Mortgage Strategy
8 June 2009
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60 seconds with.....David Whittaker
8 Jun 2009
Your outlook on property price movements is more down-to-earth than most. Why is that?There’s always conflicting data but we take a pragmatic view based on what our clients tell us. Rather than first-time buyers on the bottom rung of the property ladder, professional landlords represent rungs two, three and four. Landlords are buying four and five-bedroom houses again and stimulating an area of the market not attainable by most first-timers.
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69% of borrowers fix in June
11 Jun 2009
The Council of Mortgage Lenders says that 69% of borrowers took out a fixed rate mortgage in April, with an average rate of 4.83%.
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87% take-up of Lloyds open share offer
8 Jun 2009
Lloyds Banking Group revealed this morning that 87% of qualifying shareholders had taken up its £4bn open share offer.
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A&L changes rates on four-year broker fixes
8 Jun 2009
Alliance & Leicester for Intermediaries has changed the rates on some of its four-year fixed deals. It has cut the rate on its four-year fix for core and remortgage business to 4.59% but hiked the fee to £995.
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AFB rebuffs claims it is not filling FISA gap
8 Jun 2009
The Association of Finance Brokers has dismissed claims that it is failing to fill a void in the secured loans market after the withdrawal of the Finance Industry Standards Association.
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All C&G branches rumoured to be for the chop
9 Jun 2009
Lloyds is rumoured to be set to axe all Cheltenham & Gloucester branches, with some 1,400 jobs set to go.
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Almost 30% of first-time buyers scrap plans to buy
11 Jun 2009
Almost one third of potential first-time buyers scrapped plans to buy a house in the last 12 months because of the economy, show figures from the Letting Protection Service.
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AMI claims victory for brokers as FSA slashes fee increase to 2.7%
8 Jun 2009
The Association of Mortgage Intermediaries claimed a victory for brokers last week after the Financial Services Authority bowed to pressure and lowered its regulatory fee increase for the sector.
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Beware the charms of a false dawn
8 Jun 2009
You could be forgiven for thinking that the cloud of depression hanging over the housing market is lifting, given the wave of positive news recently.
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Bid for success
8 Jun 2009
With fewer mortgages to sell brokers are finding themselves less in demand these days, which led one BDM to advertise his services on online auction website eBay - his mortgage services, that is.
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Bob Crow – Bite Me
11 Jun 2009
You can rely on football fans to eloquently say what everyone else is thinking, and as far as the tube strike is concerned last night was no exception.
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Borrowers paid 15% to remortgage elsewhere
10 Jun 2009
Exact is believed to be coordinating efforts by lenders such as Morgan Stanley to pay borrowers around 15% of the cost of their mortgage to remortgage elsewhere.
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Borrowers pay up for peace of mind
8 Jun 2009
Several broker groups have recently commented that their members have seen a significant increase in the proportion of fixed rate deals being sold.
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Brilliant Mortgages offers Halifax's home insurance
9 Jun 2009
Brilliant Mortgages, formerly the M2000 mortgage club and acquired by Exclusive Connections in February, has added Halifax home insurance to its general insurance panel.
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Britannia re-enters 90% LTV market
9 Jun 2009
Britannia is relaunching a 90% LTV option across its mortgage range in addition to cutting many of its fixed rates.
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Britannia relaunches 90% LTV
9 Jun 2009
Britannia is relaunching a 90% LTV option across its mortgage range in addition to cutting many of its fixed rates, through its branches only.
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Broker banned for ignoring FOS
8 Jun 2009
The Financial Services Authority has cancelled the permissions of a Kent-based mortgage broker after he failed to pay out for a complaint against him which was upheld by the Financial Ombudsman Service.
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Broker-bashing will hold back recovery
8 Jun 2009
Broker-bashing is doing nothing to help the market. The recent attack by the Council of Mortgage Lenders on brokers' attitude to fraud, combined with the MPs' expenses debacle and rising unemployment, did not help consumer confidence.
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Brokers must find strength in diversity
8 Jun 2009
First, I would like to congratulate the group of talented youngsters who managed to beat the odds-on favourite to emerge victorious in ITV's Britain's Got Talent.
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Brown’s cabinet reshuffle proves that housing as priority is thing of the past
9 Jun 2009
Proof, if it was needed, of just how low housing is now on the Prime Minister’s agenda came last week with the appointment of John Healey as housing minister.
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But first, let the battle of words begin
8 Jun 2009
My old friend Danny Lovey has never been one to shy away from the limelight - he even suggested a solution to the liquidity crisis 18 months ago.
