Mortgage Strategy
Andrew Montlake, Director, Coreco Group FREELANCE
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Marketwatch
21 May 2012
Greece is the word this week, so is Spain for that matter, but there is nothing anyone can do about that.
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Marketwatch
14 May 2012
Europe is back on the news agenda. Greece is struggling to form a government, France has turned left and Spain looks decidedly dodgy again as Spanish bank Bankia is part nationalised.
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Marketwatch
7 May 2012
I had an excellent couple of days at The Strategy Summit, organised by Mortgage Strategy discussing the Mortgage Market Review and the issue of advice, European regulation and the future of buy-to-let - don’t worry, it’s rosy.
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Marketwatch
30 April 2012
If anyone needs any cheering up at the moment, then all you have to do is be thankful you are not chancellor George Osborne.
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Marketwatch
23 April 2012
There has been much talk over the past week about our fine industry with two issues dominating - lending levels and proc fees.
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Marketwatch
16 April 2012
It’s been an interesting couple of weeks reading the industry press. It’s almost as if we have rolled back the years.
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Marketwatch
9 April 2012
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Marketwatch
19 March 2012
I thought I would start writing this at 11.45pm which gave me a few minutes before joining the other night owl brokers in a hunt for Woolwich funds.
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Marketwatch
12 March 2012
Mortgage rates were at the forefront of the news last week following several lenders upping not just their product pricing but also, controversially, SVRs.
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Marketwatch
05 March 2012
It is certainly an interesting time for mortgage pricing as lenders face a challenge in getting their products out at the right cost, without being inundated, while trying to gauge how their competitors will react.
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Marketwatch
27 February 2012
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Marketwatch
20 February 2012
Short-term swaps went up slightly last week while three-year and especially five-year money, dropped nicely.
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Marketwatch
13 February 2012
There I was pondering what to write this week when all of a sudden I was inundated with facts and figures from the Office for National Statistics and Council of Mortgage Lenders, as well as a controversial policy change from a major lender.
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Marketwatch
6 February 2012
Swaps fell again last week while LIBOR eased off a touch, which hopefully means lenders will indulge in some rate cutting with no notice next week. I know, wishful thinking.
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Half A Glass…
5 Sep 2011
At a time when negative headlines dominate the economic landscape it is hard not to notice that consumer confidence has taken a battering in recent weeks.
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First-time buyers: Retreating or returning?
15 Aug 2011
First-time buyers have been in the news this week with a report from the Council of Mortgage Lenders, stating that last month saw a 10-month high in the numbers of first-timers purchasing, although still down from this time last year.
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Don’t Panic, Pike!
5 Aug 2011
Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the financial markets…
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The Mortgage Myth
4 Jul 2011
If you believe everything you read in the papers you would be forgiven for thinking that there is not much point in applying for a mortgage at the moment because it is all too difficult.
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No.thanks&hah.com - Re: Lies
19 Apr 2011
It is always interesting for me to get feedback on some of the things I write, positive or negative, and often the most interesting part of any article is not the article itself, but the comments section.
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Another One Bites The Dust
18 Mar 2011
It is a sad day as another well known brand, Cheltenham & Gloucester, takes a quick bow and scuttles off into the shadows, at least where intermediaries are concerned. As someone who started using C&G in the days before they paid a proc fee and who has their mortgage with them it is a double shame.
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Entropy
15 Mar 2011
The other night I watched the excellent “Wonders of The Universe” with Prof. Brian Cox, (the thinking woman’s crumpet), and learnt a new term that I thought was apt; Entropy.
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Prisoners of fortune
7 Mar 2011
Last week as the members of the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee sat and argued their very different views around potential interest rate changes, many in the mortgage industry pondered secretly, some publically, that quite frankly an early rate rise will be good for business.
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End of an era
1 Mar 2011
Last week was a mish-mash of contrasting news headlines that look like continuing into this week.
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Large mortgage loans & bankers' bonuses
14 Feb 2011
This week we shall undoubtedly see the thorny subject of bankers bonuses raising its head again, especially as Barclays is due to be the first bank to reveal its bonus figures on Tuesday.
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Bank Base Rate Held – For Now
11 Feb 2011
After a whirlwind of headlines last month, some proclaiming the death of the recovery and others forecasting apocalyptic levels of inflation, the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee have held firm and decided to keep Base Rate on hold for yet another month.
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The only way is up
31 Jan 2011
Last week was all about growth, or rather the lack of it, with unexpected figures released that showed the UK economy had actually shrunk by 0.5% in the last quarter of 2010.
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As inflation surges, fixing looks ever more attractive
19 Jan 2011
Faced with the barrage of news headlines in almost every paper today about raging inflation leading to soaring interest rates, we thought it was prudent to bring a sense of calmness to the media storm.
