Ofcom to get involved with broadband industry summit
October 21, 2007
According to recent reports the communications regulator Ofcom is to get involved in a summit that is to be held with the broadband industry in a bid to get the UK geared up for technological advancements and higher speeds for the future.
Stephen Timms, the former e-commerce minister and minister for competitiveness, will also be getting involved in the summit, which industry professionals hope will get the UK on track to embrace the future of broadband. Read more
Women taking on extra work to cope with mortgage rises
October 20, 2007
A recent report has shown that over the past two years the number of women in the UK with a second job has climbed by 4%, with many struggling with two jobs simply to bring in enough money to pay rocketing mortgage repayments in order to avoid losing their home.
Five interest rate rises over the past year have taken their toll on homeowners, and many are now having to find additional income in order to keep up with repayments, or they could face repossession through failure to make their mortgage repayments. Read more
Other banks benefit from Northern Rock misery
October 20, 2007
Following the recent turmoil faced by Northern Rock, where worries savers took over two billion pounds worth of savings out of the bank amidst concerns of collapse following confirmation that the lender had borrowed money from the Bank of England, many others financial institutions and banks have benefited as savers look around for somewhere else to place their savings.
A stampeded of savers have been queuing at Northern Rock branches in order to take out their savings even though the bank and the government assured them that their money was safe. Read more
Brits prepared for a lifetime of debt
October 20, 2007
According to a recent report an alarming number of Brits are concerned about their debts, and feel that they will be in debt for most of their lives.
The report revealed that many of those taking out a loan to consolidation their smaller debts in the hope of easing their finances and reducing their monthly outgoings actually end up accruing even more debt than they had in the first place, and then have to start making repayments on their consolidation loan as well as on the new debts that they have built up since taking out the loan. Read more
Alliance and Leicester shares take a tumble
October 18, 2007
Following the recent turmoil in the financial markets, and the period of unrest suffered by Northern Rock, there has been a sharp drop in the value of Alliance and Leicester shares. Northern Rock saw its share values plummet last week after it was discovered that the bank had gone to the Bank of England for a sizeable loan. Within hours share prices plummeted by 25% and continued to fall.
Banks Aim To Claw Their Money Back
October 18, 2007
Banks are determined to make up ground they have lost with capped charges. Some banks have increased credit card and overdraft interest rates by far more than July’s 0.25% base rate rise.
Two banks have increased charges on credit cards by 5% rise over only a month on cash withdrawals. Authorised overdrafts have also soared – some by 3.4% in a year, yet interest rates have only gone up by 1.25% in that time.
Banks are still smarting at being forced to refund credit card and overdraft penalty charges. Barclays, Halifax, HSBC, Lloyds TSB and RBS-NatWest have already set aside £400m in compensation between them, and they are trying to make that back in any way they can. Read more
First-time Buyer Numbers Drop
October 18, 2007
The number of first-time buyers fell in July at its fastest rate for over three years. Consumers appear to think that the market may have peaked.
Figures from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) showed that enquiries from new buyers fell at its fastest rate since August 2004, and the number of properties left unsold on surveyors’ books went up to its highest level since the beginning of 2007.
It seems that with interest rates now at 5.75% - their highest since March 2001 – and forecast to rise to 6% in the autumn, many first-time buyers were choosing to continue to rent as they waited to see what happens next in the property market. Read more
House Prices Up Again In June
October 18, 2007
Government figures show that the housing market forged ahead again in June, with prices rising at more than a £1,000 a week. The annual rise in property prices was 12.1% in the year to the end of June, and this is the biggest jump since March 2005, according to figures from the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG).
For the month of June house prices went up twice as fast as they did in May. Prices went up by 1.6% - in May the rise was only 0.7%. The average cost of a home on the UK was £214,222 at the end of June, up from £211,056 at the end of May. Read more
Some experts expecting house price crash
October 17, 2007
According to recent reports a number of experts in the UK are expecting a house price crash over the coming months, with some stating that the situation could be similar to – although not as severe as – the crash that was seen in the UK in the 1990s.
A number of officials at the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors are expecting house prices to fall in the coming months, and expectations have been lowered by the institute to reflect this. Read more
Inflation Fall May Not Mean End Of Rate Rises
October 17, 2007
Yesterday’s cheering news that inflation was down to 1.9% in July may not after all spell the end of base rate increases in the UK. That will come as bad news for homeowners who would have been hoping that they could leave increasing mortgage rate misery behind them.
The 1.9% Consumer Prices Index (CPI) inflation measure caught everyone by surprise, being, as it was, below the government target of 2%. It raised hopes that the widely forecast increase to 6% could be avoided. Read more