The UK's housing market is starting to look a lot more positive than it once did, with a notable increase in sales and buyers paying closer to asking prices, according to the latest data from property website Zoopla. The first half of 2024 has seen house prices...
Louis Mason
UK Stamp Duty Residential Transactions Rise in June 2024
As head of content and marketing here at Oportfolio Mortgages, my job is to keep you, our clients, up to date and informed about the latest market news and trends. I am pleased to report to you in this article some interesting new data released by HMRC around property...
Swap Rates Decline, Boosting Homebuyer Affordability In The UK
Recent research from Octane Capital has revealed a promising forecast for mortgage rates in the UK. The study, which analysed average swap rates over 30 and 60-day periods, indicates that swap rates have started to decline. This shift could herald a significant...
Mayor Of London Demands Rent Freeze
The Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has come out this week to demand that a citywide rent freeze be imposed as inflation and the cost of living begins to ramp up. A rent freeze would mean that landlords and other businesses and organisations that let out residential...
Time To Snap Up Mortgage Product Runs Low
Official figures announced by Money comparison website Moneyfacts show that the average time a mortgage product is available to consumers is down to 17 days, meaning that lenders are pulling products at a rapid rate and people are missing out on the more competitive...
High-end London Properties More Popular Than Ever
Private bank Coutts have said that demand for 1 million pound plus high-end London properties in the country’s capital has increased in the last year despite the rest of the property market beginning to struggle. Coutts have said that 13% more of these types of...
BOE Set To Raise Interest Rates Again?
Today is crunch day as the Bank of England must now decide whether they will raise interest rates to unprecedented levels. This comes as the European Central Bank and the US Federal reserve have both done exactly that by raising borrowing costs to...
What Is A Mortgage Lender?
If you buy a property anywhere in the world, unless you are extremely fortunate, you will most likely need to use some form of home loan from a mortgage lender. It may seem self-explanatory to some people but what is a mortgage lender really? And what does it mean to...
FCA Highly Recommends That Homeowners Switch Mortgage Products
In the face of rising interest rates and a rising cost of living, The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has said that it would be extremely wise for banks, lenders, and advisor to encourage homeowners to switch mortgage products. Doing so could save you...
Are first-time buyers leaving London?
Latest figures released by estate agents claim that London’s first-time buyers leaving the capital to purchase their first home has increased by 1/5th compared to pre-pandemic figures. It seems that a combination of the COVID-19 pandemic and the risking rate of...
Amount Of Mortgages Being Accepted Fell In June 2022
The amount of mortgages being accepted fell in June 2022 in the face of rising cost of living and borrowers trying to stretch lending beyond their means. With rising inflation and economic struggles felt by the country, it was predicted that mortgage borrowing...
What Is a Business Development Manager?
Mortgages. Chances are that most people will need one at some point in their life. As mortgage brokers, our passion is to help our clients to get the best deal possible so that they can either buy their dream property, invest in a buy-to-let or remortgage their...
TSB Mortgage Rate Changes
TSB have sent communication out to all register TSB mortgage brokers today to announce the re-introduction of some essential products. The lender, which is part of the Lloyds banking group, have said that they are re-introducing several house purchase and...
Rate Rises – The Latest From HSBC, Santander and TSB
Mortgage lenders HSBC, TSB and Santander have all increased their mortgage rates this week, alongside a lot of other lenders in what seems to be a bout of mass hysteria from the banks. Since the Bank of England pushed the base rate up to 1.25% the other month, lenders...
Mortgages For Low Credit Scores Boosted By Chorley BS
Chorley building society have announced that they will be making changes to their products which offer mortgages for low credit scores. Chorely building society currently offers a range of products called the ‘credit renew range’ which are designed specifically for...
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