Posts Tagged ‘inflation’
November 2010 Property Investors Factsheet (free membership required)
The base interest rate remained at a record low of 0.5 percent (the longest period since World War 2), with one dissenter – Andrew Sentence – continuing to vote for a marginal rate rise to control inflationary pressures (no further quantitative easing will take place for the time being). The UK´s gross domestic product rose by 0.8 percent in the third quarter and former Bank of England official Deanne Julius stated that chances of a further recessionary dip occurring were ´10 percent or less.´ However, Chancellor George Osborne stated the economy still faced a ‘choppy’ outlook and, whilst several have stated the case against the £81 billion of public spending cuts, he remained firm on the plan insisting that the Coalition would reduce inflation via the means of robust fiscal and monetary policy.
House prices, as predicted by many, have witnessed monthly drops apart from a reported 3.10 percent increase stated by Rightmove (based on asking prices). According to the Land Registry, the biggest drops in the last month have been in the West Midlands by 1.4 per cent, followed closely by a 1 per cent fall in the East Midlands pushing the regions average prices to £128,646. The index also indicated that London average values had fallen by 0.6 percent to £340,344. Property portal Zoopla stated that the number of properties for sale in the UK that have seen at least one house price reduction has climbed by more than 13% over the past three months – with Manchester seeing an average of a 7.15 percent reduction in prices; Newcastle with 7.13 percent and Milton Keynes with 7.04 percent. The general sentiment remains that house prices look set to drop further due to lower demand and a larger amount of properties hitting the market. Such drops are not expected to be rapid due to both the low bank base rate and an increased amount of competitive product availability.
A financial adviser confidence tracker report by Paragon Mortgages illustrated that the availability of buy to let mortgages in the UK has improved. 43 percent of surveyed mortgage brokers said that the number of available deals Q3 2010 has risen. Another 38 percent said they have not noticed any changes in the number of mortgage deals for property investors / landlords, and 19 percent of respondents said the number of available loans fell. The survey also found that 58 percent expect the situation not to change as 2010 draws to a close, whereas 35% expect it to get better. The remaining 7% think the availability of buy to let mortgages will decline. In terms of notable products, the Mortgage Works are the only lender offering 80 percent loan to value (with a 5.89 pay rate fixed until the end of 2013) and the Bank of China are offering a one year variable with a very competitive pay rate of 3.88 percent (1 year variable with a 75 percent loan to value).
In other landlord related news, as figures published the Office of National Statistics reported the one in eight Brits are living in a workless household entirely reliant on benefits – the British Property Federation (BPF) requested the Conservative peer and former investment banker Lord Freud to retract a claim that property owners increasing their rents was the main factor in creating a higher welfare bill for the taxpayer. Its analysis of figures from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) shows rising average payments in the private sector accounted for around 13.2 per cent of the growth in housing benefit costs. According to the BPF, by comparison, 70 percent of the rise was attributed to new claimants coming into the system, mainly because of unemployment linked to the recession. Lord Freud also recently responded to critics of housing benefit reforms as “scaremongering” insisting the cuts would not lead to a substantial increase in homelessness, stating: “it’s immensely unhelpful when people and commentators stir up fears using somewhat arbitrary figures about potential homelessness because it frightens people. We are not expecting any significant increase in homelessness as a result of these changes and are expecting a large number of people who see less housing benefit to be able to negotiate their rents downwards.”
