Mortgage Strategy
23 October 2006

  • Pink puts proc fee directory online

    23 Oct 2006

    Pink Home Loans has launched an online proc fee directory. Proc fee data was contained in the Pink Adviser publication, but now will be available online to registered brokers.

  • 1st and Microsoft reveal technology survey results

    26 Oct 2006

    1st has revealed the results from its latest research study into the technology used by intermediaries, carried out in partnership with Microsoft UK.

  • A&L moots profit share approach to retention

    23 Oct 2006

    The retention fee debate raged on last week within the lender community, with Alliance & Leicester's head of intermediary mortgages Mehrdad Yousefi calling for a profit share partnership between lenders and intermediaries.This follows recent speculation that Abbey is considering introducing a trail fee-style retention strategy, whereby the intermediary is paid an upfront proc fee and a retainer fee for every year the borrower remains with the lender.A&L is also investigating ...

  • Advantage links up with Positive Solutions

    23 Oct 2006

    Advantage, a Morgan Stanley Group company, has linked up with Positive Solutions to introduce its pipeline system into its servicing centres.

  • AHIPP slams CML’s HIP criticism

    27 Oct 2006

    The Association of Home Information Pack Providers has attacked the council of mortgage lender’s stance on the pending government home information pack scheme.

  • AXA launches television advertising campaign

    23 Oct 2006

    Equity Advice is hosting seminars for solicitors to learn about the products, risks, charges and features of the lifetime mortgage market.The national franchise, which was launched in May by Equity Release Advisory Service for advisers wanting to advise in this market, is putting on the two-hour seminars free of charge.Attendees will be given details of Safe Home Income Plans requirements, the advice process and ideas on how products can work within firms to increase business. ...

  • AXA makes offer for Thinc Destini

    23 Oct 2006

    AXA UK has reached an agreement with the board of Thinc Destini and its two main institutional shareholders to buy the business.

  • Baxter is selective in his comments about networks

    23 Oct 2006

    From Richard Griffiths In his column in Mortgage Strategy on October 9 Nick Baxter treads his well-worn path, saying appointed representatives should become directly auth- orised and that ARs have to follow the instructions of their principals. Baxter's selective approach produces the usual tripe. He mentions the closure of Friends Mortgage World but forgets to mention the £56,000 fine imposed on DA firm Regency Mortgage Corporation. ARs are not subject to the rigours of ...

  • BDM of the week

    23 Oct 2006

    Name: Lynsey WillsonAge: 24Company: Abbey for IntermediariesAREa: UKNominated by: Gavin Earnshaw, head of Academy at mortgage forcereasons for nomination: In my role, working with mortgageforce franchisees in the field, I get to hear which BDMs are active and which are not. In the past few weeks, every franchisee I've met, from Cornwall to Cardiff, Derby, Notts, Bradford, Manchester and Preston has commented about Lynsey Willson from Abbey for Intermediaries. It ...

  • Be prepared for equity exam changes

    23 Oct 2006

    Changes to exam requirements for those who advise on equity release products will be introduced next April and brokers should be aware of what is planned, says Brad Baker

  • Bear Stearns devours Encore's sub-prime arm

    23 Oct 2006

    Investment banker Bear Stearns & Co has agreed to purchase the money-losing sub-prime production arm of ECC Capital Corp, a California-based lender that funds most of its mortgages through a network of loan brokers. The purchase price is $26m in cash.Bear had been providing warehouse financing to the Encore Credit Corp unit and was also buying Encore's originations in the secondary market. A non-depository, Encore is the 24th largest sub-prime funder in the US.Over the past ...

  • Better housing for council residents

    23 Oct 2006

    Thousands of council residents will enjoy better quality housing, thanks to the government's go-ahead for 38 English councils to transfer 94,000-plus homes to registered social landlords.The Decent Homes Programme aims to improve the situation of 80,000 families by providing decent modern homes. Some 24 councils have been granted immediate places on the 2006 Housing Transfer Programme, with discussions with the remaining ones ongoing.Geoff Jackson, director of technical services ...

  • Bright Grey to extend term of critical illness cover

    25 Oct 2006

    Bright Grey is to extend the maximum term of its critical illness cover and its life or critical illness cover.

  • Brokers and lenders will forge stronger partnerships

    23 Oct 2006

    Stronger strategic partnerships between lenders and brokers will lead to consolidation in the broker market by 2020, research by Alliance & Leicester predicts.The Broker World in 2020 study reveals 78% of brokers expect the future to include stronger relationships between lenders and brokers as they align their plans to grow their businesses.Moreover, 79% think this trend will lead to greater consolidation in the broker market.The study also reveals 41% of brokers ...

  • Brokers call for buy-to-let to be regulated

    26 Oct 2006

    Seven out of ten brokers, 70%, are calling for the buy-to-let market to be regulated alongside mainstream mortgages shows research from Alliance & Leicester Mortgages.

  • Brokers call for transparency on fees

    23 Oct 2006

    Brokers are calling on lenders to make their reasons behind increasing arrangement fees transparent.Nick Gardener, marketing and communications director at Chase De Vere, says: "This is a profit-making tool. There is no reason for charging high fees to cover the nominal administrative costs of setting up a mortgage. Five years ago arrangement fees were about 200 and now they average 500."And Jonathan Burridge, managing director of Quantum Mortgage Brokers, says there is no justification ...

  • Brokers can learn from FSA report

    23 Oct 2006

    Advisers should look at the results of the FSA's latest report into the mortgage regime to gain insights into consumer behaviour and the regulator's main areas of scrutiny, says Bill Warren

  • Brokers should make TCF the norm

    23 Oct 2006

    A gripe I often hear from brokers is that the Treating Customers Fairly initiative is woolly and difficult to implement. The problem is that TCF is not a rules-based regime but is based on principles, making it harder to come to terms with. Inevitably there are grey areas.

  • Brokers want retention fees

    23 Oct 2006

    A staggering 98% of brokers believe they should be paid procuration fees for remortgaging borrowers with their existing lenders, BM Solutions' independent One Specialist Survey reveals.The survey, which questioned over 200 brokers from across the UK, asked them their thoughts on being rewarded for retention.Tim Hague, director of BM Solutions, says: "We knew from recent volumes that brokers believed in this initiative. We were also convinced that if the best deal available for ...