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Citri joins Openwork's mortgage panel
12 Jun 2009
Openwork, has teamed up with Citri, a Newcastle-based directly authorisednational mortgage firm.
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Clayton Euro Risk manages over £20bn of mortgage assets
9 Jun 2009
Clayton Euro Risk, the UK’s largest third-party due diligence business has carried out due diligence on over £20bn worth of mortgage assets in the last two years.
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CML advises buy-to-let lenders to act fairly
10 Jun 2009
The Council of Mortgage Lenders is publishing new guidance to reinforce that lenders act fairly in dealing with cases of arrears on buy-to-let mortgages.
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Confidence in buy-to-let on the decline
9 Jun 2009
Nearly a third of Brits believe buy-to-let property investments are going to make a loss in the current climate, shows research from Unbiased.co.uk.
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Confidence in housing highest since 2007
8 Jun 2009
Public confidence in the housing market is higher than at any point since September 2007 and the bailout of Northern Rock, Propertyfinder.com's May survey shows.
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Cornell joins First Action Finance
8 Jun 2009
Jonathan Cornell, former managing director of Hamptons Mortgages, has joined London-based IFA firm First Action Finance as head of communications.
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Corrie star helps write off Bank of Scotland debt
11 Jun 2009
Coronation Street star Michael Le Vell, who plays Kevin Webster in the TV soap, has helped a Wetherby man to successfully get £15,000 of credit card debt written off.
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Demand for variable rate deals plummets
8 Jun 2009
Demand for variable mortgage deals has almost halved since the start of the year, research from Abbey shows.
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Dring tries The Mad Approach with new firm
8 Jun 2009
Alan Dring, former sales and marketing director at Goldsmith Williams, has launched consultancy firm The Mad Approach.
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Ensure you are prepared when the time comes
8 Jun 2009
In downturns there are always winners and losers and while this recession has been severe, it should be remembered that it will end and a new economic cycle will begin.
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Ex-Praxis directors launch claims management firm
10 Jun 2009
Founders and former directors of Birmingham-based mortgage packager Praxis, Nick and Richard Stettner are set to launch claims management company Claims Master.
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Firms should have the right to appeal against judgements
8 Jun 2009
I have no idea of the circumstances surrounding the FSA banning a broker for failing to pay a Financial Ombudsman Service charge (Mortgage Strategy Online June 2) but the decision would surely carry more legitimacy if the broker had been granted the right of appeal.
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First-timers face a steep climb to home ownership
8 Jun 2009
I got married 25 years ago last week. Back then, Margaret Thatcher was in Number 10, Wham's Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go was number one in the pop charts and we were all Yuppies.
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Friends Provident seminar to focus on raising revenue
8 Jun 2009
The latest online seminar hosted by Friends Provident will be all about generating revenue in uncertain times.
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FSA bans broker for fraud
10 Jun 2009
The Financial Services Authority has banned North London broker Akin Johnson for systems and controls failings which led to at least eight mortgage applications being submitted to lenders containing false and misleading information.
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FSA fines up 514% to record £27m
8 Jun 2009
The Financial Services Authority handed out a record 55 fines in the year ended 31 March 2009, show figures from city law firm Reynolds Porter Chamberlain.
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FSA to focus on MPPI providers
9 Jun 2009
Lord Adair Turner, chairman of the Financial Services Authority has warned that insurers may be flouting Treating Customers Fairly principles by decreasing the amount of cover they offer mortgage customers.
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Get away
8 Jun 2009
Life's tough for today's 20-somethings. Not only are they the age group suffering the highest rate of unemployment but they're now having to turn to their parents for holidays.
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Grace under pressure
9 Jun 2009
It already looks like a week of pressure for many, not just our beleaguered Prime Minister, who although he has survived the latest coupe is hanging by a thread after the Euro Elections.
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Granite leads way in RMBS arrears climb
8 Jun 2009
Arrears in prime residential mortgage-backed securities continue to escalate, with Northern Rock's Granite master trust recording arrears of more than 90 days at almost 5%.
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Grin news
8 Jun 2009
If you think being in the mortgage sector isn't much fun at the moment, spare a thought for poor taxi drivers who have been identified as the country's grumpiest workers.
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Gummer hits out at FSA and rating agencies
11 Jun 2009
Speaking at the Association of Mortgage Intermediaries annual dinner last night, the trade body’s chairman MP John Gummer called for the FSA and ratings agencies to be reprimanded for their part in the economic crisis.
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Handle with care should be mantra for arrears clients
8 Jun 2009
Mortgage arrears and repossessions are at the top of everyone's agenda at the moment.
