Mortgage Strategy
28 October 2002

  • 'Low risk' B2L investment plan

    28 Oct 2002

    Amity Mortgages and Practical Property Portfolios plan to launch a scheme that will enable clients to invest in buy-to-let without the risk of purchasing property. The packager and investment firm will ask clients for a minimum of around £10,000 which is then placed in a property fund. PPP buys the property and manages the let, with a guaranteed return on the original investment after a minimum term of five years. By focusing on low-cost housing, PPP hopes to maintain strong ...

  • Abbey National launches new buy-to-let deals

    30 Oct 2002

    Abbey National is launching a range of buy-to-let mortgages aimed at existing landlords looking to remortgage. The range will offer free valuation for mortgage purposes (up to £345) and a £250 contribution towards legal fees. The new mortgages include a 1.05% discount on a two-year deal up to 70% at 4.89%, and a three-year discount deal at 4.79%, both with arrangement fees of £350. Two additional fixed-rate deals include a two-year fixed deal at 5.35% and a ...

  • Abbey National sponsors training and competency workshops

    1 Nov 2002

    Abbey National for Intermediaries is sponsoring a series of one-day interactive Training & Competency workshops from October 2002 until October 2003 at venues across the UK. The workshops are designed to help IFAs meet the FSA requirements post-N2 of having a T&C regime in place, and will be run by Phil Billingham Associates Ltd. The workshops will focus on the key areas involved in running a T&C regime, including running a risk-based scheme, coaching and assessment, and training. One-d

  • ABI launches initiative to help boost retirement savings

    1 Nov 2002

    The Association of British Insurers yesterday launched its Budget for Savers initiative, just weeks before the government publishes its pensions Green Paper. Budget for Savers sets out a series of practical and affordable proposals to help UK workers save more for retirement through the workplace. The ABI initiative comes as new, independent research by IFF Research and Continental Research reveals as many as 16m people are not confident that their income in retirement ...

  • AIFA and IFAP publish details of menu option

    31 Oct 2002

    The Association of Independent Financial Advisers and IFA Promotion have welcomed the FSA's decision not to implement the defined payments system as a definition of independent financial advice. The regulator has also said that it will now be developing the menu option proposed by AIFA and IFAP. AIFA and IFAP have published their own report - submitted to the FSA in September - which describes how the menu could work in practice. The AIFA/IFAP report was produced ...

  • An historical society with an eye on the future

    28 Oct 2002

    Q: How is Portman structured? A: Portman's roots go back to 1846, when it was the Ramsbury Building Society based in Wiltshire - this makes us the third-oldest of the UK's building societies. The society played a major role in the consolidation of the sector in the 1980s and 1990s - the most important for the present structure of the society being the combination of the Regency & West of England and the Portman Wessex in 1990. During the 1990s, the St Pancras and Greenwich ...

  • Another capital idea from Down Under

    28 Oct 2002

    In 1994, when I first visited the UK to demonstrate our flexible mortgage simulators, everyone thought they were terrific but had one fairly challenging question - what's a flexible mortgage? Needless to say we didn't sell very many in Britain that year. In fact, by 1994, flexible mortgages were the norm in Australia. As chief executive officer of a Melbourne-based software house I naturally assumed the UK would be following suit. I was in for a very rude awakening. Maybe there ...

  • Aussie wizard casts B2L spell

    28 Oct 2002

    Melbourne-based Mainstream Computing has released a new Property Investor Wizard for use on websites, intranets, call centres and offline, Mortgage Strategy can reveal. Dr Mark Blakey, managing director of Mainstream Computing, says: "This software lets residential property investors set up a complete portfolio in moments. They can see how and when they can purchase further properties and they can also get a good feel for what the limiting factors are. They can also see, in very concrete ...

