A guide to UK Mortgages & Remortgages. Mortgagefox.co.uk - best mortgage deals

Billions Promised to Boost the Housing Market

Fri, 08 May 2009 19:20:42 +0100

The Chancellor Alistair Darling promised £20 billion in home loans to boost the housing market in the recent budget. A further £50 billion was pledged to guarantee loans between banks and to get credit moving. He said that the Government intends to encourage an increase in mortgage lending and that we should see an increase in the number of mortgage deals available. The freeze on stamp duty for homes worth under £175,000 will continue until the end of the year. This should mean that 60% of homebuyers would not have to pay stamp duty. However the National Association of Estate Agents spokesperson said that this had been a missed opportunity to get rid of the tax all together. Mr Darling also promised to extend the scheme to offer mortgage holidays to struggling homeowners facing repossession. These measures should take us a step closer to improving the slump in the housing market.

10% Deposit Deals On Offer Again

Tue, 14 Apr 2009 19:23:42 +0100

There is good new for first time buyers this week as HSBC announce new deals with deposits as low as 10%. Experts hope that other lenders will begin to compete. These deals have not been around since Autumn 2007 when the best offers started to dry up. The new deals are not amazing when compared to deals in the past but they are the first affordable loans for first time buyers for some time. With a 10% deposit a borrower could take out a two year fixed rate deal at 4.99%. There is an arrangement fee of £1,499. A tracker mortgage with a current rate of 4.59% has an arrangement fee of £999. Experts hope that this will be the beginning of some healthy competition between lenders. Borrowers with small deposits can once again hope to get onto the property ladder. Borrowers are advised to take expert advise and consulting one of our advisors at Mortgage Fox would be a good first move towards that new home.

Offset Mortgages could become more popular

Thu, 2 Apr 2009 15:41:19 +0100

Homeowners with savings earning very low rates of interest could save themselves a lot of money by using their savings and current accounts to cut mortgage bills. Offset loans have traditionally been more expensive in the UK although they have always been popular in other countries. With an offset deal borrowers set their savings and current accounts against their mortgage.

Northern Rock to offer £14bn in New Mortgages

Tue, 3 Mar 2009 01:14:52 +0000

Northern Rock has announced plans to pump £14billion into the UK mortgage market over the next two years.

The bank which was nationalised last year has not been offering deals to new borrowers and because of poor rates existing borrowers have been remortgaging elsewhere.

The Government has said that Northern Rock will not be handing out 100% mortgages as it did in the past. All borrowers will need at least a 10% deposit At the present time there are very few deals requiring a 10% deposit and any that are available are very expensive. The Government has decided that home- owners must have access to affordable mortgage deals. The Bank is expected to make available about £5bn in new mortgages this year and up to £9bn in 2010.

Existing borrowers with Northern Rock who are reaching the end of fixed rate deals or tracker deals will be able to re-mortgage with Northern Rock. This is also good news for first time buyers hoping to get a foot on the housing ladder.

House prices fall by 9.4% in 12 months

Sun, 1 Mar 2009 23:30:36 +0000

Average house prices fell by -1 per cent in January 2009 according to Hometrack’s January Nation Housing Survey. This is the sixteenth month of consecutive price falls. During the twelve months to January 2009 the average price fall was 9.4 per cent

Some Estate Agents have reported and increase in interest amongst buyers although property is staying on the market for longer.

It's the size of your deposit that matters.

Thu, 26 Feb 2009 23:30:35 +0000

A 10% deposit was the average for a first time buyer 18 months ago. However the criteria for getting a good loan deal has changed dramatically. Most Lenders now require a 40% deposit for the best deals.

A 25% deposit will get you a slightly more expensive deal .A mortgage with only a 10% deposit will be more difficult to find.

It is a buyers market and first time buyers came snap up a good bargain with the right deposit. Surveyors say that property prices have fallen by a fifth and in some areas property values have fallen by more than a third. Now more than ever it is essential to take independent advise when looking for a mortgage.

Equity release & debt - Important advice

Mon, 23 Feb 2009 23:30:34 +0000

Homeowners facing repossession or needing to release cash in a hurry are being warned against firms promising a quick sale and the chance to rent back their home once sold writes Holly Thomas in the Daily Express.

