Posts Tagged ‘Credit crunch’
Wednesday, August 13th, 2008
The major banks have made nearly £500m more from UK customers in six months despite the credit crunch through account holders by charging more for mortgages, loans and credit cards. Figures show five of the country’s biggest banks - Lloyds TSB, Royal Bank of Scotland Barclays, HSBC and HBOS - made combined half-year profits of £4.294bn, nearly £500m more than the £3.808bn raised during the same period last year.
The figures reveal the Royal Bank of Scotland increased its profits from its UK businesses by 9.2%. This is despite the global company announcing losses of £691m last week - one of the biggest in UK banking history.
Tags: Credit crunch, HBOS, HSBC, Lloyds TSB, major banks, profits, Royal Bank of Scotland Barclays
Posted in Banking, Credit crisis, Credit crunch, Finance | No Comments »
Monday, July 7th, 2008
Chancellor Alistair Darling aims to raise the amount of money protected from the current £35,000 to a new ceiling of £50,000. Savers who lose money when a bank goes under will be given compensation within a week, instead of months. However, banks said making them pay up-front would divert vital capital away at a time when they were already under pressure from the credit crunch. So instead, the new scheme will borrow money from the public sector, if necessary, to enable quick payments. The Chancellor believes more generous protection will cut the risk of panic if a bank is rumoured to be in trouble.
Tags: alistair darling, Chancellor, Credit crunch, Savings, savings protection, savings protection proposal, savings protection scheme
Posted in Credit crisis, Credit crunch, Government, Savings | No Comments »
Sunday, June 22nd, 2008
Tags: bad debt, barratts, credit card, Credit crunch, estate agents, FTSE 100, Halifax, HBOS, house price falls, House prices, mortgage
Posted in Credit cards, Credit crisis, Credit crunch, FTSE 100, Finance, Halifax, Home loans, House prices, Mortgages, Negative equity, Property, Property Market, Property Prices, Stock Market | No Comments »
Monday, April 28th, 2008
Home repossessions will soar by almost a quarter this year as the credit crunch bites, a leading economic consultant has warned. Around 33,400 people could lose their homes during 2008 - 23% ahead of last year - the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) said. Mortgage deals are also set to remain expensive until the pressure in money markets eases, according to the group’s latest consumer and housing prospects report. The warning comes despite the Bank of England’s £50bn bid to tackle the crisis last week by allowing banks to swap their riskier assets for safer ones in an attempt to kick-start credit markets. Until the mortgage finance starts to flow again, the outcome will be a reduction in house prices and an increase in repossessions.
Tags: Credit crunch, Repossession
Posted in Credit crisis, Credit crunch, Mortgages, Property, Property Market, Repossession | No Comments »
Sunday, April 20th, 2008
The London postcodes at greatest risk from the housing crisis was revealed today by the Evening Standard. Tens of thousands of home owners across the capital will be plunged into negative equity this year if property prices fall by 20%. People who have taken on huge mortgages compared with the value of their property will owe more than the building is worth. The worst hit would be buy-to-let investors who tried to cash in on the housing boom, according to analysis obtained by the Evening Standard. Below are the top 10 streets and London boroughs most likely to be affected. Find out more at thisismoney.co.uk.
Top 10 London streets most at risk:
Calderwood Street SE18
Erebus Drive SE28
Queenstown Road SW8
Woolwich Common SE18
St Saviours Estate SE1
Glashier Street SE8
Greenhaven Drive SE28
St John’s Estate N1
Great Dover Street SE1
Borough High Street SE1
Risk level by London boroughs:
Click to enlarge
Tags: Buy-to-let, Credit crisis, Credit crunch, evening standard, house price falls, housing crisis, investors, London, Negative equity, thamesmead
Posted in Buy-to-let, Credit crisis, Credit crunch, Debt Management, Finance, Home loans, House prices, Landlord, Mortgages, Negative equity, Property Market, Property Prices | No Comments »
Tuesday, April 15th, 2008
Families already struggling to cope with the credit crunch face huge increases in food bills because of global shortages. Costs are rising faster than at any time since 1991 (when there was a recession driven by sky-high inflation and interest rates) and the average shopping bill is likely to go up by £600 a year. Added to the impact of higher charges for mortgages, heat, light, water, petrol and council tax, the average family is likely to have to find an extra £1,500 a year, just to stand still. Worldwide food shortages have been caused by increased demand from countries such as China and India, together with poor harvests linked to droughts and floods. A decision by farmers to turn over their land to the growing of biofuels is also a factor. While biofuels have been presented as the solution to global oil shortages, they are now contributing to a lack of food. Some countries have suffered food price protests, while a number of nations are imposing limits on exports to protect their own supplies. The big question for British shoppers surrounds the extent to which supermarkets and other retailers will pass on the price increases. While profits will suffer if they swallow the rises, sales will inevitably fall if they pass them on.
