Lloyds targets first-time buyers with £10bn pledge
There needs to be a real commitment to FTBs by government, although “Help to Buy” has been beneficial it is not enough and the wrong option. The Treasury should have reduced BTL tax relief on loan interest instead and begun to phase it out (say over 5 years in order to stop a property crash).
In the meantime we have the start of a housing bubble that is going to hurt most new FTBs. Many of the 3.3m adults between 24-34 years at home with parents and existing tenants would like to get on the housing ladder but they are frozen out because of high property prices due to the attractive yields available from the BTL market.
These yields are only due to the tax payer subsidies totalling £13bn. Once this tax subsidy to landlords starts to be phased out by the Treasury, landlords will start selling property and invest in other forms of investment which will help SMEs who are receiving little funding from the banks as they have lent too much to the BTL market.
Lenders like Lloyds if they really want to help FTBs need to drastically push up interest rates on BTL loans in order to deter further BTL investors rather than reduce rates for FTBs however helpful it might seem.
Colin Cloy
Wheatley defends poor bank sales tactics as ‘only following orders’
God forbid that sales people should be incentivised and rewarded for selling!!?? What is our industry coming to and where will it all end?…
Good Mortgage Man
MPs grill Wheatley over web-based ‘advice’
“Wheatley said: “A lot of people would feel that once they’ve been taken a couple of steps through some sort of guided process they’ve been advised.” – Does this not describe the MAS?
Nick
FOS accused of misguided PPI predictions by trade body
Baxter really does not seem to understand the amount of ferreting around that has been done by the ambulance-chasing firms that he represents. I have personally been contacted on an almost monthly basis and asked if I want to make a claim.
I suspect the vast majority of the UK population have also experienced the same. I think that the FOS have probably got it about right. The whole episode is now running out of steam.
One wonders what will be next, although I have heard from a reliable source that CMCs have been sending their people to FCA training events in order to establish ‘angles’ to look at futures products about which to claim. Disgraceful behaviour.
Whatcanigetemtoclaimaboutnext?
MMR will force brokers to know their customers – Marketwatch
Whilst advising the public on the likely delays that MMR will produce, as lenders scrutinise additional valid information to enable making a firm decision on what is affordable possible, I hope there is a body that will pass on this same education to estate agents.
Julie A
Thank you for your comments this week