Tags: ARLA, Association of Residential Lettings Agents, auction property market, auction property statistics, bank base rate, bank of china buy to let, bank of china mortgages, bbr, buy investment property, consumer price index, CPI, credit, debt levels, economics property, Halifax house prices, house prices, how to invest in property, inflation, invest in property, Land Registry house prices, latest buy to let mortgages, Lloyds buy to let, Lloyds TSB lending, Mervyn King, Monetary Policy Committee, mortgage approvals, MPC, Nationwide house prices, october 2010 property, property economist, property invest, property investment tips, Property Investor Factsheet, property statistics, real estate facts, real estate statistics, repossessed houses, Repossession houses, repossession levels UK, repossessions, retail price index, RICS Housing Survey, RICS surveyor, Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), RPI, the mortgage works buy to let, tmw buy to let, unemployment UK, value invest
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October 2010 Property Investors Factsheet (free membership required)
As it was decided that the UK bank base rate will remain at 0.5 percent, further disagreement was seen amongst Monetary Policy Committee members – not only from Andrew Sentance (who has called for a 0.25 percent increase for some time) but also Adam Posen, an internationally respected expert on Japan’s ‘lost decade’, suggested that more, not less, monetary stimulus was needed: “it is right for both long-term stability and short-term performance for central banks to do more now…”
Halifax’s September report of a 3.6 percent monthly drop as a ‘beginning of a sustained period of declining house prices’ was described by Howard Archer of Global insight as ’shocking’: “while a drop in house prices always seemed probable in September after Halifax had reported price rises in August and July that conflicted with other surveys, a plunge of of this size was off everybody’s radar.” The RICS Housing Survey this month also showed only 7 percent of surveyors seeing a rise in prices (compared to last months 11 percent) and 38 percent seeing falls (compared to 25 percent last month). A survey by Zoopla reported that homeowner confidence had fallen amid concerns over the availability of mortgage finance: 63 percent of homeowners now expect property prices to rise over the next six months, compared to 78 percent of homeowners in June. However, positive news for property investors was announced by ARLA (Association of Residential Lettings Agents) that the number of tenants seeking rental properties has reached an eight year high – demand is highest in the south east of England where 81 percent of agents reported that there are more tenants than properties compared to 67 percent in the rest of the UK and 73 percent in Central London. A Markit / CIPS survey of construction industry purchasing managers showed an unexpected pick in the level of activity – although doubts remained as to how demand will fare in the next few months.
The lending markets have also seen some encouraging signs with Legal & General (in its third quarter adviser confidence index) reporting that 85 percent of advisers predicting that business will improve or at least stay the same over the next 3 months despite the current undertone of negativity. Buy to let product wise, the Mortgage Works (TMW) have positively revised their product range – sending us the following information:
- New one and two-year tracker mortgages at 70 percent LTV, with rates starting at 3.39 percent;
- A two-year fixed rate option with 0 percent arrangement fee now available at up to 70 percent LTV;
- The expansion of the longer term product range with the introduction of a four-year fixed rate (up to 75 percent LTV) and a five-year fixed rate (up to 80 percent LTV);
- The introduction of a £1,000 cashback option for HMO applications;
… as well as some enhancements to the buy to let range including:
- One-year fixed and tracker remortgages options at 70 percent LTV, now available at 3.99 percent, with free standard valuation and standard legal fees;
- Tracker rates improved by up to 0.15 percent across the range;
- A free standard valuation option available for house purchase customers when they select: TMW’s two-year fixed rate mortgage at 60 percent LTV with a 0 percent arrangement fee;
- Significant rate improvements across all HMO and Limited Company products.
The Bank of China have continued to seek a wider share of the UK buy-to-let market with a 1 year 75 percent LTV product with a 4.1 percent payrate. Cuts have also been seen in the broader residential lending – for example by HSBC (with a reduction of 0.4 percent on all its 80 percent LTV mortgage products) and Lloyds TSB (with the introduction of a 70 percent LTV fixed rate with interest at 3.39 percent).
In related news, despite marginal growth last month, a survey of 400 agencies by the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) and KPMG pointed to an increased risk of a ‘double dip’. Kevin Green, the REC’s chief executive, stated to the FT: “I think the labour market is in for a real bumpy ride – unemployment, currently 2.47m or 7.8 percent of the workforce, could rise again to 2.7m by the middle of next year.”