  • Brown champions corporate responsibility

    24 Oct 2006

    Gordon Brown has championed corporate and social responsibility at a conference with the Prince of Wales at HM Treasury.

  • BSA says gross advances are up

    23 Oct 2006

    The Building Societies Association has released figures showing that gross advances amounted to 5.047bn in September 2006, compared with 4.147bn in September 2005.

  • Bulgarian property market plummets

    27 Oct 2006

    Bulgaria has fallen in property investors estimations thanks to falling capital growth, oversubscription and poor management, shows Assetz’s Property Investment Tracker.

  • Buyers vote yes to home information packs

    23 Oct 2006

    At the latest Association of Home Information Pack Providers HIPs conference the audience and panel unanimously voted yes to HIPs.

  • C&G launches new intermediary website

    23 Oct 2006

    Cheltenham & Gloucester is launching a new-look intermediary web-site with an affordability calculator, a personal news alert service and a salesforce locator.

  • Car discount website launched

    23 Oct 2006

    First Mortgage Options has launched www.firstauto- options.com, a car discount and finance website that allows brokers and their clients to order new vehicles at discounts of up to 30%. The website will source discounts for all car makers and can be used to configure vehicles taking account of all the options available from each manufacturer, obtain an online finance quote to suit a buyer's requirements and arrange a part-exchange quotation if required.

  • Cardif Pinnacle launches new bonds

    27 Oct 2006

    Cardif Pinnacle has launched a flexible asset bond at the recent Institute of Financial Planning conference in Leicester.

  • Cheval appoints director of sales

    25 Oct 2006

    Cheval, the specialist bridging finance lender, has appointed Mark Posniak as director of sales and marketing. He has been with Cheval for almost two years as head of sales and marketing, having previously worked in marketing for BT New Ventures and for Croner Consulting. Posniak says: Cheval is entering the most exciting period in its history and I am delighted to be appointed to the board.

  • City firms ignoring password security guidelines

    24 Oct 2006

    City firms continue to reject basic best practice for IT security passwords, according to a new survey from Quest Software.

  • CMA signs up to LMS system

    25 Oct 2006

    Clear Mortgage Administration, a member of the Freehold packager association, has signed up for the remortgaging system from LMS. Stephanie Ayres, operations manager of Clear Mortgage Administration, says: “At CMA we pride ourselves on our quality service and the new ‘free online LMS remortgage system’ has allowed us to enhance this service even further.

  • CML attacks government over HIPs

    26 Oct 2006

    The Council of Mortgage Lender's director general Michael Coogan has attacked Home Information Packs, urging for a government rethink of this costly indulgence.

  • CML reveals huge regional Stamp Duty differences

    24 Oct 2006

    The Council of Mortgage Lenders has revealed huge regional differences in the payment of Stamp Duty by first-time buyers.

  • CML warning welcomed by anti-HIP campaigner

    27 Oct 2006

    Trevor Kent, the former president of the National Association of Estate Agents, has used the Council of Mortgage Lenders negative views of HIPs as fuel for his anti-house information packs campaign.

  • Connolly leaves GEMHL to join Advantage in product development role

    23 Oct 2006

    David Connolly has joined Advantage as head of product development and will be responsible for overseeing and developing products for the lender.He joins from GE Money Home Lending where he was in a similar role.Connolly will be also be in charge of expanding Advantage's product department and driving product strategy. He will report to managing director Keith Dearling.Connolly has extensive experience in delivering products and meeting customer demand in financial markets ...

  • Consider lenders' commitment to you

    23 Oct 2006

    Intermediaries are facing an increased threat from lenders that market and sell their mortgages directly to borrowers. There have always been high street lenders that, as well as selling though brokers, have branch networks which sell straight to customers. But it now seems some newer lenders are aiming to cut out intermediaries from the process too.

  • Conveyancing relationship

    23 Oct 2006

    Easier2move has forged a relationship with the Whitechurch Network. Easier2move's services will be available to Whitechurch's members for conveyancing and Home Information Pack services.

  • CurriculumVitae

    23 Oct 2006

    "I'm a rate tart so I remortgage every two years"

  • DA costs are double those for ARs

    23 Oct 2006

    Brokers who opt for direct authorisation could end up splashing out more than double the cost of being an appointed representative, re-search from The Mortgage Times Group has revealed.Figures compiled by Mortgage Times' compliance department show ARs can often find themselves in a better position financially than if they had taken the direct route.A standard Financial Services Authority application fee for DA brokers is 1,500, on top of annual professional indemnity cover costs ...

  • DA firms get plenty of help with compliance

    23 Oct 2006

    Amazingly, Michael Lord, head of mortgages and credit unions at the Financial Services Au-thority, said in a speech at the regulator's recent series of roadshows that only one Initial Disclosure Document presented to it from all the 300 firms that had at-tended the shows was completely compliant.

  • Damaging uncertainty

    23 Oct 2006

    Lack of clarity about the nature of footprints left on clients' credit files has become more of a problem as consumers have taken to the idea of shopping around for their mortgages, says Harvey Jones

  • DB links with Homebuyers

    23 Oct 2006

    db Mortgages has linked up to the Homebuyers sourcing system. This move will allow brokers to access its self-cert, buy- to-let and sub- prime products. Homebuyers has a distribution base of about 800 firms.

  • Dear Delia

    23 Oct 2006

    Dear Delia My client Derek is a plumber who earns 41,000 a year. He had his own business but it ran into trouble and he was declared bankrupt.

  • Decisive action needed on PPI mis-selling

    23 Oct 2006

    The mortgage industry is calling for action to be taken to stop the mis-selling of payment protection insurance, before the mortgage payment protection market is tarnished with the same brush.The Financial Services Authority and the Office of Fair Trading both issued damning reports last week about how firms selling PPI are still failing to treat their customers fairly.The OFT now plans to refer the PPI and prime MPPI markets to the Competition Commission.The FSA found that ...

