Services for council tenants could deteriorate as the recession continues, a Housing Quality Network study into housing management has warned. The report found that disrepair was the main reason for council housing being classed non-decent, with three-quarters of non-decent homes still in need of major repairs. Arms length management organisations (ALMOs) consistently offered a better
Figures from ROOF’s Affordability Index show that despite house price falls, first-time buyers are still locked out of home ownership as the level of deposit required soars. The average price for first-timers is almost £30,000 less than last year, however, deposits have doubled to more than £30,000. And lack of mortgage finance was not the
Public attitudes to the welfare state have hardened during Labour’s decade in power, and even more so among Labour voters, a study by the London School of Economics has found. The study pre-dates the current recession, starting in 1996, just before Tony Blair took power. At the time 48 per cent of voters and 62
Governor of the Bank of England Mervyn King said that interest rates will fall no further, and promised that the £75 billion quantitative easing would trigger a recovery and beat the recession. Talking to Sky News after the Bank yesterday dropped interest rates to their lowest ever rate of 0.5 per cent, King said he
The Children’s Society has found that children and young people feel personally affected by the financial and emotional consequences of the recession. One in five children aged 11–13 said they were worried about what they saw on the news, rising to 28 per cent of young people aged 17–19. Girls appear to be more sensitive
The homeowner mortgage support scheme has also been launched today. It aims to help with mortgage interest payments for up to 40,000 homeowners who have lost their jobs or had a sudden loss of income. Those with mortgages up to £400,000 and with savings of less than £16,000 will be given help for as long
In a new BBC survey, the recession tops children’s fears. More than 60 per cent said they had been affected by the downturn, and more than 40 per cent said their parents were worried about money, up from 30 per cent in 2007, while nearly 90 per cent said they would be willing to give
An upcoming report from the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) calls for those involved in delivering affordable housing to see the recession as an opportunity to review and improve policy and practice. Councils, in particular, were told they currently lack the skills to assess the economic viability of affordable housing schemes, and needed to make
Just a couple of weeks after credit agency Moodyâs downgraded nine UK building societies, Fitch has done the same to five. Fitch cut the default ratings of Chelsea, Newcastle, Principality, West Bromwich and Yorkshire building societies because of ‘signs of strainâ on their mortgages as unemployment rises, and has placed Skipton on ‘negative watchâ. A
Nine of the biggest building societies have had their credit ratings downgraded over fears that losses from the downturn in the housing market may be ‘significantly higher’ than expected. Alliance & Leicester, Abbey National and Nationwide have seen cuts in their financial ratings by Moody’s, which expressed concern about the level of losses on self-certified