  • Average FTB deposit rises

    28 Oct 2002

    Brokers and lenders are considering ways to make life easier for first-time buyers, after a CML-commissioned housing review revealed the average first deposit is now £18,000. The average deposit in 1996 was just £5,000. The new figures conceal huge regional differences. Average deposits range from £8,300 in the North to £31,000 in Greater London. Sue Anderson, head of external affairs at the CML, says: "Lenders are keeping their criteria fairly conservative, ...

  • Birmingham Midshires offers savers protection in 'rocky' markets

    29 Oct 2002

    Birmingham Midshires has launched a new Capital Protected Distribution Bond. The bond offers savers capital protection in that its minimum aim is the value of their initial investment will not fall after a seven-year period, while still offering the potential for growth. The bond, offered in partnership with AXA, invests in stocks and shares, as well as gilts and cash. The minimum investment in the bond is £15,000. The bond will close to new investors ...

  • BMS scheme is a "cynical attempt to buck the market"

    28 Oct 2002

    From Richard Hall Michael Bolton must have thought, "What a clever boy am I", when he came up with his packager-bashing campaign in what appears to be a desperate attempt to garner headlines for BM Solutions. Instead, he has only succeeded in bringing ridicule upon himself (Mortgage Strategy September 30). What planet is the man living on? Wild, unsubstantiated allegations of 8% fees charged by packagers do not inspire confidence in Bolton's judgement. Nor do hysterical outbursts ...

  • Britannic Money improves monthly mortgage statement

    29 Oct 2002

    Britannic Money is making it even easier for homeowners to keep track of their mortgage payments with the addition of an innovative monthly statement graph. The latest enhancement to the personalised CAM illustrations predicts the savings customers can make over the lifetime of their mortgage term if they use the flexible features available such as overpaying. The predictions are based on a customer's average monthly payment, and can vary depending on credits and ...

  • Brits hope, but don't plan

    28 Oct 2002

    On average, people now expect to buy their first home by the age of 29 and to retire aged just 56 - despite the fact that few people are making adequate financial provision for the future. Research from Insight Investment, the asset manager of HBOS, also reveals that people expect to start their pension at 29 and quit work at 56. And most expect to trade in stocks and shares from the age of 34. It shows that the ideal of having a happy family home seems to be stronger than ever in ...

  • Calm down and focus From Mike Fitzgerald

    28 Oct 2002

    I have enjoyed the recent arguments between Peter Beaumont and Michael Bolton regarding packagers and feel that Michael was right to bring a perceived problem into the public arena. However, I now feel that the time is now right to stop criticising each other and face up to the immediate problems facing our industry. I would urge brokers, packagers and lenders to direct their correspondence to the FSA and respond to CP146 before November 11. Unlike the life and investment industry, ...

  • Cheltenham & Gloucester relaunches intermediary payment scheme

    1 Nov 2002

    Cheltenham & Gloucester relaunched its intermediary payments scheme this week. The new scheme replaces the payment of a fixed sum with a percentage system based on the size of the loan. For loans introduced with a loan to value of up to and including 90%, a percentage payment of 0.30% of the loan size will be made, while loans introduced over 90% and up to and including 95% LTV, will receive 0.25% of the size of the loan. All payments will be made on completion. Nick ...

  • Cold calling intermediaries urged to consider franchise route

    1 Nov 2002

    Mortgage intermediaries who rely on cold calling for new leads have been urged to consider franchise opportunities if the FSA goes ahead with proposals to ban the practice. Many mortgage intermediaries are worried that a potential ban would lead to unemployment in the financial services industry as they struggle to find sales channels to replace the unprompted tele-canvassing of new customers. Peter Birch, a director of mortgage brokerage Mortgage Talk, has urged mortgage ...

  • Cold calling plans should be given the cold shoulder

    28 Oct 2002

    From Mike Worthington As a rapidly-expanding sub-prime mortgage broker and packager - and one that currently sources the majority of its applications from outbound calls - we find it very disturbing that such a fundamental change to the rules on cold calling should emerge at the 11th hour. I am sure that the vast majority of mortgage advisers that use outbound telemarketing to generate business are still ignorant of the fact that their established marketing method is about to be ...

