Blog
Undoubtedly there have been a lot of changes in the past 10 years after the financial crisis of 2008 when the markets plummeted and people were unsure as to what would happen next. However, now in 2019, there is still uncertainty on the cards surrounding Brexit but as with all uncertainty there is often a silver lining somewhere. If you’re still wondering as to what silver lining I could be referring to, I’m of course referring to the fact that interest rates, well more specifically, mortgage rates have now been at a record low for a decade and in ...
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There is still a lot of uncertainty surrounding Brexit and as a result many people are taking a cautious approach when it comes to their finances and big decision such as buying, moving or remortgaging the house. It is thought that the fall in the amount of people choosing to remortgage their property or move home, requiring a remortgage, may be down to this uncertainty. There has certainly been a slow down in the number of houses being bought and sold, the only factor appearing to buck the trend is that of first-time buyers who are obtaining their ...
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With Brexit looming, the housing market is showing signs of strain at the uncertainty of whether the country will leave with or without a deal. Whilst this is something that only offers a ‘wait and see’ approach to most of us, there is some positive news. For those on standard variable rate or tracker mortgages because this month the Bank of England have left the Base Rate unchanged meaning the there will be no imminent rise on the repayments of those whose repayments echo the Base Rate. This decision coincides with the announcement that the Bank also forecasts ...
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There is great news for First Time Buyers that are trying to get on the property ladder but haven’t managed to save a deposit to be able to put down against a property. This great new product has recently been unveiled by Lloyds and is available to those who meet their lending criteria and have the backing of family to be able to assist with the mortgage. The new deal referred to as the ‘Lend a Hand’ deal will offer First Time Buyers the chance to purchase their new home and borrow up to £500,000 without the need ...
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The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) oversee the financial services sector of business in the United Kingdom and ensure that customers are treated fairly. With this in mind, they have recently revealed plans to ensure that thousands of so-called ‘mortgage prisoners’ will be relieved of being trapped paying high-interest home loans with unregulated or inactive firms. The FCA have said that they are going to be looking into a change of the affordability checks which may result in allowing those trapped on high-interest-rate home loans being able to swap on to plans that are much more affordable to them. ...
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Happy New Year to you all from Online Mortgage Calculators! Well, it’s the start of a new year, full of promise, hopes and ambitions and it’s also a time where many of us feel we need to declutter and have a sort out. With all this positive energy in mind, it’s a great time to think about how you may be able to save some money on a great new mortgage deal and with bills to settle from Christmas, what better time could the extra money help? If you’re not locked into a mortgage deal at present, ...
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It has recently been announced that 1 in every 5 homeowners will be still be repaying their mortgage well into retirement. It is thought the reason for this is mainly due to many people still being on interest only loans and first-time buyers becoming much older when they purchase their first home. According to research by The Money Charity, the average first-time buyer home in more than 40 percent more expensive that it was only 6 years ago. Many first-time buyers have expressed that they believe that they will be much older than expected by the time ...
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The economy depends on many factors to be able to remain stable and to ensure public confidence. Much of these factors rely on a delicate balance and it is far more complicated than can be offered with a simple explanation. One of the factors that can have a big impact of the economy and consumer confidence is the rate of unemployment. It has recently been announced by the Office for National Statistics that the number of unemployed in the UK has increased in the last three months to September to 4.1%. In the two months previous, the ...
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If you’re in the process of purchasing a property or moving house you’ll probably want to know how much, if any, stamp duty you’ll be required to pay. Since December 2014, after the Chancellor George Osborne’s change in the way Stamp Duty Land Tax was applied, the system now operates by a graduated rate, similar to that of Income Tax. Prior to the changes Stamp Duty Land Tax was based on the price that you paid for the property and the Stamp Duty percentage was applied to the whole value. This meant that a house selling for ...
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It was widely anticipated that a rise in the Bank of England’s Base Rate would in turn see a rise in household mortgage rates, and the expectation was right. It was also expected that this rise in interest rates would in turn have an effect on homeowners and the amount of house sales, and again this has been proven correct. As a result of this, the number of mortgage approvals hit a seven-month low in the month of September which was only a month after the bank of England raised the interest rates. High Street lenders approved a ...
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