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Is Grant Shapps the saviour of the housing market?
12 Jan 2011
This morning my 4am alarm call pervaded my fitful slumbers to remind me that something was happening today that could potentially be rather important.
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Is 2011 the year to buy property?
22 Dec 2010
As we move into another year, the same questions appear to be forming on everyone’s lips. Will 2011 finally see the end of the current turmoil we have been in since the start of the credit crises several years ago? Will we see sustained and meaningful growth in the economy and is 2011 going to be a good year to buy property?
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Football porn or MPs' love-in?
30 Nov 2010
There was an intriguing choice of viewing last night on TV and I do not mean between some mad old bat in a jungle or an ill-timed expose of FIFA that surprises no one.
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Remedial economics rules
20 Oct 2010
Last week I was asked to speak as part of a panel at the OPP Live Property Investor Show at the Excel Centre on the subject of the UK Economy and the market as a whole. I thought I may as well share my short speech with you to get some feedback.
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HSBC must lead the way if so many of their own borrowers don't know what they've got
29 Sep 2010
We all know that 83.5% of statistics are made up on the spot, but this startling little nugget was published a week or so ago by none other than HSBC’s subsidiary brand First Direct.
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Tabula Rasa
20 Sep 2010
In the fall-out of any major, near catastrophic event, an autopsy is carried out and opinions fly as to why this happened and how we can guard against it in the future.
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Mortgage lending up...a bit
19 Aug 2010
Today saw the release of the latest set of data from the Council Of Mortgage Lenders, stating that gross mortgage lending rose by 5% in July compared to June, although this is still 3% down from July 2009.
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Frustration still evident in Lending to Individuals figures
29 Jul 2010
The frustration felt by many individuals that banks still do not seem to be lending in sufficient quantities is still evident in the latest Lending To Individuals figures from the Bank of England, which explains the frustration felt by many would-be borrowers.
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Stress-Testing Times
23 Jul 2010
For those of you who think times are more than a little tough at the moment, the news that there are still major fears about the strength of the European Banking System, is not really what you will want to hear.
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What the England World Cup team can teach us
8 Jul 2010
It has been a dismal World Cup for the average England supporter, but whilst the Scots rejoice in our misfortune, we can reflect on the fact that with every negative there is a positive and lessons to be learnt for all of us.
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Budget – Big, Bad, Bold or Beautiful?
22 Jun 2010
This afternoon we finally had the Emergency Budget that everyone had been tensely waiting for. A cloud of trepidation filled the Commons as the young chancellor who many feared could not deliver such a budget got to his feet.
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Imagine That
21 Jun 2010
Here at Coreco Towers we have been enjoying the exploits of our “semi-official” world cup team. Never mind dismal England, what about the pride of New Zealand?
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To track or not to track? So many questions!
Online - June 2010
While I have been away for a week in the deepest recesses of Longleat Forest, I have been keeping up to date with the various comments by the great and good around the future of Bank base rates and mortgage products generally.
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We all need a fix sometimes
2 Jun 2010
Someone told me the other day that I don’t seem to be as controversial as I used to be. I don’t think that is strictly true but maybe I have mellowed slightly now I am in a better work environment.
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The End Of Interest Only?
25 May 2010
One of the biggest changes in the Mortgage Market occurred a few days ago when the massive Lloyds Banking Group announced that they will no longer provide loans on an interest only basis above £500,000.
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Bring Me Sunshine
13 May 2010
Not since the glory days of Morecambe & Wise have a double act so apparently “in tune” with each other graced our TV screens.
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Well hung, possibly drawn, but not quartered
7 May 2010
As expected we have our first Hung Parliament since 1974 and if every party leader was honest, each one of them would admit to being very disappointed.
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Mortgages and vegetables
4 May 2010
We are finally on the cusp of the general election with the outcome still not assured and whilst there are a few other trifling matters for the politicians’ to worry themselves about, (apparently we owe someone a lot of money for example), there are some other issues in the mortgage market that are provoking much discussion.
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The Third Man
16 Apr 2010
It used to be the case that a week was a long time in politics, but now, after the much anticipated Leaders debate last night delivered a surprisingly enticing slice of political drama, 90 minutes can be an entire career.
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Welcome To The West Wing
15 Apr 2010
Perhaps one of my favourite episodes of my favourite ever TV programme The West Wing was when Presidential candidates Jimmy Smits and Alan Alda went head-to-head in a US Presidential televised debate.
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Mortgage Figures Show Improvement
13 Apr 2010
The latest figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders, showing a modest improvement in the number of loans month-on-month is a welcome sight.
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Election Report Week 1
9 Apr 2010
The first week of campaigning is almost over and I have already tried to ban myself from shouting at the TV.