  • Commercial confidence grows

    29 Oct 2002

    The third quarter 2002 has seen further falls in business demand for commercial property, says an RICS survey out today. However, this has been accompanied by an upturn in confidence, reflecting other positive economic indicators. Since the start of the year consumer spending and consumer confidence have remained up. This has benefited the retail sector, which has performed well during the third quarter and partially offset falls in other areas. Low interest ...

  • Compliance costs to restrict new business

    28 Oct 2002

    Nearly four out of five compliance professionals in the financial services industry think that companies in the sector will be forced to close to new business due to compliance costs imposed by the new FSA regime. The results of a survey from compliance outsourcing specialist Huntswood also found that 95% of those surveyed believe that the latest FSA regulatory regime will accelerate industry consolidation. The pressure to meet compliance cost targets and stay within budget was ...

  • Compliance will change face of industry forever

    28 Oct 2002

    Nearly four out of five compliance professionals in the financial services industry think that companies will be forced to close to new business due to compliance costs imposed by the new FSA regime. The results of a survey from compliance specialist Huntswood also found that 95% believe that the latest FSA regulatory regime will accelerate industry consolidation. The pressure to meet compliance-cost targets and stay within budget was cited as the most important compliance issue for ...

  • Consumers Association warns of time limit on mis-selling complaints

    30 Oct 2002

    The Consumers Association has warned millions of investors that they could face a hidden time limit on compensation claims for endowment mis-selling. Current rules mean that consumers who received their first re-projection letter in early 2000 may by early 2003 have run out of time to have their complaint considered by the Financial Ombudsman Service. This means that potentially millions of consumers may be left without access to a truly independent complaints process. ...

  • CP146 'lower-risk' loophole discovered

    28 Oct 2002

    A newly identified loophole in CP146 could see unscrupulous brokers escape regulation on high-value loans - but both the CML and FSA say it is unlikely to be a problem in practice. The FSA classifies loans of less than £10,000 as "lower risk" and proposes they should be subject to "lighter touch regulation". But the proposal is a cause for concern for those who fear that some will exploit the lower-risk rule. One broker, who asked to remain anonymous, says: "The FSA does not ...

  • Debt an everyday affair

    29 Oct 2002

    Being in debt is an "everyday reality" for most Britons, a survey from Kensington Mortgage Company reveals. And a simple matter of defaulting on your credit card, loan or mortgage could easily snowball into a larger problem. But the KMC survey of 1,000 adults shows many have a laissez-faire attitude to maintaining debt repayments. Just over one quarter said that they would only become concerned about debt when they started to miss bill payments. One ...

  • Does individual underwriting really help you say yes to more clients?

    28 Oct 2002

    At TMB, we're proud of the fact that we individually underwrite every mortgage application. In our view, it's the only way we can give brokers the flexible service they need to minimise declines. And make no mistake - the whole question of individual underwriting vs credit scoring is fundamentally a service quality issue. The fact is, individual underwriting is expensive to provide and no lender will offer it unless it genuinely wants to go that extra mile for its customers. An office ...

  • FSA modifies PI rules

    30 Oct 2002

    The FSA has modified its professional indemnity rules for independent financial adviser firms. The modification introduces a number of changes to the detailed requirements with which a firm's PII cover has to comply. Brokers and underwriters have indicated these changes are likely to increase capacity in the PII market. AIFA has been consulted and fully supports this initiative. This action has been taken following a review of the PII market following concern from ...

