We Know Property

By John Myers, head of mortgages, moneysupermarket.com

There’s been little in the way of good news for borrowers over the past few months. However, in the last couple of weeks a number of the major lenders have reduced mortgage rates, so could we at last be seeing a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel? (more…)

David Blanchflower was the only member of the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) to vote for a interest rate cut in Junes MPC meeting (more…)

Shares in US mortgage firms Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae dropped by as much as 50% in roller coaster trading last week amid concerns for their future. The US firm is the largest mortgage provider in america with almost £3 trillion dollars worth of home loans secured by the bank, almost 50% of the market. Speculation that US regulators were lat night preparing to step in to rescue the two compnanies, which are owned by shareholders but have government-sponsorship was greeted with concern in London city. 

The effects of last weeks near collapse, are likely to put upward pressure on inter bank lending rates and once again increase the cost of borrowing in a lending environment that´s already very tough. The only slight silver lining to this latest financial cloud is that it should take a few months to trickle through the money markets.The affects of this are likely to be felt in London city where indirect repercussions for British banks and markets will be less confidence and liquidity in the markets.

The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee has voted to hold interest rates at 5pc, as it grapples with soaring inflation coupled with an economic downturn. (more…)

The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee today voted to maintain the official Bank Rate paid on commercial bank reserves at 5.0%.
The Bank is caught between a rock and a hard place when it comes to setting rates at the moment. On the one hand, cutting interest rates might help the housing market, mortgage holders and boost spending on the high street. (more…)

Anyone who thinks they might have difficult making their mortgage payments should speak to their lender as soon as possible, one industry body has urged.

Bernard Clarke, a spokesperson for the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML), explained that people should not wait until after they have missed a payment as institutions can offer a number of possible solutions. (more…)

HSBC banking unit First Direct began offering mortgages to new customers yesterday after pulling all new products on 1st April. Products were stoped due to a massive influx in applications on some of its mortgage deals.

This news follows Halifax cutting interest rates on some of its mortgage deals recently and Abbey and Nationwide doing similar cuts to their products within the last few weeks due to decreasing borrowing costs.