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Home Buyer Systems partners with Countrywide Solicitors
10 Jun 2009
Home Buyer Systems is partnering with Countrywide Solicitors and will offer its users mutual access via online links.
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House purchase approvals rise
8 Jun 2009
The number of mortgage approvals for house purchase in April hit 43,201 - an increase on both March's figure and the previous six-month average.
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House purchase approvals rise
8 Jun 2009
The number of mortgage approvals for house purchase in April hit 43,201 - an increase on both March's figure and the previous six-month average.
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House rules
8 Jun 2009
We've all seen the revelations about MPs' expenses but what is most worrying is that some bought houses with mortgages funded by taxpayers then sold them at a profit, often paying little or no Capital Gains Tax.
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Housing market steadying, says RICS
9 Jun 2009
A further increase in both new buyer enquiries and sales, as well as a reduction in the level of stocks on surveyors books has begun to provide some support for property prices, says the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.
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How IT can boost protection sales
8 Jun 2009
The bank holiday-filled month of May was mainly sunny but ended overcast as reports of record low mortgage lending surfaced.
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Independent advice is best for clients
8 Jun 2009
It's hard to find a silver lining to the cloud of the past 18 months but one thing is apparent - everyone is working smarter, with the exception of lenders.
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Industry strikes back at Shelter sub-prime claim
8 Jun 2009
Industry pundits have hit back at a damning report by housing charity Shelter which accuses sub-prime lenders of failing in their duty to help struggling borrowers.
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It's easy to criticise brokers if you live in an ivory tower
8 Jun 2009
If Forrest Gump's phrase 'stupid is as stupid does' means we should judge people by what they do rather than how they appear, I can think of a bunch of financial services institutions that appear knowledgeable and respectable but, judging by their recent diatribes, are examples of 'stupid does'.
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It's sad to lose our high street brands
8 Jun 2009
I guess it's an age-related thing but I wonder how many readers felt a twinge of sadness at the news that the Abbey brand - along with Bradford & Bingley and Alliance & Leicester - is scheduled for termination. I'll miss them all.
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It's time for higher rent-back standards
8 Jun 2009
When the Office of Fair Trading took a look at the sale-and-rent-back market last year it concluded that some 50,000 households had undertaken such transactions during the previous two years.
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John Charcol to revise salaries
8 Jun 2009
John Charcol is to chop the basic salary of its sales force but increase commission payments.
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John Charcol warns of fixed rate increase
10 Jun 2009
Ray Boulger, senior technical manager at John Charcol is warning advisers they need to act quickly to secure current fixed rate deals.
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L&G advisers expect boost in business
10 Jun 2009
Stephen Smith, director of housing at Legal & General says over half of its advisers expect business to get better over the next three months, plus a further 40% expect to maintain business at current levels.
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L&G club unveils two fixed rate exclusives
8 Jun 2009
Legal & General Mortgage Club is launching two exclusive three-year fixed rates through Platform. The products are available to appointed representatives of L&G Partnership Services.
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L&G helps advisers to cross-sell
8 Jun 2009
Legal & General is helping its mortgage network advisers to identify opportunities to sell a wider range of insurance and investment products.
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Labour can't help us now
8 Jun 2009
Entertaining as recent political dramas have been, the worrying truth is that they distract the government from the all-important task of getting the economy back on track.
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Large loan five-year trackers on offer
8 Jun 2009
Largemortgageloans.com has launched two five-year tracker deals to cater for loans between £500,000 and £1m.
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Leadbay scoops marketing award
8 Jun 2009
Leadbay has won a rewarding excellence and innovation award for finance in affiliate marketing at the A4U affiliate marketing awards.
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Lenders and brokers must grow as one
8 Jun 2009
Traditionally, one of the best things about the intermediary market was its flexibility to expand to meet demand from hungry consumers and market share from hungry lenders.
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Lenders don't understand low-cost housing sector
8 Jun 2009
I feel compelled to write a response to a recent article (Mortgage Strategy May 25) that included claims that brokers are standing in the way of shared ownership schemes being a success.
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Let's rid our sector of bad practices
8 Jun 2009
We should no longer tolerate those in the equity release sector who continue to transact business using 'back of a fag packet' processes.
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Lighthouse teams up with Mortgage Intelligence
11 Jun 2009
Lighthouse Group has reached an agreement with Mortgage Intelligence whereby Lighthouse mortgage advisers have access to a broker help desk, members’ only website plus the option to receive additional proc fees.
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Lloyds streamlines all broker business via four brands
9 Jun 2009
Lloyds Banking Group is to streamline its broker offering by channelling all business via Birmingham Midshires, Cheltenham & Gloucester, Halifax and Scottish Widows.
