Many homeowners and first time buyers welcomed recent news that suggested that fixed rate mortgages with interest rates hovering around the 5% mark seem to be making a comeback. Since interest rates started to rise in August 2006, affordable fixed rate deals have become a thing of the past, with a series of five interest rate rises pushing the cost of fixed rate deals up higher and higher. Read the rest of this entry »
Popularity: 7% [?]
Recent data has shown that landlords in the UK found it easier to find tenants in the last quarter of year 2007 compared to the third quarter of the year, reflecting the increased demand for rental properties amongst consumers that have now been priced out of the market altogether when it comes to purchasing a property. Tight credit conditions, high interest rates, soaring property prices, and the effects of the credit crunch. Read the rest of this entry »
Popularity: 7% [?]
Many people that intend to buy property in rural countryside hotspots may no longer be able to have these homes as holiday or weekend homes, as new regulation may mean that they either have to live in the property as their permanent residence or may have to rent the property out all year to tenants. Buyers intending to buy property in rural hotspots may now have to get planning permission even on existing properties, and if they are refused they may have to move into the home or rent it out to tenants. Read the rest of this entry »
Popularity: 7% [?]
Most of us are well aware that the UK is experiencing a housing slump that has been likened to that seen in the darker days of the early 1990s. Homeowners that are trying to sell their homes are experiencing real difficulties at the moment for a number of reasons. One of the major factors affecting house sales is the lack of mortgages and tight credit conditions in play, which are stopping those interested in buying from getting a suitable mortgage. Another major factor is the fact that house prices are rapidly falling, and many would be buyers are now too nervous to take the plunge in case house prices fall further once they have made the purchase. Read the rest of this entry »
Popularity: 9% [?]
For a number of months now there has been widespread speculation with regards to property values in the UK, with many experts predicting that house prices – although unlikely to crash – are set to fall over coming months. Data from a series of surveys and studies has backed up these predictions, and the past few weeks have already seen a weakening housing market with falling property prices. Read the rest of this entry »
Popularity: 14% [?]
Concerns over the effect that interest rate rises will have on homeowners that are currently in cheap fixed rate deals have been rife for some time. There are many homeowners that took out cheap fixed rate mortgage two or three years ago, with many paying under 4.5% on their mortgage loan. However, between August 2006 and July 2007 interest rates rose five times, taking the base rate from 4.5% to 5.75%. Between July and November the base rate remained unchanged at 5,75% but at the beginning of December the Bank of England cut the base rate by 0.25% bringing it back down to 5.5%. Read the rest of this entry »
Popularity: 16% [?]
Financial experts are highlighting the importance of keeping a check on finances to those that are planning to buy a property in the near future. According to some experts potential home buyers that are planning to purchase a property within the next year or so need to start getting their finances into order as soon as possible, particularly in light of the mortgage situation in the United States, which has now started to take its toll in the UK. This situation has made if extremely difficult for those with tarnished credit to get a mortgage at affordable interest rates, and could impact heavily on accessibility to sub-prime mortgages in the future. Read the rest of this entry »
Popularity: 66% [?]
Over the past year the popularity of fixed rate mortgage has been rising, and this has been largely due to a series of five interest rate rises that have taken place since August 2006. With each of these interest rate rises more and more homeowners and first time buyers were panicking over how they would keep up with their rising mortgage repayments. For many, taking out or remortgaging to a fixed rate deal was the most effective solution, as this meant that they would no longer have to cope with the effects of further interest rate rises. Read the rest of this entry »
Popularity: 77% [?]
The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Alistair Darling, is still pushing for lenders to introduce long term fixed rate mortgages in light of the current crisis, where many consumers are facing crippling mortgage repayments once their existing cheap fixed rate comes to an end. The chancellor has been pushing for this type of mortgage for some time, and in his recent first budget he addressed the issue, urging lenders to introduce more affordability and accessibility when it comes to longer term fixed rate deals. Read the rest of this entry »
Popularity: 62% [?]
One of the leading building societies in the UK, the Nationwide, has answered the calls of new Chancellor of the Exchequer, Alistair Darling, by introducing a new 25 year fixed rate mortgage in order to try and make home ownership and stable repayments more of a possibility for consumers in the UK. Mr Darling recently announced that one of the things that he was aiming for in light of the current housing situation with regards affordability was for more longer term fixed rate mortgages to be available. Read the rest of this entry »
Popularity: 68% [?]