  • Distribution variety is the spice of life

    23 Oct 2006

    Lenders need a number of distribution channels to market as this will allow them to exploit the market niches they want to target in a more focussed way, says Sally Laker

  • Ebenezer Scrooge is a Yorkshireman

    23 Oct 2006

    Ebenezer Scrooge is alive and well and hiding in the product development department of the Yorkshire.Bah humbug, I can hear the marketing men cry. They know the Christmas bonus mortgage they are trying to push won't buy Tiny Tim the Xbox of his dreams.

  • Edeus deals available on all sourcing systems

    23 Oct 2006

    Edeus' products are now live on all three major sourcing systems - Mortgage Brain, Trigold and Mortgage 2000.Brokers using the sourcing systems have instant access to edeus' specialist product range including deals for the sub-prime, buy-to-let, adverse and self-cert markets.Alan Cleary, managing director of edeus, says: "Our business levels are exceeding expectations and we are off to a great start."Mark Lofthouse, chief executive of Mortgage Brain, says: "Edeus has a high ...

  • Edeus reports positive feedback

    23 Oct 2006

    Edeus reported positive feedback from intermediaries on its service and product proposition a week after it went live to the whole UK intermediary market. Alan Cleary, managing director of edeus, says: "Trading has been brisk and is well ahead of schedule. And not only has trading been brisk but our proposition has been well received by intermediaries."

  • Edeus system didn't live up to the hype when I wanted a DIP

    23 Oct 2006

    From Roger Snodin I'd like to share my first impressions on the launch of edeus. As promised by my representative, its system went live on October 12 and I was able to complete my first decision in principle. I had been led to believe by all the hype that only the minimum amount of information would be required to obtain a lending decision. Au contraire, I cannot think of another lender that requires so much information. For example, it was not happy that my customer was British ...

  • Egg pays tribute to co-creator Duvall

    23 Oct 2006

    Richard Duvall, the co-founder of Egg and chief executive officer of Zopa has died at the age of 44. Duvall passed away peacefully earlier this week, with his family by his side, after a short battle with cancer. Zopa says he leaves an enormous legacy both in terms of the huge impact he has had on the world of banking and personal finance, especially through Egg and Zopa businesses and in the truly unique personal inspiration and leadership he provided to all around ...

  • Enterprise launches Debt Solutions

    26 Oct 2006

    Enteprise Group is launching a debt service for its introducing brokers, called Enterprise Debt Solutions.

  • Estate agents face regulation spectre

    23 Oct 2006

    Regulation would kick out the cowboys, but its costs would cause smaller businesses to close. The onus should be on improving standards, not penalising agencies, says Richard Coulson

  • EXCLUSIVE: Pritchard to leave Chase UK

    25 Oct 2006

    Terry Pritchard has revealed he is relinquishing his position as chief executive officer at Chase UK in order to pursue consulting opportunities.

  • Experian data to tackle fraud

    23 Oct 2006

    Wealthy home owners and people living in rented accommodation are most likely to fall victim to identification fraud, says Experian.Experian's Victims of Fraud Dossier research project has highlighted identity fraud trends among 4,000 victims helped by Experian's victims of fraud service.Those with the biggest risk include privately renting graduates, young couples with children and high outgoings, young singles in shared rented accommodation earning reasonable wages, people ...

  • First And Last

    23 Oct 2006

    My first mortgage was taken out 20 years ago with Halifax. I got a preferential staff deal, but it still didn't compensate for the horrendous jump in house prices from Scotland to Orpington, in Surrey. The price I paid for a one-bed starter home would have bought me a decent family house north of the border.The flat overlooked a church, which caused problems with the congregation if I put my washing out on Sunday mornings. The vicar had no hesitation in hammering on the door and ...

  • First National launches new self-cert product

    26 Oct 2006

    GE Money Home Lending has announced the launch of a new self-cert product for secured loans within the First National range.

  • Focus on Stamp Duty as house prices soar

    23 Oct 2006

    Stamp Duty rates have once again been been called into question after Rightmove released figures showing further house price rises.Asking prices stand at a new record of 218,954, passing the previous high of 217,580 seen in July 2006. And the annual rate of increase has risen too, reaching the highest level seen this year at 11.5%.This is in the face of government resilience in keeping Stamp Duty levies at rates set in 1997. Without any movement compared with house prices, more ...

  • Football fans to benefit from Spanish tie-up

    23 Oct 2006

    Football fans are to benefit from a deal between Fuel Investments and Spanish property agent Football Village.Fuel has become the banking partner of Football Village, a luxury development that offers properties to fans of football clubs such as Aston Villa, Celtic, West Ham, Bolton and Newcastle.England goalkeeper Paul Robinson is endorsing the resort and will run training camps there.Fuel will handle all UK residential remortgaging plus Spanish mortgages for clients under ...

  • Free valuations from FMO

    23 Oct 2006

    First Mortgage Options is offering free valuations on deals from GMAC-RFC Partners, SPML, Rooftop, GE , First National, Mortgages PLC and Kensington Mortgages. The offer runs from today until January 31 2007.

  • Freedom Lending enhances self-cert range

    23 Oct 2006

    Freedom Lending has enhanced its self-cert lending criteria.

  • French estate agents overpaid, says Languedoc Property

    23 Oct 2006

    Foreign buyers in France think French estate agents are overpaid and provide poor levels of service, claims Languedoc Property.

  • FSA fines Best Advice Mortgage Network

    23 Oct 2006

    The Financial Services Authority has fined Best Advice Mortgage Network £7,000 for failing to record and retain sufficient personal and financial information about customers before recommending a mortgage contract between June 2005 and June 2006.

  • FSA fines loans.co.uk 455,000 for PPI failures

    26 Oct 2006

    The Financial Services Authority has fined Loans.co.uk 455,000 for failing to treat its customers fairly when selling Payment Protection Insurance.

  • FSA strategy for better finances

    23 Oct 2006

    Young people, families, university students and workers are all being targeted by the Financial Services Authority's National Strategy for Financial Capability. It aims to help them manage their finances more effectively.