  • FSA to develop "Menu" approach for paying for financial advice

    29 Oct 2002

    The Financial Services Authority yesterday announced the first outcome of its consultation on the reform of polarisation, covering consumers' options for paying for financial advice. In its Consultation Paper 121, the regulator discussed potential ways to help consumers compare the cost of financial advice. The FSA's objectives were to reduce the potential for commission bias, make consumers more aware of the cost of advice; and facilitate shopping around by consumers. T

  • GMAC challenges self-cert market

    29 Oct 2002

    GMAC Residential Funding yesterday announced a further cut in its interest rates on its two-year fixed rate STAR product. Available for both packagers and intermediaries, this fixed rate STAR is unique as clients do not have to state any income on the application form, all the way up to 85% loan to value. This makes STAR exceptionally easy to process. The only requirements are a completed application form (without income details) and an application fee. With no income ...

  • GMAC cuts rates on 2-year fixed rate product

    28 Oct 2002

    GMAC Residential Funding has cut the rates on its two-year no-income-stated fixed rate product. The product has been reduced to 4.99% to 75% LTV, fixed until January 1 2005, and to 5.39% to 85% LTV for the same period. Both have dropped by 0.5%. Intermediaries receive a 0.5% fee. Clients do not have to state any income up to 85% LTV. Peter Stimson, head of product development at GMAC, describes the product as "one step beyond self-cert". But industry pundits are wary. Iain MacQueen-Sims, ...

  • GMAC-RFC cuts rate on no-income product

    28 Oct 2002

    GMAC Residential Funding has cut the rates on its two-year no income stated fixed rate product. The product has been reduced to 4.99% to 75% LTV, fixed until January 1 2005, and to 5.39% to 85% LTV for the same period. Both have dropped by 0.5%. Intermediaries receive a 0.5% fee. The STAR product is available for both packagers and intermediaries, and clients do not have to state any income on the application form up to 85% LTV. The only requirements are a completed application ...

  • Home buyers and sellers want sellers' packs

    29 Oct 2002

    CHIPS - the Consumer Home Information Pack Support - has written to Lord Rooker, Minister of State for Housing, describing its experiences where Home Information Packs and pre-sale surveys have been introduced to home buyers and sellers on a voluntary basis .

  • Homeowners better off today, says moneynet

    28 Oct 2002

    A study of price trends over the last five years from personal finance website moneynet.co.uk shows that a person living in London today would need £81,650 as a deposit to afford an average priced London home. In 199, someone earning the average wage only needed to find around £15,000. And while house prices have increased by a national average of 64.40% over the last five years, the average national weekly wage has gone up by just 26.4%. However, despite ...

  • House price inflation ignores home improvements

    31 Oct 2002

    Estimates of house price inflation can be misleading as they hide the value added to homes by owners making improvements, reveals the latest survey from Legal & General. The Moving Intentions study shows that people who bought their homes in the last two years have spent on average 5% of what they paid for the property on subsequent improvements. However, this home improvement factor is not discounted when figures for the growth in house prices are published. Stephen ...

  • Household costs rise 26% in five years

    30 Oct 2002

    The average family spends around £5,226 per year on mortgage payments and domestic bills, new research has revealed. According to the survey, conducted by Britannic Money, the annual cost of running a home has gone up by some 26% in the last five years, with this figure expected to rise by over £1,000 by 2006. British families are going to have to take drastic measures to safeguard themselves against unexpected household bills such as their central heating ...

  • Housing market still buoyant, says CML

    31 Oct 2002

    The Council of Mortgage Lenders has published its latest market briefing, with the housing market remaining buoyant despite a slowdown in GDP growth in the first quarter. The housing market saw a 50% increase in both net advances and approvals, and both the Nationwide and Halifax have revised their end of year house price forecasts. Nationwide is now expecting house price inflation to end the year at 23%, while Halifax has gone a little higher at 24%. Though the Bank ...

  • Insurance regulation timed for 2004

    28 Oct 2002

    The Treasury has confirmed that the insurance regulatory regime will come into force at the same time as mortgage regulation in October 2004. The Treasury's preliminary consultation paper, announced last Monday, takes account of the EU's Insurance Mediation Directive that was adopted by the European Parliament on September 30 2002. The final rules will bring critical illness, income protection, MPPI and term assurance under the FSA's remit. Ruth Kelly, financial secretary ...

