The FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) is planning a change of rules that could lower the housing costs of thousands of so-called “mortgage prisoners”.It is estimated that about 140,000 homeowners are trapped on high interest-rate home loans with unregulated or inactive firms, and are unable to switch to a cheaper deal. The FCA is considering a change to its affordability checks which could therefore allow these home owners to switch to deals that are easier to pay.
Currently, many are stuck on high default rates, as a result of an FCA requirement –
According to Britain’s largest lender, Halifax, house prices across the UK have jumped by an average of 4% in the year to September.
Halifax stated that the average price of a house or flat in the UK had now risen to a new high of £225,109 and that the rise was fuelled by a shortage of properties for sale and growth in full-time employment.
The view of rival lender Nationwide was that prices in the year to September rose by 2%. The difference is possibly attributable to the different way in which the data is gathered and also from where it is obtained.
The
The BCC (British Chamber of Commerce) expects the UK economy to pass its pre recession peak in 2014. It also says that the UK’s GDP is now set to grow by 2.7% in 2014, an upgrade from a previous prediction of 2.2%.
This is all good news for the economy and so to for the housing market. Indeed, households perception of the value of their homes has risen to a five year high according to the house price sentiment index.
The RICS Residential Market Survey says that the number of homes sold in the UK hit an almost four-year high last month as the housing market recovery continues to gather pace.
Britain’s property sector is enjoying its best market conditions for nearly years as the housing revival gathers pace, according to a report.
Property analyst Hometrack said a further 0.4 per cent hike in house prices between July and August, together with marked improvements across all key indicators, means the sector is now in its best shape since before the financial crisis.
The market shrugged off the traditional August downturn as house prices
Research by the RICS – Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, has indicated that activity in the housing market is increasing fastest in parts of the UK where previously house prices have been the most depressed.
They state that homebuyers are returning to the market in their highest numbers for four years with the greatest activity being in the West Midlands and the North East. Although every region saw an increase in house prices, the biggest rises occurred in London and the South East.
Prices rose higher in July than in any time since 2006 but in the West Midlands and the North
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