  • Future is bright with lenders such as edeus on the scene

    23 Oct 2006

    From Andrew Montlake We have been impressed with the quiet people at edeus. We started to submit business last week after our BDM spent not one but two days in our office training everyone and answering all our questions. Not that there were many questions systems-wise, as the process could not be any easier. As a result we submitted 5m worth of business to edeus last week alone and as promised, most of these are already offered. Of the four I submitted myself, three were offered ...

  • Future Mortgages joins Pink

    25 Oct 2006

    Pink Home Loans has added Future Mortgages to its packaged mortgage lender panel.

  • Gerry O'Brien promoted to managing director

    26 Oct 2006

    Home of Choice, has promoted Gerry OBrien to managing director.

  • GMAC-RFC links up with London & European

    27 Oct 2006

    London & European, has been appointed by GMAC-RFC to provide its complete title insured panel management solution in support of the point-of-sale offer technology launched by GMAC-RFC at the beginning of September.

  • GMB links with L&G for insurance cover

    23 Oct 2006

    Legal & Generals general insurance business has been appointed by GMB Financial Services to provide exclusive household and buy-to-let insurance cover for GMB members.

  • Government launches new growth point scheme

    24 Oct 2006

    Housing minister Yvette Cooper has confirmed 45 towns and cities will be designated new growth points and bestowed with 40m to fund infrastructure, unlock sites for new housing and assess and mitigate environmental impacts.

  • Gross mortgage lending record

    23 Oct 2006

    Gross mortgage lending hit a new September record of 29.5bn, reveals the latest data from the Council of Mortgage Lenders. Lending was down by 11% on the all-time high reached in August of 33bn, but was up 7% on September last year.

  • Halifax messed up our case and then failed to pay us

    23 Oct 2006

    From Richard Bradley I'd like to share my experience with Halifax with readers. I have had no contact with my Halifax BDM for over two years. Several months ago I had an issue with a client's application who had to send in accounts. It was a straight forward case but so many people at the Halifax business unit got to mess with it that it turned ugly. I tried to get the BDM to help but they wouldn't return my calls or emails. Even the unit manager refused to take my calls. In ...

  • Halifax wants VAT reduction extended

    23 Oct 2006

    Halifax is calling on the government to extend the reduced 5% rate of VAT for restoring an empty home to include all properties vacant for more than six months.At the moment the cost of restoring an empty home attracts the full VAT rate of 17.5%, unless the property has been vacant for more than three years, in which case a reduced rate of 5% applies. A property vacant for more than 10 years, which is renovated and sold, attracts zero VAT.Research from the lender highlights ...

  • Harpal Singh resigns from Optoma

    23 Oct 2006

    Optoma Broker Solutions has revealed that its operations director Harpal Singh has resigned from its board of directors with immediate effect.

  • Has the final whistle blown for two-year fixed rate deals?

    23 Oct 2006

    Two-year fixes cause lenders problems but their popularity among borrowers probably means they are here to stay, say our experts.

  • HBOS reassures customers after mortgage payment glitch

    23 Oct 2006

    HBOS says none of its customers will be left out of pocket after a technical error resulted in it withdrawing multiple mortgage repayments from thousands of current accounts.A technical glitch meant that 7,000 Bank of Scotland customers had multiple repayments taken from their accounts over three consecutive days - October 14, 15 and 16.Although Bank of Scotland was made aware of the problem on October 17, it was unable to rectify it in time and borrowers ended up having to ...

  • Heritable Bank urges government to simplify HMO rules

    23 Oct 2006

    Heritable Bank is calling on government to create clearer Houses in Multiple Occupation licence fee guidelines for councils and landlords and to reconsider introducing a cap on licence fees.

  • HIP knowledge among estate agents at record levels

    23 Oct 2006

    Easier2move has released the results of its Home Information Packs Awareness index revealing that the number of estate agents who were able to describe a HIP with some degree of accuracy rose to a record 89% up from 83% in August.

  • HIPs left hanging in the political wind

    23 Oct 2006

    The government has lost faith in Home Information Packs, which will now be little more than a chance for conveyancing firms to supply cheap online services to sellers, says Frank Eve

  • Holiday search

    23 Oct 2006

    British holiday-makers spent 22 million hours over the past two summers looking in foreign estate agents for property, research by the Inside Track Group shows.

  • HomeBuy not reaching key workers, says BBC expos

    23 Oct 2006

    The government's Open Market HomeBuy scheme suffered a blow last week after the BBC accused it of allowing key worker homes to go to high earning professionals.The BBC Five Live investigation discovered that almost 40% of the flats at a London development in Chelsea Bridge Wharf meant for key workers such as nurses and teachers were going to people who do not meet the government's criteria.Whitehall has rebuffed the claims and says there was no mis-allocation of homes subsidised ...

  • Housing statistics unveiled

    23 Oct 2006

    Government statistics for England reveal that in 2004-05 there were 14.6 million owner-occupying households, 3.7 million social renters and 2.4m private renters. But London's mix differs noticeably. Owner occupation in London was only 58% compared with 71% in England, social renting was 25% compared with 18%, and private renting 17% compared with 12%.

  • Housing takes political centre stage

    23 Oct 2006

    The housing market generated unprecedented attention during this year's political conference season. Typically the party faithful gather for a week by the seaside to ponder their policies, their performance in the polls and to meet old chums. But this year delegates found they could spend entire conferences attending events that looked at the housing market if they wished.

  • I expected better practice than this from Nationwide

    23 Oct 2006

    From Dave Rogers Nationwide has jumped on the bandwagon and plans to release two fixed rate mortgages with 1,499 reservation fees. Why? After the rate rise in August, Nationwide was caught out having asked at least two sourcing companies to delay raising the base rate for its products for around a month. The result was that it found its way to the top of my sourcing system. Strange. So what of the latest release? Same again I suspect. With so few prime lenders using this tactic ...

  • Independent advice even more popular, says IFAP

    26 Oct 2006

    IFA Promotions quarterly Advice Drivers has revealed that the demand for independent financial advice was 13% higher this summer than the last quarter.

  • Industry failing consumers

    23 Oct 2006

    Consumer watchdog Which? says directors in the financial services industry have stron-ger incentives to reward shareholders than to treat con- sumers fairly.Speaking at the Building Societies Association's annual lecture last week, Peter Vicary-Smith, chief executive at Which?, spoke about the pressing issues facing retail financial services.He says: "The resulting dynamics in this market mean that often directors and senior management have weak incentives to treat retail consumers ...

