Personal Finance Blog
Mortgage Approvals Hit Record Low
Posted 2008-05-1
Figures released from the Bank of England at the end of April confirm that the slowdown in the UK mortgage market continues unabated. As the effects of the credit crunch continue to bite into the economy, mortgage approvals for house...
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Understanding Car Insurance Discounts
Posted 2008-04-24
Trying to save money wherever you can is important to us all. Car insurance should be no different. Do not assume that your agent knows everything about you and your vehicle. Drivers should take advantage of all discounts that many...
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Mortgage Prospects Not as Bleak as Promised
Posted 2008-01-3
Borrowers with good credit records should have very little trouble being approved for a loan, one broker predicts. Andy Pratt, spokesperson for Alexander Hall, remarks that people should not be intimidated by reports that lenders in the mortgage sector are tightening their lending criteria. The effects have mostly been felt by the sub prime sector of the industry. Self-cert mortgage availability has not suffered as a result of the recent credit crunch, he says. Self-cert mortgages are available to self-employed individuals across Britain. Pratt maintains that mainstream lenders have seen very little negative fallout. It is non-conforming lenders who have been hit the hardest by the current economic climate. “All those clients who would have got a self-cert mortgage before have been able to get them even with the credit crunch,” he says. Self-employed people comprise 13% of the working population. ...
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Survey Shows Britons “Financially Overweight”
Posted 2008-01-2
Evidence collected from a recent survey by British lender Abbey indicates that a large majority of Britons are “financially overweight.” The study indicates that a mere 1 percent are in top form when it comes to how they manage their...
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Favorable Rental Market in London
Posted 2007-12-18
Alliance and Leicester Mortgage reports that professional landlords in the buy-to-let market are set to reap the rewards of the current real estate market. London will continue to be the most popular region for property investors, while Scotland and...
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New Tenants Fuel Demand for Rental Homes
Posted 2007-12-18
The downturn in the housing market is stimulating the demand for rental properties, according to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). Fewer renters are looking for flats, however. Incentives used to attract potential buyers have dried up, leading to...
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More Lenders Reduce Mortgage Rates
Posted 2007-12-18
Two lenders have announced a reduction in mortgage rates in response to recent cuts by the Bank of England. Standard Life Bank will drop its Freestyle standard variable rate (SVR) to 7.21 percent, a cut of .25 percent, beginning January...
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Tracker Mortgage Compared to Fixed-Rate Mortgage
Posted 2007-12-17
Online mortgage brokerage firm John Charcol believes borrowers will find more value in tracker mortgages than in fixed-rate mortgages. The firm has expressed its confidence in tracker mortgages because they do not “leave borrowers at the mercy of the...
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Lenders Still Imposing Fee for Early Exit
Posted 2007-12-17
Despite more rigid enforcement against the practice by industry monitors, some mortgage providers are still assessing an exit fee against borrowers who change lenders. Online search engine mform.co.uk, a mortgage website which provides information to help borrowers make better decisions...
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New Study Reveals Cost of Last-Minute Holiday Splurge
Posted 2007-12-14
A report released yesterday by online banking giant Egg suggests that again this year, million of Britons will leave their holiday shopping until the last minute. Their delay will cause them to overspend by an estimated £594 million. Nearly 4...