21/07/2008
Today’s housing and mortgage markets are still affected by the Credit Crunch!
The Scottish housing market has suffered less than the rest of the UK with the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors’ May survey revealing that surveyors are projecting further falls in house prices, but not as severe as England and Wales. Halifax records house prices falling across the UK by 2% in June meaning prices are now over 6% lower than June last year. On a positive note, average house prices remain 10% higher than 3 years ago and 40% higher than 5 years ago.
In Scotland, Halifax data shows that house prices in seaside towns rose by an average 14% last year with English seaside towns rising by only 8%. In Fife, St. Andrews and Dalgety Bay are both in the top 5 average house prices last year for Scottish seaside towns.
At the same time, interest rates have risen over the past 12 months with average 2 year fixes exceeding 6% and lenders have less funds available to lend. The Council of Mortgage Lenders states that lending in the second quarter of this year is 21% lower than the same period last year.
Having said all that, mortgage deals are available but remortgagers and purchasers need to look carefully at the market. Lenders are changing their products daily – sometimes hourly!
It is more important than ever to consider using a qualified Mortgage Broker to check the market using the on-line search systems at their disposal. If you wish to remortgage, consolidate loans or even just get advice contact a local broker to discuss. But remember, you need to be looking at least 3 months before you need the mortgage.
Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage. Calls are recorded for training and monitoring purposes. Mortgages By Phone LImited is an appointed representative of Connells Limited who are authorised by the Financial Services Authority for the advertising and recommending of regulated mortgage and general insurance contracts.