  • Interest rate cut gets closer as MPC wavers

    28 Oct 2002

    The possibility of a cut in interest rates has been boosted by the news that three members of the Bank of England's interest rate steering committee voted for a 0.25% cut in rates at their last meeting. Members of the Monetary Policy Committee voted by six to three to keep rates on hold at 4%. And, in a speech to business leaders in Manchester earlier this month, Bank of England governor, Sir Edward George, hinted that rates might have to come down to counter the effects of tumbling ...

  • Intermediary response

    28 Oct 2002

    Chris Fleetwood, director at Paradigm Consulting, says Miss Johnson could apply for a credit- repair mortgage if high-street lenders are put off by her unsatisfied CCJ A first-time buyer with a 5% gifted deposit and an unsatisfied CCJ is not a mortgage from which dreams are made. The first job is to find out the circumstances behind the CCJ. If it can be shown that she was an unwitting party to a joint agreement with her ex-boyfriend that led to the CCJ, then we ...

  • Labour commits itself to bringing in seller's packs

    28 Oct 2002

    Government sources have given the clearest indication yet that seller's packs will be given the green light in next month's Queen's Speech. The scheme's passage through parliament was delayed after it failed to appear in last year's Speech. But now time is being set aside to debate the legislation in the next parliamentary session. This would clear the way for the packs to become a compulsory part of the homeselling process by 2005. A government spokesman told Mortgage ...

  • Latest mortgage possession figures released

    31 Oct 2002

    Latest figures from the Lord Chancellor's Department show that some 15,457 mortgage possession actions were entered in the third quarter of 2002 in England and Wales. A total of 9,849 orders were made, 5,614 of which were suspended orders. The figures do not indicate how many houses have been repossessed through the courts. Not all the orders will have resulted in the issue and execution of warrants of possession. In the third quarter of 2002 the number ...

  • Legal & General reduces final bonus rates

    28 Oct 2002

    Legal & General is reducing the final bonus rates paid on most with-profits policies from today. Because of the significant falls in the UK and other major stock markets since the beginning of 2002, Legal & General has reduced final bonus rates so that maturity proceeds are more in line with the value of underlying assets. Legal & General says it has taken this action in order to balance the interests of different with-profits customers and to maintain the fair and prudent ...

  • Lender response

    28 Oct 2002

    Guy Batchelor, sales and marketing director at Platform Home Loans, says affordability is a concern in Miss Johnson's case but suggests two schemes that would suit her situation Unfortunately, there are very few non-conforming lenders now offering products at 95% loan- to-value and so choice is limited for Miss Johnson. Fortunately, Platform has two schemes at this LTV, although there are a number of questions that need to be answered before we could agree to ...

  • LifeQuote launches web-based menu protection platform

    1 Nov 2002

    LifeQuote Ltd and Scottish Amicable have joined forces to add an internet-based full menu protection product into LifeQuote's comparative quotes engine. The portal now offers quotations for life and critical illness cover, unemployment cover and mortgage payment benefit. Christian Woodford, intermediary sales manager for Scottish Amicable, says: "We chose to work with LifeQuote because of the quality and breadth of its distribution and its expertise in deploying protection ...

  • Marlborough Stirling appoints new finance director

    30 Oct 2002

    Technology and third party outsourcing provider Marlborough Stirling has appointed Bob Beveridge as finance director. Beveridge, 46, will assume the post in November and brings with him previous experience as finance director of Cable & Wireless Communications plc and of a number of senior roles including business development director of United Biscuits plc, and Mars Incorporated. Former finance director David Gales, one of Marlborough Stirling's founders, will remain ...

