Reasons to be cheerful
Mortgage and finance advisers have seen enquiries rise by a fifth so far this month, the telephone answering service Moneypenny has reported.
Hinckley & Rugby Building Society has removed Early Repayment Charges (ERC) on all of its mortgage products in a move aimed at making its range easier for customers to understand.
Saffron Building Society increased its gross mortgage lending by 22% to £195m in 2012 but plans a steadier new year, the mutual has announced.
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Aldermore has announced it is to offer let-to-buy mortgages for the first time as part of its ongoing expansion.
We've had years of comments saying the industry needs to be cleaned up. But I think we have come a long way in the last year and, despite the goal posts being moved again, we have all adapted to change as we always do.
AMI expects adviser mortgage market share to rise from £70 to £82bn in 2013, driven by the raft of favourable factors supporting the advice and mortgage sectors in 2013.
Metro Bank is to expand its intermediary proposition later this month as part of ongoing expansion plans.
The mood in the personal finance pages is starting to change with at least some commentators starting to talk about easing credit conditions and greater availability across the LTV spectrum.
Miguel Sard, managing director of Abbey for Intermediaries, expects other lenders to mount a challenge to the big two buy-to-let market players this year.
Robert Sinclair, chief executive at the Association of Mortgage Intermediaries (AMI), has told mortgage brokers that lenders are being frightened out of the non-advised sales market.
Countrywide CEO Grenville Turner has said that he expects a return to mainstream mortgage lending above the 90% LTV level in the first half of 2013.
Abbey for Intermediaries is set to launch a fee-free, three-year first-time buyer loan offered at up to 90% Loan to Value.
Advisory businesses will see a marked reduction in the amount they contribute to the Money Advice Service (MAS) in 2013/14 if proposed changes to the way it is funded are approved.
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