Tags: ARLA, Association of Residential Lettings Agents, auction property market, auction property statistics, bank base rate, bank of china buy to let, bank of china mortgages, bbr, buy investment property, consumer price index, CPI, credit, debt levels, economics property, Halifax house prices, house prices, how to invest in property, HSBC mortgage lending, inflation, invest in property, Land Registry house prices, latest buy to let mortgages, Lloyds buy to let, Lloyds TSB lending, Mervyn King, Monetary Policy Committee, mortgage approvals, MPC, Nationwide house prices, october 2010 property, property economist, property invest, property investment tips, Property Investor Factsheet, property statistics, real estate facts, real estate statistics, repossessed houses, Repossession houses, repossession levels UK, repossessions, retail price index, RICS Housing Survey, RICS surveyor, Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), RPI, the mortgage works buy to let, tmw buy to let, unemployment UK, value invest
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September 2010 Property Investor Factsheet
Please click on the link above to access this months property investor’s news and information factsheet (note you will have to be a member of the Property Investor Hub which can be done quickly and easily here).
Despite two of the major house price indices pointing to rises, the general consensus has been to expect a market slowdown in the coming months (Halifax’s house price index reported slower growth in August as compared to the month previous). 12 percent less of RICS surveyors are reporting an increase in prices compared to the previous month and the average discount at property auctions across the UK dropped by 1.6 percent. Data from the Homebuilders Federation showed that construction orders – a forward-looking measure – fell in the second quarter by the sharpest amount since 1974. National Housing Federation (NHF) estimations also pointed to negative equity remaining in the market until 2014 – especially for properties bought in 2007 prior to the onset of the credit crunch. The Survey of English Housing statistics showed that between 2003 and 2009 the proportion of owner-occupiers fell from 70.9% to 67.9%, representing the first decline in home-ownership for a century.
Whilst mortgage approvals increased by 1,079 (with totals reaching approximately half their pre-crisis levels), the Bank of England reported that lending to private non-financial companies fell in July for the 11th month in a row. Nevertheless, in the wider mortgage market, lenders have been offering increasingly competitive rates – including the Halifax’s announcement of the ‘Great Rate Cut’ (up until 3rd October), an intermediary fixed rate from the Abbey; Norwich & Peterborough Building Society offering a 4.49 five year fixed rate (80 percent LTV) amongst others. In the buy to let sector, whilst rates and LTV ratios remained broadly in line with last month – The Mortgage Works (TMW) introduced a one-year tracker with no ERCs, offering landlords more flexibility with the potential to repay early without any supplementary charges.
In related news, the employment market is currently growing at its slowest pace in 10 months (although the Recruitment and Employment Confederation reported shortages were emerging in certain sectors and increased demand looking likely for nurses, chefs and engineers to name a few); a survey by LSL Property Services reported fewer rental arrears with only 16% seeing an increase in unpaid rent in the last 12 months and the British Property Federation (BPF) publically announced that proposed cuts to Local Housing Allowance payments are a “recipe for destitution” that would hamper economic recovery across the country.
Tags: auction property market, auction property statistics, bank base rate, bbr, buy investment property, consumer price index, CPI, credit, debt levels, economics property, Halifax house prices, house prices, how to invest in property, inflation, invest in property, Land Registry house prices, latest buy to let mortgages, Mervyn King, Monetary Policy Committee, mortgage approvals, National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR), Nationwide house prices, property economist, property invest, property investment tips, Property Investor Factsheet, property statistics, repossessed houses, Repossession houses, repossession levels UK, repossessions, retail price index, RICS surveyor, Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), RPI, unemployment UK, value invest
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August 2010 Property Investors Factsheet
Please click on the link above to access the latest facts and figures relevant to UK property investors (note you will have to be a member of the Property Investor Hub which can be done quickly and easily here).
The majority of house price indices have pointed to small drops in prices (with the Halifax being the only exception, reporting a 0.6 % increase for July). Whilst Land Registry statistics have also indicated a slight increase in average house prices, this is widely viewed as a balancing out due to the 0.2 percent drop that was seen in May. Additionally, the number of RICS surveyors (who largely rely on Land Registry data) reporting a rise in house prices has decreased by 9 percent since last month which generally adheres to the professional consensus that house prices are set to continue to fall marginally in the coming months. The discount on auction properties has widened by 1.6 percent on the month representing a total of 17.6 percent, according to Fathom Consulting.