  • Misys adds AFPC & MAQ learning material to website

    28 Oct 2002

    The Misys networks, the leading supplier of research and support services to the largest group of intermediaries in the UK, has added new distance learning material to support the Mortgage Advice Qualification (MAQ) and Advanced Financial Planning Certificate (AFPC) to its website Mi-learning is a special distance learning website area for Misys network members. The new material is available now to members of the Kestrel, IFA and Financial Options networks and will be made available ...

  • Mortgage lending continues its rise

    1 Nov 2002

    Net mortgage lending rose by £4.8bn to £415.1bn in September, with an additional net increase of £1.1bn in other consumer lending to £88bn, according to new lending figures released by the British Bankers' Association. September's gross mortgage lending totalled £13.1bn. Although this was 8% lower than in August, it was 34% higher than in September 2001. Repayments of £8.3bn were 4% down on the previous month, although 38% higher than ...

  • Mortgage Strategy offers Mini adventure

    28 Oct 2002

    Mortgage Strategy is teaming up with the Institute of Financial Services and Birmingham Midshires Solutions to offer readers registered in writing the chance to win a brand new BMW Mini. Brokers and advisers who have taken and passed the Certificate in Mortgage Advice and Practice in the last 12 months will soon receive four consecutive copies of Mortgage Strategy magazine complete with registration forms. And, that's not all. this fantastic competition is also open to anyone who successfully

  • Mortgageforce signs RJ Temple distribution deal

    31 Oct 2002

    Mortgage franchise operation mortgageforce has been appointed by national IFA R J Temple plc as its national mortgage broking partner. The relationship launches to coincide with R J Temple's Inheritance Tax Planning campaign in the national press. R J Temple has some 70,000 clients, for whom it invests around £275m each year, operating through its 270 financial consultants throughout the UK, some of whom will continue to transact mortgage business. mortgageforce ...

  • Mutuals under threat from risk-based regulation

    28 Oct 2002

    Smaller building societies could be under threat from intensifying competition, narrowing margins and the impact of risk-based regulation. This warning came as part of the Annual Building Societies Association Lecture last week. Speaker Philip Middleton, head of retail banking at Ernst & Young, says: "Regulators will need to have regard to their commitment to proportionate regulation if the costs and complexity of regulation are not to prove untenable for many smaller building ...

  • My mortgage week

    28 Oct 2002

    Monday: Ben Healthy. Prepared. Motivated. Starting the week glaringly absent of all three, seven days before a 120-mile trek was not what I envisaged when we planned this in April. Efforts to brush up on South American culture over the weekend involved shot glasses, lemon and salt, so it is with guilt and halitosis that I set out for a run. Call in sick but know that by Tuesday I'll be back to my usual suave, trim appearance. Ed I don't know what Ben's been up to but he looked ...

  • On average, they may all be right

    28 Oct 2002

    After various signs over the summer that the housing market was cooling, the most recent property data seems to show that the market is still motoring - and may even be in overdrive. The Halifax reported a month-on-month increase of 4.3%, hard on the heels of Nationwide's 2.1% and new kid on the block Rightmove, whose index, based on asking prices, rose by 2.3%. Hometrack's survey of 4,000 estate agents showed house-price inflation lagging behind in relative terms with a mere ...

  • Park Row Specialist Lending enters non-conforming market

    1 Nov 2002

    Mortgage intermediary Park Row Independent Mortgages (PRIM) has expanded into the non-conforming market with the launch of Park Row Specialist Lending. The new division has been set up in conjunction with packager, The Mortgage Placement Company (TMPC), and offers non-conforming mortgages through the 280 advisers in PRIM and Park Row Associates. Park Row Specialist Lending deals exclusively with borrowers in the non-conforming market, with Park Row ...

  • Pay boost for qualified staff?

    28 Oct 2002

    CeMAP-qualified intermediaries could be due a pay rise next year as brokerages bid to buy and retain qualified staff. Lenders and brokers say that December's deadline for qualification will set up an adviser 'transfer market' even though the latest MCCB figures predict a clear surplus of qualified brokers. Some 88,000 individuals have registered for CeMAP or MAQ, far more than the 55,000 mortgage advisers active at any time. But MCCB figures do not show how many applicants ...