Tags: biofuel, China, Credit crisis, Credit crunch, food bills, food prices, food shortages, global shortages, India, inflation, oil shortage, retailers, supermarket
Posted in Consumer, Credit crisis, Credit crunch, Finance, Food crisis | No Comments »
Thursday, April 10th, 2008
HSBC has offered to match the interest rate of any borrower coming off their fixed rate deals. This will apply to both HSBC customers and those remortgaging. It effectively shields borrowers from the recent increases in the cost of home loans. The Rate Matcher will mean their existing fixed mortgage rates - down to a cut-off point of 4.54% - will continue for another two years. But the deal will only last for five weeks so mortgage borrowers need to act quickly to take advantage. It is only available direct to consumers as the bank does not offer its mortgage products through mortgage advisers. Borrowers can borrow up to a maximum of 80% of their property’s value (20% deposit required) and a fee will be payable depending on the rate fixed. A maximum of £250,000 can be borrowed via the Rate Matcher service, although customers with larger mortgages can take the remainder on a standard HSBC deal. The offer is only available for borrowers whose current mortgage deal runs out before the end of June. The offer is available from 14th April until 18th May. This is a pleasant change from the do-nothing attitude most big lenders appear to be adopting at the moment!
Tags: borrowers, Credit crunch, fixed mortgage rates, HSBC, rate matcher, remortgage, remortgaging
Posted in Credit crisis, Credit crunch, HSBC, Home loans, Mortgages, Property, Re-mortgage | No Comments »
Sunday, March 23rd, 2008
Several small building societies have been restricting or halting lending as a result of the financial turmoil. With lenders’ funds drying up, higher deposits are being demanded from first-time buyers. The Co-operative Bank now demands a higher deposit by cutting its maximum loan-to-value ratio from 95% to 90%. Bigger lenders, such as the Halifax and the Woolwich, have slightly increased the interest rates on certain tracker or fixed-rate deals, while making other deals available only to those able to put down a 40% deposit. The Cheltenham & Gloucester, part of Lloyds TSB, has also raised the interest rate charged on some deals. More than a million fixed-rate deals, typically lasting for two years, are due to expire in 2008, which will add to demand. As a result, the smaller building societies are withdrawing deals instead of being swamped by demand. Those wishing to move house are being told to act fast on mortgage deals as lenders are changing their deals frequently, sometimes several times a week.
Tags: building societies, Cheltenham & Gloucester, Co-operative, Credit crisis, Credit crunch, First-time buyers, fixed-rate deals, Halifax, higher deposits, Lloyds TSB, mortgage criteria, Nationwide, TSB
Posted in Credit crisis, Credit crunch, Finance, First-time buyers, Halifax, Mortgages, Nationwide, Personal Finance, Property Market | No Comments »
Thursday, March 6th, 2008
Borrowers with bad debts are getting better mortgage deals than first-time buyers without a deposit. The cheapest deal for a first-time buyer with good credit history but without a deposit is with Bradford & Bingley - 6.89% with £999 fee. But a sub-prime borrower with missed mortgage repayments (in the past year, one of which is in the last six months), could get a rate of 6.69% with a £995 fee with Chelsea BS. However, those with a 25% deposit could get a rate of 4.75% from First Direct with a £1,498 fee. A year ago, 27 banks and building societies offered 100% mortgages compared with just 11 today at much higher rates. As the credit crunch hits banks and building societies, first-time buyers have been left out in the cold.
Tags: 100% mortgages, Bradford & Bingley, Chelsea BS, Credit crisis, Credit crunch, credit history, cub-prime, First Direct, First-time buyers, subprime
Posted in Credit crisis, Credit crunch, First-time buyers, Mortgages, Personal Finance, Property, Sub-prime | No Comments »
Wednesday, March 5th, 2008
The Government is planning to use next week’s budget to introduce plans to grade all mortgages in a bid to kick start the wholesale money markets. Chancellor Alistair Darling is understood to be arranging the introduction of a new system under which all mortgages are graded, with the least risky awarded a gold standard ‘Kitemark’. Investors have been reluctant to buy mortgage-backed securities for fear they contain risky sub-prime loans and this has made it difficult for banks to remove mortgage assets from their books. It is hoped that by providing investors with greater reassurance about the quality of the loans they are taking on, it will make it easier for lenders to sell on mortgages to investors. The scheme could help re-vitalise the wholesale money markets and provide banks with access to cheaper funding, which subsequently could be passed on to consumers in lower mortgage rates.
Tags: alistair darling, Banking, Credit crisis, Credit crunch, Government, investors, kitemark, MBS, money market, mortgage rates, mortgage-backed securities, Mortgages, Sub-prime
Posted in Consumer, Credit crisis, Credit crunch, Finance, Government, Mortgages, Property Market, Speculation, Sub-prime | No Comments »