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Marketwatch 08/06/2009
8 Jun 2009
Swaps are steadily increasing and longer term swaps went up substantially last week.1-year money is up 0.01% at 1.28%2-year money is up 0.06% at 2.00%3-year money is up 0.10% at 2.63%5-year money is up 0.11% at 3.37%
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Month-on-month society lending down in April
8 Jun 2009
Gross mortgage lending by building societies was £1.55bn in April 2009 compared with £1.57bn in March and £3.9bn in April 2008, says the Building Societies Association.
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Mortgage applications at Conti up by 143%
11 Jun 2009
Overseas property specialist Conti has seen an increase of 65% in mortgage applications for Turkish properties, when comparing the first five months of this year with the last five in 2008.
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Mortgage rate falls may be pushing up arrears levels
10 Jun 2009
Standards & Poor’s says the way lenders assess how severely in arrears a borrower is could actually have been exaggerated by falling mortgage rates.
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Mortgage rates increasing above Libor
8 Jun 2009
Product providers are increasing average mortgage rates and the margin above Libor despite the latest Bank base rate hold.
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Mortgage Times pledges to pay AR his commission
8 Jun 2009
Mortgage Times has promised to pay an appointed representative who has waited more than two months for commission on a protection case.
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N&P mothballs Astra
10 Jun 2009
Norwich & Peterborough has mothballed its specialist brand Astra today, with 14 staff placed in consultation.
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Negative equity could be worse than mid-90s
12 Jun 2009
The Bank of England has warned that more borrowers could be in negative equity than in the mid-90s, as it reveals negative equity estimates for Q1 2009 of between 7 % and 11%.
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Openwork's support for ex-Network Data ARs has been great
8 Jun 2009
I was an appointed representative of Network Data and am one of those who has now moved with First Affinity to Openwork.
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Opportunity knocks if equity release advisers market themselves better
8 Jun 2009
Equity release advisers are crucial to the sector but they should be marketing themselves more effectively if they want to capitalise on opportunities.
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Orbiter revamps sourcing system
10 Jun 2009
Orbiter has added several additional features to its sourcing system, including decision link, which offers advisers a free decision service from TFC Homeloans.
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Orbiter to rate lenders' service
8 Jun 2009
Orbiter has added a lender service rating facility to its system and will rate lenders on a five star scale.
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Paymentshield simplifies transfer of ex-Network Data AR business
8 Jun 2009
Paymentshield has simplified its procedure for former Network Data appointed representatives looking to transfer Paymentshield customers to their new networks.
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PCCB suspends and fines Bristol HIP provider
11 Jun 2009
The Property Codes Compliance Board has suspended HIP Code subscriber Apollo Surveys after it failed to meet the board’s inspection requirements.
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Play your way to regulatory understanding
8 Jun 2009
As students around the country sit their examinations I am reminded of the many exams I have had to sit in my school days and working life.
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Positive signs but times are still hard
8 Jun 2009
There has been a mixed bag of economic data in the past month but information relating to the housing market suggests tentative signs of stabilisation, albeit at a low level.
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Property shows on TV need a dose of reality
8 Jun 2009
Recently I've been feeling the pressure a bit, what with the MPs' expenses scandal and Susan Boyle holidaying at the Priory, so I just had to have a few days R&R with my good friend Rioja.
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Property Spotlight: Nottingham
8 Jun 2009
The areaNottingham is a city in the East Midlands. While the City of Nottingham unitary authority has a tightly drawn boundary which accounts for its relatively small population of 288,700, the wider Nottingham area has a population of 667,000 and is the seventh largest urban area in the UK, ranking between Liverpool and Sheffield.
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Providers hike PPI premiums
8 Jun 2009
Which? has found that although most providers have stopped offering single premium payment protection insurance, many have increased their regular premium policies to compensate.
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Questions over network disclosure
8 Jun 2009
Network Data Holdings could have flouted Alternative Investment Market rules by failing to inform investors that it was trading insolvently.
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Regulation must be specific to sectors, says ABI
8 Jun 2009
The Association of British Insurers is calling for the insurance sector not to be tarred with the same brush as the rest of the financial services industry.
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Regulator makes a bonus exception - itself
8 Jun 2009
With stunning irony, the Financial Services Authority has confirmed it recently paid bonuses of nearly £20m to its staff compared with just over £13m last year.
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Regulator rewards itself for failure
8 Jun 2009
The Freedom of Information Act has not only opened a window on how our political lords and masters fiddle their expenses and seemingly commit fraud, it has also shone a torch of truth on how the Financial Services Authority squanders our readers' money.