  • Pink launches Mortgage Express exclusive

    31 Oct 2002

    Pink Home Loans has launched a new exclusive, fees-free, buy-to-let remortgage in conjunction with Mortgage Express. The product offers a discount of 0.26% for three years, giving an initial pay rate of 5.49%. In addition, there are no arrangement or valuation fees. David Copland, sales and marketing director at Pink Home Loans, says: "This is an excellent product for individuals already on the investment property ladder who would like to take advantage of the current ...

  • Platform chosen as key brand to go forward

    28 Oct 2002

    The new one-stop shop for mortgage intermediaries, formed from the merger of Britannia subsidiaries Platform Home Loans and Verso, is to be called Platform. Platform will launch in January 2003. The name was chosen following independent research conducted by Britannia among mortgage intermediaries. Platform intends to provide mortgages for nearly every borrower regardless of credit status, by offering a wider product range, with prime to non-conforming products under one roof. Intermediaries ...

  • Questions and answers, part 2

    28 Oct 2002

    Following last week's article looking at Questions 1 - 12, we will press on, addressing Questions 13 - 22. Q13 asks if you agree with the FSA's preferred option 1 for dealing with filtering questions used in non-advised sales. Option 1 means brokers must act in a clear and fair manner. Option 2 means staff conducting the non-advised filtering would be required to pass the same examinations as those providing advice (see Q15 and 16). Bit of a no-brainer, but brokers who intend ...

  • Remortgaging increases 73% in a year, says BBA

    28 Oct 2002

    Increasing numbers of homeowners are staying put and choosing to remortgage rather than moving house. The British Bankers' Association (BBA), whose members account for two-thirds of all mortgage lending, say that only half of all loans approved in September were for house purchase, whereas three years ago they had made up 68% of all lending. Remortgaging meanwhile was up 73% by value on the figure for September last year, while loans for house purchase increased by ...

  • Safe Flight?

    28 Oct 2002

    The dangers of 100% lending have been spelt out a hundred times. At a time when house prices are rising faster than average earnings, some experts can already be heard mumbling, "We've been here before". So are we simply recreating all the old, familiar problems from the past? Is this a time when pundits might justifiably feel that a spot of pre-emptive panic is appropriate? Let us first see if we really have been here before. During the depths of the recession a decade ago, ...

  • Scottish Widows enhances online underwriting

    28 Oct 2002

    Scottish Widows is extending its range of services offered to IFAs through the Scottish Widows IFA Extranet. This includes online quotations, comprehensive online underwriting and online applications. Among the benefits are: Pre-population of Application Forms Immediate underwriting decision for IFAs' clients Immediate cover for 30 days, on accepted standard rate cases Full commission flexibility The ...

  • Shop around, says FSA

    30 Oct 2002

    Consumers could save more than £700 a year by comparing prices on financial products such as current accounts, mortgages, credit cards and personal loans, says the Financial Services Authority. New research shows that four in 10 consumers think there is little difference between the costs and charges of different companies. But an FSA report, 'Losing Interest? How much consumers can save by shopping around', launched yesterday shows consumers could save as much as ...

  • Skipton launches stepped discount

    30 Oct 2002

    Skipton Building Society has launched a new four-year stepped discount mortgage. The loan carries a discount of up to 2.15% in the first year, with current pay rates starting from just 3.55% and no compulsory insurance. The deal, available up to 85% LTV, carries a 2.15% discount in year one and a 1% discount in year two, with a current pay rate of 3.55%. Redemption penalties stand at 4% in year one, 3% in year two, 2% in year three, and 1% in year four. Jennifer ...

  • SLB lending hits a new high

    28 Oct 2002

    Mortgage lending at Standard Life Bank has reached a new high of £7bn. The bank says this follows the expansion of its product range and the bank's particular strength in the first-time buyer and discounted rate market. Figures for this September show that mortgage completions have increased by more than 300% since January. Chief executive Anne Gunther says: "In May this year, we breached the £6bn barrier. Only five months later, I am delighted to tell you, we have ...

