April 22, 2013

FTB activity in March the strongest in six years!

Housing activity in March has picked up, with valuations activity returning to levels not seen since March 2007, according to the latest Housing Market Activity Report by Connells Survey & Valuation. The total number of residential valuations conducted in March showed growth of almost a quarter (24%) from the same month last year. This represents […]

April 12, 2013

UK house prices up 0.8% year-on-year!

UK house prices moved into positive territory, on an annual basis, for the first time in over a year after 0.8% growth in March. Figures from Nationwide today show the typical UK home is valued at £164,630 – up from £163,327 in March 2011. Prices flat lined on a monthly basis as no growth was […]

March 28, 2013

UK asking prices rise 1.7% in March…

The average UK property asking price rose 1.7 per cent in March, from £235,741 in February to reach £239,710. These latest results from the Rightmove house price index reveal the highest ever new seller asking prices in the month of March. The average asking price is at its highest level since October 2012 when it […]

March 20, 2013

House sales hit 2.5 year high!

The RICS February 2013 Housing Market Survey highlights a broadly stable price picture at the national level. While the failure of buyer enquiries to rebound in a meaningful sense after January’s snow-related slowdown provides a note of caution, for now surveyors remain optimistic. Indeed, sales and prices are expected to rise moderately over the next […]

February 26, 2013

Don’t rent, buy – and you’ll save £1440 a year!

It’s cheaper to buy than to rent by £120 a month – and the gap is widening as rents soar, according to a survey. In its latest review of comparative costs, Halifax revealed that buyers pay less than renters across the UK. The average monthly cost of buying a three bedroom house was £621 in […]

February 19, 2013

House sales highest in 5 years, says Halifax

Housing market activity rose to the highest levels in five-years, according to the latest Halifax house price index. Sales increased by 5% in 2012 to reach 932,000 – the highest annual total since 2007 when the figure was over 1.6m. House prices in the three months to January were up 1.9% compared with the preceding […]

February 7, 2013

Land Registry figures show property prices up 0.8% in December

The average price of a property in the UK rose to £162,080 in December 2012, up 0.8% on the £161,490 recorded for November, according to figures from the Land Registry today. The annual price change for UK properties is 1.7%. The best performing region was London where house prices rose 3.1% on a monthly basis […]

January 24, 2013

Mortgage lending to FTBs up 11% in 2012

Lending to first-time buyers increased by 11% in 2012 as the number of loans extended to borrowers with small deposits rose from 57,691 in 2011 to 63,896. The latest figures mark 2012 as the best year for high LTV lending – defined as 85% plus – since 2007, according to e.surv’s Mortgage Monitor analysis. A […]

January 11, 2013

New mortgage advances rise 7% in Q3

New mortgage advances increased 7% in the third quarter of this year to £40bn, up from £37bn in Q2, according to the latest FSA mortgage lending data. New commitments fell 10% from £40bn in Q2 to £36bn last quarter. The value of outstanding loans totaled £1.23trn, rising marginally from £1.2trn in Q2. The average interest […]

November 28, 2012

Asking prices down 2.6% in November

Sellers dropped their asking prices by 2.6% between October and November although house prices remain 2% higher on an annual basis. The 2.6% fall, equivalent to an average of £6,407, represents the smallest November decline in three years, according to the latest Rightmove house price index. The average asking price of a house now stands […]

November 22, 2012

Mortgage lending could reach £145bn in 2013

Gross mortgage lending could reach £145bn in 2013 with brokers accounting for a greater proportion of business, says the Association of Mortgage Intermediaries. The AMI’s quarterly economic bulletin says the FSA’s impending ban on non-advised sales, which will come into force in April 2014 as part of the mortgage market review, along with the government’s New […]

November 8, 2012

Borrowers in negative equity falls 13%

The number of UK borrowers in negative equity has fallen by 100,000 since the first quarter of 2011, from 827,000 to 719,000, says the Council of Mortgage Lenders. In its fortnightly News and Views letter, the CML says this 13% decline leaves around 10% of borrowers in negative equity when the Halifax House Price Index […]