Mortgage products available have slightly lost their competitively when compared to previous months with TMW (The Mortgage Works) increasing the pay rate of their 80 percent loan to value product to 5.49 percent (previously 4.69) – attributed due to a rise a demand for what is currently a rare borrowing level. However, results from the banks quarterly reports showed some encouraging signs with Northern Rock demonstrating it is sitting on a cash pile of more than £7 billion; HSBC revealing that its profits for the first half of 2010 had more than doubled to £7 billion (the bank recently announced a fixed 3.95 percent rate for residential property, widely predicted as a result of increased pressure by the government to begin expanding its loan book) and Barclays announcing that their profits have risen by 44 percent to £3.95 billion (they have subsequently initiated rate cuts as a result).
Whilst the bank base rate remained at 0.5 percent, broad ranged predictions with regards to its increase continued to be debated with former Bank of England deputy-governor, Sir John Gieve, stating that it will have to rise earlier and more sharply than expected to keep inflation under control (to 2.5 percent by July 2011) whereas the Ernst & Young ITEM Club predicted that they would not rise at all until the end of 2013 (assuming impending spending cuts come to fruition). A poll by the Fair Investment Company illustrated that 67 percent of respondents thought the base rate would be higher than 0.5 percent by July 2011, with 30 percent predicting a half point increase to 1 percent and 29 percent believing it would hit 1.50 percent in 12 months time. The Bank of England’s inflation benchmark, the Consumer Prices Index, is slowing from the high periods reached earlier in the year – but concerns prompted as to the effects of the impending VAT increase in January 2011 when the British Retail Consortium (BRC) predicted upward pressure on prices in the months ahead looking more likely.
Some other interesting statistics include a daily average of £23.35 million of loan write offs being undertaken by UK banks and building societies; slight decreases in the level of personal and household debt levels as well as a drop in the amount of interest being paid daily (full lending statistics available on the factsheet). Whilst unemployment was reported to have dropped (to 7.8 percent), supplemetary statistics have shown that there are also approximately 5.87 million people who are on the dole in all but name (the Office of National Statistics figures only point to people who are looking for work).
Tags: auction property market, auction property statistics, bank base rate, bbr, buy investment property, consumer price index, CPI, credit, debt levels, economics property, Halifax house prices, house prices, inflation, invest in property, Land Registry house prices, latest buy to let mortgages, Mervyn King, Monetary Policy Committee, mortgage approvals, National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR), Nationwide house prices, property economist, property invest, property investment tips, Property Investor Factsheet, property statistics, repossessed houses, Repossession houses, repossession levels UK, repossessions, retail price index, RICS surveyor, Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), RPI, unemployment UK, value invest
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July 2010 Property Investor Factsheet
Please click on the link above to see the latest facts and statistics for property investors (note you will have to be a member of the Property Investor Hub which can be done in under a minute by clicking here).
Various house price movements were reported by the indices this month – with both the Halifax and the Land Registry reporting a monthly drop (0.6 percent and 0.2 percent respectively) and also the number of RICS surveyors reporting a rise in house prices dropping slightly by 1 percent. Whilst the Nationwide reported a rise of 0.10 percent in June, it was warned that prices could continue to fall during the rest of 2010 with Martin Gahbauer, Nationwides chief economist stating: “barring a significant pick-up in house prices over the next few months, the annual rate of inflation should continue to drift lower, in light of the very strong price increases recorded during the summer of 2009.” Other research from the Halifax found that the cost of owning and running a home in the UK had fallen by 6% over the past two years, driven by a decline in mortgage payments.
