In its response to the Calcutt review of housebuilding, the Council of Mortgage Lenders [downloads PDF] has called for more consultation to avoid mortgageability problems caused by modern methods of construction and an over-supply of new flats in some areas. Home loan demand may be slowing down, according to British Bankers Association showing mortgage approvals
In Budget reaction, the NHF said Gordon Brown’s statement yesterday was a ‘missed opportunity to solve the housing crisis’. The CIH called for more R&D funding for new green housing technology. Independent columnist Deborah Orr attacks Brown for doing nothing about housing. The Housing Corporation has published advance details of the new open market homebuy
The Bank of England is in talks with seven building societies hoping to renegotiate emergency funds made available during the credit crunch. While the building societies – including Chelsea, Yorkshire and Skipton – are not considered in danger of collapse, last week’s downgrading by credit agency Moody’s threatened to breach the terms of the government’s
Research from the National Association of Estate Agents has revealed that nearly one in four people claim they are unable to get a mortgage due to the tighter lending criteria being used by banks and building societies. More than half of those asked believed that they would have more change of getting a mortgage if
The government could house tens of thousands of families if it took steps to bring Britain’s 750,000 empty homes back into use, a report by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) says. RICS is calling on the government to make it more attractive for owners to improve the quality of empty properties by reducing
House prices fell at the lowest monthly rate for a year in April, according to latest figures from Hometrack. They fell by 0.3 per cent for the month, taking prices down by 10.1 per cent during the past 12 months. The average time taken to sell has fallen for the third consecutive month to an
Middle class homebuyers are downsizing their properties because of the mortgage drought, the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) has said. Housebuyers who would normally have looked for a four-bedroom property are being forced to seek out three-bedroom properties because they are unable to raise large enough mortgages. The NAEA said that smaller houses are
The Today programme on Radio 4 and Radio 5 Live both follow up ROOF’s revelations that sub-prime lenders are behind a surge in repossession actions in the courts. The research at Kingston-upon-Thames county court found that repossession actions at the court nearly doubled between 2003 and 2006 . More than half of the people facing
The Audit Commission has cleared Westminster Council of negligence in failing to recover more money from Shirley Porter over the homes for votes scandal. A report [downloads PDF] published by the district auditor published yesterday says: ‘I recognise that many will not be satisfied with the final outcome, as it would appear, given her recent
People moving to the UK for work or study from outside the EU will have to pay an extra £50 on top of the visa fee. The two-year scheme, which will raise £70 million to fund more police support and translators, was announced by communities secretary Hazel Blears yesterday. She acknowledged that migrants already contributed