  • Industry heavyweights comment on retention

    26 Oct 2006

    Major industry heavyweights, Premier Mortgage Service and the Association of Mortgage Intermediaries have today commented on retention and pointed to consumer and broker benefits of retention policies.

  • Industry must debate referral fees, says Goldsmith Williams

    23 Oct 2006

    Goldsmith Williams has called for the industry to come together and debate the controversial topic of referral fees.

  • Inspectors' scheme gets OK

    23 Oct 2006

    The government has rubber stamped the first home inspector certification scheme in preparation for November's dry run of Home Information Packs.The scheme is run by SAVA and already has 75 qualified home inspectors pre-registered.Only home inspectors who are members of a certification scheme will be able to participate in next month's regional pilot of HIPs and the national roll-out which starts on June 1 2007.The certification scheme is an important part of the consumer ...

  • Insurancewide.com welcomes FSA rulling on PPI

    27 Oct 2006

    Insurancewide.com has welcomed the Financial Services Authority rulings on payment protection insurance, following the recent action taken by the FSA in fining loan broker, Loans.co.uk, for mis-selling payment protection insurance.

  • Ipswich property fund total nearly reached

    24 Oct 2006

    Assetz new Ipswich property fund has allocated most of the 9.5m required to provide finance for development of the 77.5m mixed use scheme, The Mill, in Ipswich.

  • John Charcol unveils fixed deal

    23 Oct 2006

    John Charcol has launched a two-year fixed rate for remortgages for borrowers wishing to borrow between 100,000 and 1.5m. There is a 4.45% fixed rate until December 31, with a 999 arrangement fee. The overall cost for comparison is 6.7% APR.

  • Kensington joins the AVM club

    23 Oct 2006

    Kensington Mortgages has produced its first fast-track mortgage using an automated valuation model and issued an unconditional offer in less than 12 working hours.The case, a buy-to-let remortgage in east London, came through Primrose, which produced an automated valuation for the case and submitted the application to Kensington via its K-link integration system.Alan Cleary, managing director of edeus, applauds Kensington for using AVMs but adds that it is still a long way from ...

  • Landlords are making money in a flat market

    23 Oct 2006

    In recent years, the buy-to-let sector has boomed, with landlords reaping the benefits of increasing property prices and solid rental returns. Now, landlords are increasingly wanting to build their buy- to-let portfolios and maximise the number of tenants in each of their properties.

  • Landlords buy within hours

    23 Oct 2006

    A report into landlord behaviour commissioned by John Charcol reveals that investors don't hesitate when it comes to buying decisions, with more than one-third making an offer within a few hours of viewing a property.

  • Last chance to win MPLC prize

    23 Oct 2006

    Brokers have a last chance to qualify for Mortgages PLC's grand prize draw to win a 10,000 shopping spree in Harrods. Winners of MPLC's monthly draws are entered into the draw which takes place at the London Mortgage Expo in November. Each month five winners have been drawn from a list of brokers who have registered to use MPLC's website. Each winner has received 100 worth of Harrods vouchers.Merrill Lynch, through Mortgages PLC, and ING Direct have both launched mortgages ...

  • Legal & General launches Platform exclusive

    26 Oct 2006

    Legal & General Mortgage Club has launched a exclusive product for the sub-prime borrower market, funded by Platform, the intermediary lender of Britannia.

  • Lenders prepare for near prime battle

    23 Oct 2006

    The battle among lenders for near prime business is hotting up. This is the area in which specialist lenders can originate large volumes of business to meet their ambitious growth targets. It is also the area with some of the best growth prospects in the mortgage market.

  • Let lenders know what you think

    23 Oct 2006

    Oh, the power of the press. After complaining about Halifax in my column I received satisfaction but now I want feedback from readers on other lenders' service, says Sue Read

  • Lib Dems fear for UKs spiralling personal debt problem

    26 Oct 2006

    The Liberal Democrats have hit out against the governments lack of control over the nations burgeoning debt problems.

  • Lib Dems slam Brown as hyprocritical

    24 Oct 2006

    The Liberal Democrat Party has slammed Gordon Brown as hypocritical following the chancellor's speech on corporate and social responsibility.

  • LMC and Preferred relocate

    23 Oct 2006

    London Mortgage Company and Preferred have relocated to Broadgate, London, the head office of Lehman Brothers UK mortgage businesses.

  • Loans.co.uk to pay almost 0.5m in FSA fine

    27 Oct 2006

    Loans.co.uk has reached a settlement with the Financial Services Authority concerning the sale of Payment Protection Insurance and has agreed to pay a financial penalty of 455,000.

  • Malle starts at Personal Touch

    23 Oct 2006

    Dev Malle has come off gardening leave and starts at Personal Touch today as director of mortgage distribution.

  • Many advisers are disgusted with Paymentshield's attitude

    23 Oct 2006

    From Eddie Royce Financial advisers have started to receive notification from Payment-shield that if they hold old agencies and are no longer directly authorised it will discontinue their renewal fee payments. What was once an open architecture company run by Rick Riding has now been sold and is treating thousands of registered agents with disrespect - more than 15,000 agents who put the firm where it is today. Paymentshield promised renewal income would be paid for life but ...

  • Marathon money

    23 Oct 2006

    Kevin Duffy of Hamptons Mortgages has assembled a crack squad of 12 marathoners to take on Newcastle in the ING New York City Marathon 2006. Mortgage Strategy profiles the participants

  • Market stability bodes well for investing Landlords

    25 Oct 2006

    Buy-to-let investors are continuing to purchase additional rental properties, attracted by stable rental yields and strong overall returns generated by their investment portfolios, says the Paragon Group.

  • Marketingbrief

    23 Oct 2006

    Support is critical in the mortgage industry. Kevin Paterson's A-Z review rates the marketing material that lenders issue to help brokers with sales and business development

  • Marketwatch

    23 Oct 2006

    Swaps continued to increase last week and most are now at two-year highs. I was surprised by the lack of fixed rate increases that we saw last week. However, I think the floodgates will open soon as lenders that already have excellent rates decide they have hit their short-term lending targets.