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RMBS arrears hike is to be expected
8 Jun 2009
Reports that prime residential mortgage-backed securities have seen a jump in arrears should come as no surprise.
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Roadshows will teach brokers how to sell IP
8 Jun 2009
The Income Protection Task Force will be holding a series of roadshows later in the year to educate brokers about the benefits of offering clients IP.
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SAFER must cast its net more widely
8 Jun 2009
Let me start by apologising to Specialist Advisers For Equity Release. The comments I made in my last column were not meant to be dismissive.
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Sense of direction
8 Jun 2009
Mahatma Gandhi once said that "unity, to be real, must stand the severest strain without breaking". It doesn't take a genius to point out the market conditions are severe indeed so how is the unity holding up?
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Sesame offers estate agent support pack
12 Jun 2009
Sesame has developed a support pack to help mortgage advisers target and build partnerships with independent estate and letting agents.
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Setting the record straight on B2L sourcing systems
8 Jun 2009
I'd like to set the record straight with regard to the letter from Chloe Taverner, marketing manager at The Business Mortgage Company, headlined 'eMoneyfacts' B2L calculator claims are misleading' (Mortgage Strategy May 18).
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Simplicity may be best with CI cover
8 Jun 2009
Buying coffee used to be so simple. The only decision to be made was - black or white?
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Skipton rumoured to be looking to sell HML
9 Jun 2009
Skipton Building Society is reportedly looking to offload its mortgage-servicing business HML, along with Callcredit and estate-agent Connells.
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Skipton rumoured to be looking to shed HML
8 Jun 2009
Skipton Building Society is reportedly looking to offload its mortgage-servicing business HML, along with Callcredit and estate-agent Connells.
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Slow mover
8 Jun 2009
We all know that houses are taking a long time to sell these days but Mole was taken aback when he heard that one home took a whopping 40 years to shift.
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Spiralling unemployment puts MPPI model under pressure
8 Jun 2009
Assurant Intermediary has warned that mortgage payment protection insurance is not designed to cope with the rising level of unemployment in the country.
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Sub-prime lenders accused of failing borrowers
8 Jun 2009
Housing charity Shelter has accused sub-prime lenders of failing in their duty to help struggling borrowers.
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Sub-prime lenders accused of failing borrowers
9 Jun 2009
Housing charity Shelter has accused sub-prime lenders of failing in their duty to help struggling borrowers.
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Thanks, not
8 Jun 2009
HSBC continues to make brokers' lives that little bit easier - yeah right.
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The Charlbury Group launches MI pack
10 Jun 2009
The Charlbury Group is offering free management information reports from its AMS system, aimed at helping lenders to manage the repossession process.
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TMW launches one-year buy-to-let range
12 Jun 2009
The Mortgage Works is adding to its buy-to-let range with the launch of one-year fixed and tracker rate products.
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TrigoldCrystal upgrades its Momentum system
9 Jun 2009
TrigoldCrystal is making a number of code and architecture improvements to its Momentum point-of-sale and client management system.
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We are still owed commission by banks and insurers
8 Jun 2009
The news that former Network Data ARs are owed some £2m (Mortgage Strategy Online June 2) is interesting, but what is the FSA going to do about the commission owed to us by banks and insurers?
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West Brom brought back from the brink
12 Jun 2009
The West Bromwich has negotiated a deal with its debt-holders to convert its £182.5m debt into capital, which has been approved by the Financial Services Authority.
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West Brom in fight for survival
11 Jun 2009
West Bromwich has revealed that it's looking to increase its core tier 1 capital ratio, on the back of rumours that the government is looking to rescue the mutual in the next couple of days.
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West Brom reports £48m loss
12 Jun 2009
West Bromwich has reported a pre-tax loss of £48.8m for the year ended 31 March 2009, compared to a pre-tax profit of 47.8m last year.
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West Brom rescue rumour
11 Jun 2009
Rumours are rife that West Bromwich is to be rescued in the next couple of days.
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Whitechurch links with MortgageStream
8 Jun 2009
The Whitechurch Network is allowing MortgageStream to approach its members so it can promote its case management software.
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Woolwich's tactic to muscle brokers out is a disgrace
8 Jun 2009
I'm sure I'm not the only broker who is frustrated with Woolwich's fund booking line.
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Yorkshire signs up to L&G's OLP Connect
8 Jun 2009
Yorkshire Building Society has become the first building society or banking partner to go live with Legal & General’s new online point-of-sale business system, OLP Connect.