With the bank base rate remaining at 0.5 percent (for the 17th month straight), the issue of inflation continues to be debated within the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) with one member – Andrew Sentence – voting for a raise to 0.75 percent to stem the effects of inflation (whilst June’s CPI has fallen back to 3.4 percent, it still remains well above the Bank of England’s 2 percent target). The British Chamber of Commerce stated that the biggest hits will come on to the economy in late 2010 and into 2011 when the fiscal measures begin to have an effect. The International Monetary Fund announced that it forecasts for UK growth this year and next have been revised down, and there has been fresh talk of a possible double dip recession amongst economists. Furthermore,the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) also reported that the UK risked faltering growth for the rest of this year, stating: ”fiscal consolidation both in the UK and the euro area will restrict growth in the short-term and there is clearly a risk that this rate of growth will not be maintained through the rest of this year.” For these reasons several economists are doubting the possibility of rates rising again - Stephen Boyle, of RBS stated: “the stickiness of UK inflation remains a concern, but lower for longer is likely to remain the theme when it comes to interest rates. Fiscal austerity measures mean that monetary policy will have to do most of the heavy lifting if the recovery, already fragile, is to be kept on track.” Roger Bootle, economic adviser at Deloitte, agreed saying: “raising rates now, just when the fiscal squeeze is starting to hit and inflation is about to start falling, would be entirely the wrong thing to do. I can see why the MPC is getting nevous and there are signs that inflation expectations are rising in response. But there has also been plenty of comforting news on the inflation front … Mervyn King has already hinted that monetary policy could loosen further in order to compensate for the fiscal squeeze and I think that’s exactly what should happen. I expect to see the Bank’s quantitative easing programme started up again later this year.”
In other related news, the amount of UK personal debt remained in line with last month as with the amount of people seeking help from the Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) and the amount of properties being repossessed. There has been a marginal rise in the level of both secured and unsecured lending as well as the amount of interest being paid on a daily basis. The government national debt is decreasing as did the level of unemployment (research by the Recruitment & Employment Confederation (REC) and KPMG showed staff appointments dropped to 60.7 in June, down from 61.3 in the month previous and just above January’s reading of 60.5).
Tags: auction property market, auction property statistics, bank base rate, bbr, Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB), consumer price index, CPI, credit, debt levels, Deloitte, Halifax house prices, house prices, inflation, july 2010 property investor, Land Registry house prices, latest buy to let mortgages, Mervyn King, Monetary Policy Committee, mortgage approvals, National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR), Nationwide house prices, Number of new, Property Investor Factsheet, RBS, repossessed houses, Repossession houses, repossession levels UK, repossessions, retail price index, RICS surveyor, Royal Bank of Scotland, Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), RPI, unemployment UK
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Please click on the link above to access this months statistics, news and information for the property investor (you will have to be a member of the Property Investor Hub which can be done in under a minute by clicking here).
This months statistics illustrate that most of the indices are reporting to a year-on-year rise in house prices, including the Land Registry (the Halifax reported a slight drop in the month). There is also more confidence from RICS surveyors reporting a rise in house prices (and less reporting falls). Whilst the number of mortgage approvals slightly declined, the 3 month LIBOR has decreased by 0.13 percentage points which could mean some promising news for the mortgage market (Money Supermarket statistics have shown that the number of mortgage products available on the market had surpassed the 3,000 mark for the first time since July 2009).
However, the CPI has increased by almost 1 percent (to reach an eighteen year high) and the RPI has increased by 0.3 percent – the Bank of England has stated that this sharp rise will be temporary, yet some experts are beginning to lose faith in the governments’ willingness to keep prices under control. Eleven of the 25 city economists surveyed by the Telegraph believed inflation was a bigger worry than deflation over the next five-years; nine said that deflation remained the primary concern; while five other economists said that they either believed there would be a combination of both, or that the two would even each other out (click here to view an article via the Telegraph discussing the inflation/deflation debate).
The number of people seeking advice from the Citizens Advice Bureau has increased marginally; unemployment has increased slightly (with 757,000 people being unemployed for 12 months or more) and the average household debt has also decreased marginally. The daily increase in government national debt fell, on average, by £26.6 million and repossessions were also down. Total secured lending continued to increase at a slightly faster pace than the month previous whilst consumer credit decreased marginally – however it was reported at the start of June that the number of new credit cards coming on the market had risen.
Tags: auction property market, auction property statistics, bank base rate, bbr, credit, debt levels, house prices, inflation, latest buy to let mortgages, may 2010 property investor, Mervyn King, Monetary Policy Committee, mortgage approvals, Property Investor Factsheet, repossessions, unemployment UK
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Please click on the link above to access this months statistics, news and information for the property investor (you will have to be a member of the Property Investor Hub which can be done in under a minute by clicking here).