  • McHardy joins Intelligent Finance

    23 Oct 2006

    Murdo McHardy is to join Intelligent Finance as head of mortgages. McHardy will join on October 30, with responsibility for mortgage products.

  • Me and my car

    23 Oct 2006

    Alex Murray loves his Mercedes 350 SL because it only has two seats. It's too small to be anything but his automobile of solitude, which he can enjoy driving without distractions

  • Money problems latest social taboo

    24 Oct 2006

    Money problems are the last social taboo among family and friends in the UK says First Direct.

  • Moneyfacts queries the benefit of AVMs

    23 Oct 2006

    Moneyfacts has questioned whether Automated Valuation Models best benefit lenders, introducers and consumers.

  • More survivors mean more need for cover

    23 Oct 2006

    It's the news we all want to hear - according to official figures the number of deaths from cancer and heart disease in England (and most probably the rest of the UK) is falling, and not just marginally either.

  • More than 7.6m to fund retirement with their homes

    24 Oct 2006

    More than 7.6 million people are banking on their houses to help fund their retirement ahead of other long-term savings, research from Lincoln Financial Group shows.

  • Mortgage Talk scoops award

    23 Oct 2006

    Mortgage Talk was voted professional firm of the year at the 2006 Rotherham Chamber Business Awards.

  • Mortgage-1 adds MPLC to panel

    23 Oct 2006

    Mortgage-1 has added Mortgages PLC to its panel of 17 lenders, with products available across the sub-prime and specialist ranges and several prime lenders.Alan Waddington, director of sales and operations at Mortgage-1, says: "Mplc has a competitive range of products and its addition to our panel can only strengthen our proposition to brokers and IFAs."

  • MPC division points to rate rise

    23 Oct 2006

    A further interest rate hike looks likely after minutes from the Monetary Policy Committee's last meeting reveal it was divided on whether to increase the base rate.Minutes from the meeting show that following in-depth discussions, seven members of the MPC voted in favour of holding the rate at 4.75%. But two members preferred a rise of 25 basis points.During discussions, the MPC agreed that although the near-term outlook for inflation appeared a little weaker than in September, ...

  • N&P launches credit impaired mortgage range

    23 Oct 2006

    Norwich and Peterborough has launched a new range of mortgages aimed at homebuyers whose credit rating is low due to previous debt problems.

  • NatWest denies relocation plans

    26 Oct 2006

    Royal Bank of Scotland has reassured its NatWest mortgage business staff based in Birmingham that it is committed to the region and has no immediate plans to relocate. Rumours have been rife in the industry that the bank was planning to close the doors to its Birmingham office and shift the mortgage business operation up north to Edinburgh, Scotland. However, Nigel Owen, a spokesman for NatWest, says: “Our mortgage business in based in Birmingham and we have no plans ...

  • Network Data woos St James's ARs

    23 Oct 2006

    Richard Griffiths, managing director of Network Data, is contacting former appointed representatives of St James's Place and offering them a home.Griffiths says that it has not yet been firmly decided if all St James's Place ARs will move over to Home of Choice and that Network Data, along with other networks, is offering them an alternative.He says: "We are in the process of contacting ARs of St James's Place. How many transfer to Home of Choice remains to be seen."A total ...

  • New Life schemes put it in a secure position

    23 Oct 2006

    Continuing the theme of product and provider positioning, this week the focus is on New Life Mortgages. It may be unfamiliar to some but it offers a distinct proposition in the equity re-lease market as a specialist lifetime mortgage provider.

  • New-build dream can become a nightmare

    23 Oct 2006

    Until I attended the Council of Mortgage Lenders' annual conference in Scotland this month, I didn't realise just how much hassle new-build properties can be for clients, lenders and brokers.

  • Newry and Antrim property hotspots

    23 Oct 2006

    The latest Halifax House Price Index has revealed that Newry and Antrim in Northern Ireland are the UK's top property hotspots. Both recorded a 46% rise in prices over the past year.

  • Norwich Union and Openwork to set up an equity release scheme

    25 Oct 2006

    Norwich Union and the multi-tie network Openwork are to set up an equity release lead referral scheme starting in October.

  • Now Hips partners with Quest

    25 Oct 2006

    Home Information Pack provider, now hips, has partnered with technology provider Quest Associates.

  • Number of empty homes shocking, says Lib Dems

    23 Oct 2006

    The Liberal Democrat Party says the number of empty homes in the UK is shocking.

  • OFM Group appoints MD

    23 Oct 2006

    The OFM Group has appointed Andy Sewell as managing director. Sewell has been a board member since 2001 and a driving force behind the company's growth as sales and marketing director. Sewell says: "I'm honoured to have the support of an excellent group of people that share the enthusiasm to continue to grow the company to new heights."

  • Only 48% think BDMs' salaries are justified

    23 Oct 2006

    Mortgage Strategy Online readers were split last week on whether lenders can justify business development managers' salaries now that websites are becoming more sophisticated.Only 48% thought they could justify the salaries, while 52% thought they couldn't. Some BDMs are rumoured to be paid up to 100,000 including commission, despite more mortgage business being carried out online.This week, Mortgage Strategy asks: "Do you think lenders should pay trail commission?"

  • Openwork adds edeus to its panel

    24 Oct 2006

    Openwork will add edeus to its lender panel from November 1.

  • Optoma phone lines are back in business

    23 Oct 2006

    Phone lines at Optoma Broker Solutions are back up following their temporary closure last week.Optoma closed its phone lines to incoming calls from Friday October 13 until the morning of Tuesday October 17.A notice on the packager's website said there would be no outbound communications from its Leatherhead and Lincoln offices from 9am on the Friday until 5pm on the Tuesday.But a message on its answering machine claimed it wouldn't be accepting calls until 9am on Wednesday ...

  • Origo launches KISS

    26 Oct 2006

    Origo has launched KISS, an initiative designed to improve the provider extranet registration processes.

  • Paul Gratton joins edeus as non-executive director

    25 Oct 2006

    Paul Gratton has joined edeus as a non-executive director.