Experts are concerned that some people facing repossession are not receiving the correct advice as sale and rent back schemes are not regulated.

How to deal with Estate Agents - A guide

Sat, 21 Feb 2009 23:30:40 +0000

What are the homebuyers' rights when they deal with Estate Agents in England , Wales and Northern Ireland.

Q- I would like to put in an offer on a flat- Is the Estate Agent obliged to pass it on to the seller?
A-Yes.The Estate Agent must pass all offers onto the seller promptly unless the seller has asked for offers below a certain price not to be passed on. The Estate Agent is not obliged to give you details of other offers received.

Q-The Estate Agent has informed me that a higher offer has been received on a property I am interested in. Should I believe this?
A-The Office of Fair Trading state that agents cannot claim to have higher offers unless it is true.

£37bn Bail-out for UK Banks

Mon, 16 Feb 2009 23:30:37 +0000

The 13th of October 2008 was a historic day in the UK, as the government paid £37bn of taxpayers’ money into three major UK Banks. Prime Minister Gordon Brown said the bailout was: "Unprecedented but essential for all of us". The three banks are The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), Lloyds TSB and HBOS.

Tory First Time Buyer stamp duty changes

Sun, 15 Feb 2009 23:30:38 +0000

The Conservative Government have pledged to remove stamp duty for first time buyers if they win the next General election They will also get rid of the controversial Home Information packs.

George Osborne, the Shadow Chancellor said that the party would exempt first time buyers from paying stamp duty on houses worth up to £250,000.

A BBC investigation attacks mortgage brokers

Tue, 10 Feb 2009 23:30:39 +0000

It is important that you have confidence in the reputation of your Mortgage Broker.

A BBC investigation claims that there is serious mis-selling in the sub prime mortgage market in Britain.

These claims were made in a BBC Radio 4 program

Leaseholders are hit by Insurance scam

Fri, 6 Feb 2009 00:17:36 +0000

A report in the Financial Mail on Sunday said that some leaseholders were being overcharged by £50 million a year by Managing Agents and landlords for their building insurance.

John Correll, who is an Essex property agent, said that freeholders and some landlords were buying building insurance at a discount and then charging their leaseholders a ridiculously high price for it. They are being conned.

Buyers find Long Term Fixed Rates too expensive

Wed, 11 Feb 2009 00:18:31 +0000

A study, by Professor Miles of Imperial College London, following this years' budget, emphasised the advantages of long term fixed rates.

However buyers in the U/K seem to be ignoring any advantages and are opting for short term discounts instead.

The report commissioned by the Treasury found that long term fixed rates are now less popular then short- term deals offering discounts. They are seen as being more competitive.

Aberdeenshire Property Hot spot

Thu, 5 Feb 2009 00:19:24 +0000

A survey by the Bank of Scotland found that property in the Aberdeenshire town has risen by 35 per cent

Inverurie along with Aberdeen and Edinburgh are the only places in Scotland where the average cost of a property is now over £200,000

The bank confirmed that the average price of a home in Scotland has risen by 14 per cent during the past year to £141,000. This is 3.5 per cent above the UK average.

Experts recommend tracker mortgages

Sun, 8 Feb 2009 00:20:54 +0000

Julie Gaskin of GMAC-RFC, which is one of the UK’s largest lenders, is recommending that borrowers consider a Tracker Mortgage. She believes borrowers can protest their monthly outgoing during periods of interest rate uncertainty.

With a tracker mortgage the rate is set 1% above the base rate for a set period of time. If the base rate is 4.4 percent you pay 5.5 percent until the base rate changes.

It tracks along with the base rate. If the base rate goes up the lender cannot change the agreed rate but you benefit if the rate goes down. It can be expensive as the rate is always above the base rate.

Mortgage customers should overpay

Mon, 9 Feb 2009 00:22:23 +0000

Some financial advisors feel that because borrowing is becoming more difficult there may be problems for people coming to the end of their mortgage deals.

This is because The Bank of England has decided to freeze the base rate of interest at 5.75 percent

Advisors suggest anyone reaching the end of a fixed rate deal should consider overpaying on their loan. This increased the equity on the home and puts the borrower in a better position to apply for better-value deals.