  • Staffordshire BS launches new discounted rate

    30 Oct 2002

    Staffordshire Building Society is launching a new three-year discount rate mortgage. The mutual is set to unveil a product with a 3.74% rate in its first year on November 1, with arrangement and valuation fees scrapped. The new mortgage gives a stepped discount of 2% off the Society's standard variable mortgage rate in year one, 1% discount in year two and 0.75% discount in year three. The mortgage is available to first-time buyers, home movers and remortgages. Customers ...

  • Sun Bank deal targets ex-pats

    28 Oct 2002

    Sun Bank is targeting investors at home and abroad with a new buy-to-let mortgage launched today. Details of the three-year discount deal were designed with the offshore and ex-pat investor in mind. Sun Bank marketing director Chris Cummings says: "We've changed a couple of things to make it more attractive for foreign nationals. "Applicants are required to hold a UK bank account, but this represents an easing of restrictions compared to other lenders who require a UK address." He ...

  • The Mortgage Mole

    28 Oct 2002

    Nice chap, that Mr Bolton Ahh Chicago… home of Blues, gangsters, and mortgage fans. So I'm in the Windy City but it's not the wind itself that lends it its name, it's politicians. What better place, then, to reveal Birmingham Midshires Solutions' Michael 'Big Bopper' Bolton's political aspirations (not small, as you might imagine). Bolton wants the top job in politics. The old school Tory told Mole: "I will be Prime Minister." Mmm… and pigs will fly. ...

  • This week's problem case

    28 Oct 2002

    Miss Johnson has been offered a promotion at work (taking her salary to £25,000 p.a.), but she has to relocate. As her employer offers relocation benefits if she buys her first property, she wants to buy rather than rent. She knows she may have a problem as she has an unsatisfied CCJ of £2,000 incurred 18 months ago after she split up with her boyfriend. Her parents have provided the 5% deposit and she is looking to buy a flat worth £92,000.

  • Time is running out for 50,000 of you

    28 Oct 2002

    Under the MCCB fitness and competence requirements, any adviser providing mortgage advice and a recommendation under section 3.1.(a) of the Code must have completed either the Certificate in Mortgage Advice and Practice or be FPC or CeFA-qualified and have passed either the CeMAP Bridge paper or the Mortgage Advice Qualification by December 31 2002. Those failing to do so will no longer be able to advise on mortgages except under supervision by a qualified and competent adviser. The ...

  • Two countries divided by a common language

    29 Oct 2002

    Owning a home in Florida may be the dream for many Brits but choosing a stateside holiday home can be a simple task in comparison with understanding the natives. The majority of us can't pop a hood, buy a rutabaga or have our bangs trimmed, according to research by British Mortgages Abroad, part of First National Bank, an Abbey National subsidiary. From a list of 40 commonly used American words, less than a third of those surveyed realised that a courgette is a zucchini ...

  • Two out of three won't worry about debt until it's too late

    28 Oct 2002

    Almost two out of three people would not start worrying about debt until the situation had spiraled out of control, research by Kensington Mortgage Company shows. About 26% of people said they would not feel concerned about their borrowings until they started missing bill payments. and 20% said it would not bother them until they owed more than they earned. Almost 20% of those asked said they would only start to worrying about their debts if repayments meant they were ...

  • Who will pay the real costs of compliance?

    28 Oct 2002

    Compliance costs with the new regulatory regime for mortgages will force some lenders and brokers to close to new business. As we report on page 4, a survey from specialist firm Huntswood reveals that nearly four out of five compliance professionals in the financial services industry think companies will be forced to close to new business due to compliance costs imposed by the new FSA regime. And some 95% believe the latest FSA regime will accelerate consolidation. As Huntswood ...

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