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Election Springs Into Action
6 Apr 2010
Finally and as expected, Parliament is to be dissolved, (not literally of course although that could be fun!), and the election date is May 6.
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Battle of the Chancellors
30 Mar 2010
As with many things in life, it is good to get a range of views on, well just about everything really, so to this end I am welcoming some guest bloggers to this spot every month so if you want to apply just drop me a line.
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Marketwatch
29 March 2010
ANDREW MONTLAKE: DIRECTOR, CORECO GROUP
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The Budget
25 Mar 2010
As I sat watching the chancellor on TV yesterday with my headphones on, listening to the radio coverage to drown out the howls of derision hurled at the screen by some of my colleagues, something interesting happened.
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It's Budget Day, Wahoo!
24 Mar 2010
How exciting! Today is the last budget before the long-awaited general election and hands up who is not excited by the prospect of hanging on our chancellors’ every word?
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BBA Lending Figures
23 Feb 2010
January has never been a particularly strong month for mortgage data and this year the drop has been exacerbated by the Stamp Duty holiday that ended in December and last month’s dire weather.
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Where there's a will there's a way
9 Feb 2010
It is interesting to see how many traditional mortgage brokers are still looking at diversifying and finally increasing the levels of cross-sales that, let’s face it, we should all have been doing anyway – the best time to fix the roof is always when the sun is shining.
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Interest rates enter the expectation phase
4 Feb 2010
Let’s be honest, I am sure no-one expected to see that the Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee, had suddenly raised rates from their current 0.5% level, although some commentators have been a little jittery with inflation nudging 3%.
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Limping for a generation
3 Feb 2010
With apologies to The Blow Monkeys for lifting the title of their debut album, (I love a music link), for some reason this phrase popped into my head when the latest quarterly GDP figures were released showing that we have just about limped out of recession.
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Inflation spikes higher than expected
19 Jan 2010
Today’s inflation figures, rising dramatically to 2.9%, could well bring to an end the rate complacency we have seen among borrowers over the past year or so.
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Competition Increases, Crunch Criteria Continues
19 Jan 2010
There have been more than a few welcome signs in the mortgage market of late as competition between lenders seems to have made a welcome return, reflected in some rate cutting across many different products in the past few days.
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Smirk - the dangers of email ;-)
13 Jan 2010
The problem with email is the bland way that it conveys your messages without actually conveying the smirk on your face as you write it, the cheeky little twinkle in your eye or the sarcasm you would have said it with. As a result, alot can be misread and some can take offence when nothing could have been further from the truth.
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Mortgage rate confusion
12 Jan 2010
I was up before the crack of dawn yesterday morning, 4.15 am to be precise, for a stint on BBC Radio 5 Live’s’ Wake Up To Money followed by BBC Breakfast TV chatting about mortgage rates after one too many cups of strong coffee.
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Winter Wonderland Welcomes 2010
6 Jan 2010
As I trudged cautiously through the deep snow in freezing Hertfordshire it warmed the cockles of my heart to think of the New Year ahead and wonder what opportunities will present themselves.
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Merry Christmas, Seasons Greetings and Happy New Year!
23 Dec 2009
Can anyone tell me where 2009 has gone? In fact, actually don’t bother as I suspect that like many we will be glad to see the back of another tumultuous year which has seen many dramatic changes.
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Rage Against The Machine (I wont do what you tell me)
16 Dec 2009
So the silly season seems to have crept up on us and all of a sudden another year has almost flown by.
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Base Rate Bingo
11 Dec 2009
We all knew there was never going to be any change this month in the Bank of England Base Rate, nor in the amount Quantitative Easing, but there are still some interesting forces at play.
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Houston, We Have A Problem…
10 Dec 2009
At the moment I am sitting in Houston Texas where they have just experienced something extremely unusual, a snowstorm.
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Dubai, farewell, auf wiedersehen, adieu!
30 Nov 2009
The latest rumblings of discontent around the financial community have been centred around the issues that beset Dubai, the land where dreams have been built, quite literally, in the sand.
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Why we're all critics now
10 Nov 2009
Forgive me people for I have sinned! It has been far too long since my last confession, sorry, I mean blog post! In the meantime I have been through quite a bit, what with turning 40 yesterday (I know I don’t look it), and experiencing the general ups and downs of life and the mortgage industry, (more in a separate posting).
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Rise in mortgage products signals more competition
2 Nov 2009
A week may be a long time in politics, but in the lending market at the moment a week can represent a complete transformation in product choice that would normally evolve over a long period of time.
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Mortgage Regulation Welcome
19 Oct 2009
I have just spent this morning looking at the much anticipated new FSA proposals for the mortgage industry, which weighing in at 118 pages is a healthy size, (actually my scan reading powers were put to the test to be honest!)