As a new coalition government steps into power (promising banking reforms, a more relaxed planning system and increased employment) the housing market has continued to see positive news. All the major price indexes have pointed to overall year-on-year rises (ranging from 5.20 to 10.50%), although the amount of RICS surveyors reporting an increase in house prices in the month decreased by 7% (with more believing there had been no change). As also reported by the Fathom/Zoopla Auction Price Index (a new feature of our monthly factsheets), the discount available on properties sold at auction in March was a slightly less than the figure for February. The number of home lending approvals has increased since the month previous and buy to let investors were pleased to see the arrival of an 80% LTV mortgage from TMW (also available for further advances) as well as other more competitive products.
As predicted by the Bank of England, inflation has decreased as has the amount of UK personal and household debt and the aggregate interest payment level. Whilst the average level of properties getting repossessed has remained the same, the amount of government debt has increased along with the level of unemployment (the highest in 15 years, according to the Office of National Statistics).
Tags: bank base rate, bbr, credit, debt levels, house prices, inflation, latest buy to let mortgages, may 2010 property investor, Mervyn King, Monetary Policy Committee, mortgage approvals, Property Investor Factsheet, repossessions, unemployment UK
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March 2010 Property Investor Factsheet
Please click on the link above to head directly to this month’s property investor factsheet (please note that you will have
to be a member of the Property Investor Hub which can be done, in under a minute, here).
Many of the indices have been reporting encouraging positive price movements, however it is worth noting that statistics by auction monitoring service – Fathom Consulting – are predicting impending drops based on their analyses (examining the discounts achieved in auction houses). Nevertheless, more surveyors are confident about house price rises and, despite the re-emergence of stamp duty payments, Bank of England statistics showed an increase in mortgage approvals.
Unemployment has continued to decrease although the amount of houses being formally repossessed has increased as has the amount of people requesting for advice from the CAB. Unsecured and secured lending levels are higher and, for buy-to-let investors, some encouraging mortgage products have recently come available, with a particulalry notable 80 percent LTV being offered by Saffron Building Society (contact us at info@propertysolvers.co.uk for some contacts of reputable brokers).
March 2010 Property Investor Factsheet
Please click on the link above to head directly to this month’s property investor factsheet (please note that you will have to be a member of the Property Investor Hub which can be done, in under a minute, here).
Many of the indices have been reporting encouraging positive price movements, however it is worth noting that statistics by auction monitoring service – Fathom Consulting – are predicting impending drops based on their analyses (examining the discounts achieved in auction houses). Nevertheless, more surveyors are confident about house price rises and, despite the re-emergence of stamp duty payments, Bank of England statistics showed an increase in mortgage approvals.
Unemployment has continued to decrease although the amount of houses being formally repossessed has increased as has the amount of people requesting for advice from the CAB. Unsecured and secured lending levels are higher and, for buy-to-let investors, some encouraging mortgage products have recently come available, with a particulalry notable 80 percent LTV being offered by Saffron Building Society (contact us at info@propertysolvers.co.uk for some contacts of reputable brokers).
Tags: bank base rate, bbr, credit, debt levels, house prices, inflation, latest buy to let mortgages, march 2010, Mervyn King, Monetary Policy Committee, mortgage approvals, Property Investor Factsheet, repossessions, unemployment UK
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Dear {!firstname},
February 2010 Property Investor Factsheet
Please see this months statistics, facts and figures for the property investor by clicking on the link above (note you will have to be a member of the Property Investor Hub to access, which can be done in under a minute by clicking here).
Despite the expected Christmas lull, the majority house prices indices are all pointing to increases for December and January. However, it is worth noting that the monthly RICS survey report showed a lower percentage of surveyors reporting a rise in house prices for the month of December (29% compared to 35% in November) and mortgage approvals were down in the month (although this is usually the case towards the end of the year).
