
In other news, all product and arrangement fees have been removed from two, three, and five year fixed rate mortgage deals from ING Direct. Their deals were already competitive so this will create fierce competition in the mortgage market place.
Mortgage director of ING Direct, Julian Hartley, stated:
“We have been seeing increased speculation about Bank of England Base rate increases and this is already feeding through into more enquiries about fixed rate products.”
“Our economists are advising us that when rates do rise, they may do so more steeply than many pundits are predicting. It is interesting to note that historically when rates do start to increase it is at a faster pace than expected.”
“We are looking to expand our mortgage business and it makes sense to increase the appeal of our fixed rate products at a time we predict they are going to be more in demand.”
As a company ING direct are not normally contractor friendly, but these competitive forces have a tendency to filter down into contractor mortgage products.