  • Paymentshield rumoured to have been sold for £180m

    24 Oct 2006

    Paymentshield is rumoured to have been bought by insurance company Towergate for £180m.

  • Paymentshield warns intermediaries over MPPI

    23 Oct 2006

    Paymentshield is reminding intermediaries to be aware of the guidance issued in the latest Payment Protection Insurance reviews to ensure they comply with existing rules when advising customers on Mortgage Payment Protection Insurance products.

  • Pink's one-stop shop for DAs

    23 Oct 2006

    Pink Home Loans is planning to become a business solutions provider for its directly authorised brokers to help them with everything from compliance to choosing the right executive car.Research into the needs of Pink's 5,000 mortgage club members found that compliance was a particular concern to many DA firms, which struggle to keep up with the pace of regulatory change. It also found that many sole brokers and two-man bands didn't even have time to take an annual holiday because ...

  • Platform launches sub-prime product with PMS

    26 Oct 2006

    Premier Mortgage Service has launched a three-year sub-prime product funded by Platform.

  • PMPA meets to discuss VAT

    23 Oct 2006

    The founding members of the Professional Mortgage Packagers Alliance will be having a meeting this week to discuss its VAT situation, following rumours alleging it may have to pay back a huge sum in VAT to Revenue & Customs.Founding member Victor Jannels, group managing director at All Types of Mortgages, says: "There is a members' meeting next week when the VAT matter will be discussed. It is under consideration and we are aware of what our position is."Unlike packagers, who ...

  • PMS offers exclusive Platform product

    26 Oct 2006

    Members of Premier Mortgage Service can now get access to an exclusive product funded by Platform, the intermediary lender of Britannia.

  • POS-O technology could lead to mortgages by iPod

    23 Oct 2006

    Stephen Knight, executive chairman of GMAC-RFC, says new technology means it is only a matter of time before point-of-sale offers are available on iPods and BlackBerrys.Knight says if technology ad-vances so that you can access the internet on your iPod there is no reason why mortgage customers will not be able to sit in a broker's office and complete their mortgage online on their iPod.Knight also says that other lenders must adopt similar technology or risk losing out.He ...

  • Postcode lottery puts off HMO landlords

    23 Oct 2006

    A study published by Heritable Bank highlights huge inconsistencies in the way local authorities have implemented Houses of Multiple Occupation laws.

  • PPI deal aims to be fair on the young

    23 Oct 2006

    Securityfirst.co.uk has launched a range of age-related payment protection insurance products.The insurer says the majority of mortgage, loan or income protection policies charge the same flat rate irrespective of age, resulting in those least likely to claim having to subsidise those who do claim.The firm has designed its products so that premiums are set according to a customer's age at the outset and do not automatically increase over time.Simon Burgess, managing director ...

  • Praxis heads north

    23 Oct 2006

    Praxis is targeting expansion north of the border after strengthening its Scottish team and offering its instant mortgage to Scottish customers.

  • Progress and plans

    23 Oct 2006

    It's been a big year for GE Money Home Lending and there are more initiatives to come as Duncan Berry, director of mortgage sales, tells Nicolette Botbol

  • Ratio of house prices to income rises by 60% since 1970

    27 Oct 2006

    The ratio of house prices to income has risen by 60% since 1970, according to a new study by Alliance Trust Research Centre.

  • Reeh says lenders being unfair to sub-prime clients

    23 Oct 2006

    The chief executive of blackandwhite.co.uk says he has proof one lender is down-valuing homes by up to 10% if it knows the client is sub-prime - but he won't name and shame the culprit.Thomas Reeh says some valuers are assessing the credit worthiness of mortgage applicants and down-valuing the property if the client is remortgaging onto another sub-prime deal. He says valuers could be doing this because they may be over-cautious and concerned about deals going pear shaped. If a ...

  • Regulation and its costs worry AMI members

    23 Oct 2006

    Keeping up-to-date with regulatory changes and the growing cost of regulation are brokers' biggest worries, the Association of Mortgage Intermediaries says.Some 47% of AMI members worry about keeping abreast of regulatory changes, while 13% say completing their Retail Mediation Activities Re-turn form is their biggest worry, with 12% concerned about record-keeping. Other aspects of regulatory difficulty include training and competence, obtaining Key Fact Illustrations and Treating ...

  • Rhodes takes on finance role

    23 Oct 2006

    Partnership Assurance has appointed Chris Rhodes as its head of finance.

  • RICS calls on government to improve homebuying process

    23 Oct 2006

    The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors has called on the government to work with industry to improve the home buying process for consumers.

  • RICS submits Freedom of Information request on HIPs

    24 Oct 2006

    The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors is calling on the government to work with the industry to improve the home buying process for consumers.

  • Rise in base rate a good bet

    27 Oct 2006

    Gamblers have been betting on a rise in the Bank of England's Base Rate next month, with one online site giving odds of 53/50 in favour of a rise.

  • RPI hike dashes first-timer hopes

    23 Oct 2006

    First-time buyers trying to get onto the property ladder were offered little hope last week, as figures showed the Retail Price Index rose to 3.6% in September, the highest since June 1998.However, the index included mortgage interest payments, which in-creased thanks to August's rise in the Bank of England base rate.The annual increase in the Consumer Price Index in September was 2.4%, down from 2.5% in August.The news is a blow to chancellor Gordon Brown, who predicted ...

  • Shadow Treasury demands answers over terror clerics home

    27 Oct 2006

    Theresa Villiers, the shadow chief secretary to the Treasury, has written to Ed Balls, the economic secretary, asking him to urgently clarify the situation surrounding the purchase of Abu Hamzas home in 2004. Abu Hamza, the muslim cleric found guilty of inciting murder and race hate reportedly bought the house while he was in custody at Belmarsh, despite the Treasury claiming it had frozen his financial assets. Yesterday, in the House of Commons, Ed Balls claimed that these ...

  • SHIP increases business volumes by 12.3%

    26 Oct 2006

    Safe Home Income Plans, which represents over 90% of the equity release sector, has reported its third quarter figures to September 30, 2006 which show the increasing popularity of equity release plans.

