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Midlands landlords warned over licencing fees cliff-face

April 2, 2024April 2, 2024 interestratesinfo

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Landlords in a big Midlands city have been warned that they must apply for a licence for their properties by April 9th or face an additional £200 hike in the £1,090 cost of each three-year licence.

Leicester City Council has issued the alert, saying that non-compliant landlords face fines of up to £30,000, highlighting how landlords in the city have had 18 months to comply.

The council says it has already received applications for thousands of properties within the main ‘cluster’ areas that the new licencing scheme covers.

People who have a mortgage warned to check length of term immediately

April 2, 2024April 2, 2024 interestratesinfo

More people will still be making payments well into the 70s and even 80s, it has been warned, with four in 10 set to pay mortgages well past retirement.

40 year mortgages will see OAPs weighed down with monthly repayments, it has been warned. More people will still be making payments well into the 70s and even 80s, it has been warned, with four in 10 set to pay mortgages well past retirement.

The Bank of England found just under 50 per cent of home loans issued in the fourth quarter of 2023 were for terms of 30 years or more. Pensions minister Steve Webb said he was “genuinely shocked” by the figures this week.

Most landlords don’t understand the Renters (Reform) Bill – survey

March 25, 2024March 25, 2024 interestratesinfo

While the controversial Renters (Reform) Bill is making its way through Parliament, most landlords don’t know what is in it, a survey finds.

The Bill will deliver one of the biggest changes to England’s private rented sector.

Among the issues are the end of fixed term tenancies and the abolition of Section 21 ‘no-fault’ evictions.

Landlords face crisis as government reforms loom large

March 25, 2024March 25, 2024 interestratesinfo

The Renters (Reform) Bill looms over most landlords like the Sword of Damocles”, is how one legal expert describes the current situation in the rental market.

Gina Peters, head of landlord and tenant at law firm Dutton Gregory, says many landlords are on the verge of throwing in the towel as the Renters (Reform) Bill makes its way through Parliament.

She tells Property118 that landlords face a variety of challenges.

Mortgage holders searching for interest-only products to ease burden

March 25, 2024March 25, 2024 interestratesinfo

Homeowners seem to be finding it harder to afford their mortgage, as searches for interest-only products has risen by 9%, data from Legal & General Ignite has found.

Some 15% more are also searching for the minimum required period of employment when taking out a loan

‘Satisfied defaults’ moved up to the second highest search term – from third in January – as searches increased by 7%.

Rates Continue to Fluctuate Across Mortgage Sectors

March 25, 2024March 25, 2024 interestratesinfo

Since the start of September 2023, the average two-year fixed rate has fallen from 6.70% to 5.76% and the average five-year fixed rate has fallen from 6.19% to 5.34%. T

These average rates have, however, risen from 5.56% and 5.18% respectively since last month.

On a 10-year fixed rate mortgage, the average rate has risen from 5.82% to 5.98% since September 2023. The rate has risen from 5.87% since the start of February 2024.

Feature: Is there light ahead?

March 25, 2024March 25, 2024 interestratesinfo

Many cultures around the world regard the number seven as lucky, but that is unlikely to be the case at the offices of UK Finance.

Its most recent data for mortgage arrears and possessions — describing the fourth quarter of 2023 — shows a 7% increase for homeowner mortgages for the third time in a row. That brings the total number of houses in this unfortunate position to 93,680.

Mortgage Rates 25 March 2024

March 25, 2024March 25, 2024 interestratesinfo

The Bank of England held its Bank Rate at 5.25% on 21 March, as was widely expected. It’s the fifth time in a row the Rate has been frozen since it rose to its current level in August last year.

The Rate had previously undergone 14 consecutive rises (between December 2021, when it stood at just 0.1%, and last August). The next interest rate announcement will be on 9 May 2024.

‘We’re both working and in our 30s, but house prices mean we’re living with my fiancée’s parents’

March 25, 2024March 25, 2024 interestratesinfo

Living with the in laws and unable to start a family – the reality of life for the city’s young people unable to get on the property ladder.

Every generation often feels they had it harder than the one before, but when it comes to getting a financial foothold in the adult world, there has perhaps never been an economic cocktail of circumstances which makes this more difficult.

Spiralling interest rates and exorbitant mortgage costs make getting on the property ladder “almost impossible” for young people in their 20s and early 30s. Despite years of training, graduate starting salaries in most professions fall short of paying the bills and still having some sort of quality of life.

Tory nightmare as 200,000 more families will be hit by mortgage hikes before May local elections

March 25, 2024March 25, 2024 interestratesinfo

Over a million households are set to re-mortgage before the end of the year, including 182,000 families who will come to end of deals before the local elections in May

Almost 200,000 families will be hit by mortgage hikes before the local elections in May.

An analysis by Labour found over a million households are set to re-mortgage before the end of the year. This includes 182,000 households – or 6,100 each day – who will come to the end of their existing deals during April in the lead up to the local elections in England.

A typical household can expect to pay an additional £240 each month, according to the Bank of England.

The Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee last week voted to hold interest rates at 5.25%.