Some concerns were raised as to the increase in inflation levels prompted by increasing fuel prices; the quantitative easing programme started in 2009; a weaker pound; the VAT rate going back up amongst other factors. Mervyn King, in his monthly press conference, quashed critics by stating: “provided monetary growth remains well under control – and remember that at present it is undesirably low – inflation should return to target in the medium term. I hope you will all remember that in both of the past two years inflation picked up as a result of temporary price level factors and then fell back, as the MPC had predicted” (the bank base rate also remains at 0.5%). The government’s national debt, as can bee seen in the factsheet, has decreased slightly.
In other news, debt levels remained broadly the same (with a slight increase in credit usage during the Christmas season); unemployment continued its decreasing trend and reposessions decreased marginally.
Thank you,
Property Investor Hub
PS Investor Services
February 2010 Property Investor Factsheet
Please see this months statistics, facts and figures for the property investor by clicking on the link above (note you will have to be a member of the Property Investor Hub to access, which can be done in under a minute by clicking here).
Despite the expected Christmas lull, the majority house prices indices are all pointing to increases for December and January. However, it is worth noting that the monthly RICS survey report showed a lower percentage of surveyors reporting a rise in house prices for the month of December (29% compared to 35% in November) and mortgage approvals were down in the month (although this is usually the case towards the end of the year).
Some concerns were raised as to the increase in inflation levels prompted by increasing fuel prices; the quantitative easing programme started in 2009; a weaker pound; the VAT rate going back up amongst other factors. Mervyn King, in his monthly press conference, quashed critics by stating: “provided monetary growth remains well under control – and remember that at present it is undesirably low – inflation should return to target in the medium term. I hope you will all remember that in both of the past two years inflation picked up as a result of temporary price level factors and then fell back, as the MPC had predicted” (the bank base rate also remains at 0.5%). The government’s national debt, as can bee seen in the factsheet, has decreased slightly.
In other news, debt levels remained broadly the same (with a slight increase in credit usage during the Christmas season); unemployment continued its decreasing trend and reposessions decreased marginally.
Tags: bank base rate, bbr, credit, debt levels, february 2010, house prices, inflation, latest buy to let mortgages, Mervyn King, Monetary Policy Committee, mortgage approvals, Property Investor Factsheet, repossessions, unemployment, weak pound
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Please click on the following link to access this months property investor factsheet:
November 2009 Property Investor Factsheet
A few encouraging signs to note include the fact the number mortgage approvals is
at its highest level since January 2008; debt levels remain fairly stable and the number of
people being made redundant on a daily basis has decreased by 19% since last month.
According to Nationwide, mortgages should remain affordable well into next year due to the continued weakness
of the economy. Although LTVs remain relatively low, there are some competitive BTL
mortgage products available.
However, although more RICS surveyors are pointing to an increase in house
prices, the organisation has recently stated that this increase is artificial and caused by
the drought of house sellers in the market place. Added to this that, contrary to the belief that
the economy had started to recover, the UK remains in recession (the economy shrank by 0.4 per cent
compared with the level of activity in the second quarter).
Note that we have added a couple of extra sections: ‘Number of new debt problems dealt with by the
Citizens Advice Bureau each day’ and the ‘Government national debt increase’.
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Please click on the following link to access this months property investor factsheet:
November 2009 Property Investor Factsheet
A few encouraging signs to note include the fact the number mortgage approvals is at its highest level since January 2008; debt levels remain fairly stable and the number of people being made redundant on a daily basis has decreased by 19% since last month. According to Nationwide, mortgages should remain affordable well into next year due to the continued weakness of the economy. For property investors, although LTVs remain relatively low, there are some competitive BTL mortgage products available.
However, although more RICS surveyors are pointing to a rise in house prices, the organisation has recently stated that this increase is artificial and caused by the drought of house sellers in the market place. Contrary to the belief that the economy had started to recover, the UK remains in recession (the economy shrank by 0.4 per cent compared with the level of activity in the second quarter).
Note that we have added a couple of extra sections: ‘Number of new debt problems dealt with by the Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) each day’ and the ‘Government national debt increase’.
Tags: bank base rate, bankruptcies, debt, factsheet, government debt, house price indices, inflation, information, interest rates, mortgage approvals, november 2009, Number of new debt problems dealt with by the Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) each day, repossessions, unemployment
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