The 'mortgage product sale' continues!

The great ‘mortgage product sale’ has continued over the last week with some lenders reducing rates and one lender offering market leading products for just 7 days! This is the third ‘1 week’ sale we’ve seen in the last month and, in this instance, the products were very competitive short and long term fixed rates. Lenders who have recently reduced rates include Woolwich, Santander, Halifax and Leeds. Most lenders also offer a free valuation (and free legal costs on remortgages) to attract new business.

The government has issued details of the FirstBuy scheme this week. Announced in the budget, the scheme is aimed at assisting First Time Buyers purchase their first home. A 5% deposit is required, a 20% equity loan is funded by the government and house builder and the remaining 75% is funded by a mortgage, from the lenders taking part in the scheme. The loan is then repaid on resale of the property. The suggestion is that this will help over 10,000 first time buyers over the next two years, but let’s see the scheme in action first before commenting on the possible results! First timers are encouraged to register their interest as the first ‘new build’ properties are due to be available from September. More information is available on the Directgov website but, as yet, no questions and answers page!
The Financial Services Authority (FSA) have released Mortgage Lending Data figures revealing that repossessions increased by 17% in the first quarter of 2011. There were 9,613 possessions during the first three months of the year. These figures are collated from around 300 lenders submitting their quarterly mortgage lending activity returns to the FSA. New arrears cases in Q1 were 8% lower than the previous quarter, while the total number of accounts in arrears at the end of Q1 were 2% down on the previous quarter.

Finally, if you are already working in the mortgage industry and fancy a new challenge, AToM is looking to recruit experienced and qualified mortgage professionals. Come in and see us or visit our website to find out more!