  • Solution to the problem of IHT and average home owners

    23 Oct 2006

    From Pam Cope In a recent article on Inheritance Tax (Mortgage Strategy October 16) Paul Fincham of Halifax says the IHT threshold should be increased to bring it in line with house price inflation. But there is a simpler solution - exempt main residences. This would take those whose wealth consists almost exclusively of their family homes out of the equation. Pam Cope J P Leefe & Company Stretton Rutland

  • Southampton's housing plight in the spotlight

    23 Oct 2006

    Labour MP John Denham is calling for a campaign to tackle housing problems in Southampton.Speaking at the Southampton Council of Faiths, Denham says: "Over the past few years we have see people from all walks of life coming together to tackle global poverty. But we need similar action here at home to make sure housing stays at the top of everyone's agenda."According to the city council there are over 3,300 families on its waiting list. As well as the families waiting for affordable ...

  • Spain popular with old and young alike

    23 Oct 2006

    Buying a property in Spain is no longer only a luxury afforded by Britons heading into retirement, reveals new research from Banco Halifax Hispania.

  • Standard Life launches ISA

    23 Oct 2006

    Standard Life Bank has launched a preferential select freestyle individual savings account offer for new mortgage customers. It offers an ISA rate of 5.5% AER variable and a savings bonus of 100.

  • Sub-prime lenders need brokers' help

    23 Oct 2006

    To kick off my series of weekly columns in Mortgage Strategy I thought I would look at the subject of the sub-prime market as it continues to be topical.

  • Swift selects Sterling for MPPI

    23 Oct 2006

    The Sterling Insurance Group has been selected to be sole MPPI provider for the Swift Group. The arrangement starts on November 1.

  • The AR versus DA debate intensifies

    23 Oct 2006

    The fight for network and club dominance sees no sign of abating.

  • The beginning of end-to-end systems

    23 Oct 2006

    An Origo-led group has been working on ways to standardise the Key Facts Illustration process and this could be the first step towards the ideal of an end-to-end system, says Kate Tucker

  • The Mortgage Mole

    24 Oct 2006

    Digging the dirt in the mortgage world

  • The widening appeal of high fee, low rate deals

    23 Oct 2006

    Woolwich is showing a thirst for the battle in an increasingly competitive market. While overdue, this is badly needed if it wants to grab back some of its lost market share.

  • Title deed

    23 Oct 2006

    When Freedom Lending was established, Freedom Finance was already well known, particularly in the consumer finance market where it was spending 1m a month on advertising. Why spend money creating a new brand when the company could piggyback on its parent's?The new business was focussed purely on marketing mortgages to brokers and the Freedom Finance brand started to cause confusion in this channel. Brokers visited the parent consumer website to get information about specialist intermediary ...

  • Tories expose government's Council Tax inspector plans

    25 Oct 2006

    The Conservative Party has condemned the government as "greedy and oppressive" after plans emerged to give a new army of Council Tax inspectors powers to enter private homes and penalise residents who refuse to co-operate with fines of £1,000 or more.

  • Tories propose ditching IHT

    23 Oct 2006

    The conservative Party has unveiled proposals to slash taxes by 21bn, including abolishing Inheritance Tax.The Tax Reform Commission has proposed that Inheritance Tax should be scrapped and replaced with a short-term Capital Gains Tax on death, which would permit primary residences to be passed to heirs without taxation.Its report into IHT slams it as a deferred wealth tax that is fundamentally flawed, complex and does nothing to encourage saving.In addition, the middle ...

  • UCB Home Loans launches self-cert tracker

    23 Oct 2006

    Specialist intermediary lender UCB Home Loans has launched a limited offer self-cert three-year tracker product.

  • UK economy buoyant thanks to housing market

    23 Oct 2006

    The UK economy is looking very buoyant due to the continued strength of the housing and financial markets and growth in the UK labour force, reveals the Ernst & Young ITEM Club autumn forecast.

  • Unity launches prime buy-to-let

    24 Oct 2006

    Unity Homeloans, the lender created by intermediaries to serve the needs of intermediaries and backed by Investec, has launched a prime buy-to-let product with 100% rental calculation.

  • WAY to go on IHT

    23 Oct 2006

    The WAY Group has launched an Inheritance Tax planning product for high earning professionals, top sportsmen and women and celebrities.

  • We commissioned self-cert research to better understand what people want

    23 Oct 2006

    From Charles Haresnape Having read the article on the growth of the self-cert market in Mortgage Strategy's August 28 issue I feel I must respond. The feature, which was based on independent research on behalf of Bank of Scotland Mortgages, seemed to suggest that we might have conducted the research only to promote our own products and services but this is not the case. As a lender we always place great emphasis on working with brokers to offer the best propositions to customers, ...

  • We don't need HIPs to beat gazumping

    23 Oct 2006

    I see gazumping is back. Well, truth be told, it never went away. It was just keeping its head down, laying dormant for a bit. Accepting a higher offer after agreeing a lower one is just the way some people are.

  • We must not lose the art of selling

    23 Oct 2006

    Even in the regulated world intermediaries must sell to survive and they should seek out support in developing the necessary skills if necessary, says Justine Tomlinson

  • Whitehall must help close housing gap

    23 Oct 2006

    It's a national scandal but it's not appearing on newspapers' front pages - this country faces a serious housing shortage. The facts are plain - the UK needs to build new stock equivalent to a city the size of Leeds by the end of this decade.

  • Xmas cheer with Yorkshire deals

    23 Oct 2006

    The Yorkshire has launched a range of fixed rate mortgages giving borrowers a bonus if they remortgage before Christmas.The Christmas bonus is available on a two-year fixed rate at 4.74% and a three-year fixed rate at 4.89% offering 200 cashback, free remortgage legal service and refund of valuation fees. It is available to remortgage clients who complete before December 25 this year.David Heshon, product development manager at the Yorkshire, says: "It is likely that the Christmas ...

  • YES launches customer care facility

    23 Oct 2006

    YES Loans and Mortgages has launched a customer care facility. The service is designed to offer introducers a direct and immediate report detailing client responses and their rating of the service they received from YES.

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