BDS Mortgage Group’s ‘Winners in Business’ exhibition, taking place at the Rose Bowl in Southampton on 20 April 2005, has added new exhibitors including D@shboard, Webline, Goldsmith Williams and Ashdown Lyons.
The FSA will also be available for a couple of sessions in the morning. Alan Mullally (ex-England and Hampshire) will be there on the day doing a signing session. See www.mortgageintroducer.com and click on the ‘Winners in Business’ logo for more details.
First National changes first charge
First National, a GE company, has announced changes to its first charge mortgage product range. From 4 April the enhanced range will include a one-year discount to replace the existing six-month discount offer.
Also, the discount itself will improve from 1.25 per cent to 1.30 per cent meaning customers can access rates starting from 5.34 per cent.
Pink offers two-year fixed rate
Pink Home Loans is offering a two-year fixed rate non-conforming product as part of its Fees Assisted Remortgage Campaign.
The deal, part of the Crystal branded product range funded by Mortgages plc, offers a rate of 7.45 per cent fixed for two years up to 85 per cent LTV and is aimed at borrowers with high levels of adverse credit.
Scottish Widows and Mortgage Promotions hit the road.
Scottish Widows Bank and Mortgage Promotions have announced a series of breakfast meetings in the Scottish Widows Bank regional offices.
The breakfast meetings will be at Leeds 27 April, Manchester 5 May, Hemel Hempstead 23 May, Glasgow 16 June, Bristol 22 June, London 21 July, Solihull 13 September, Edinburgh 15 September, London 6 October, Northern Ireland 10 November, Cambridge 8 December.
Directly regulated firms wishing to attend should register by e-mailing: [email protected].
UCB extends remortgage offer
UCB Home Loans, the specialist lender of Nationwide, has announced it is extending its limited remortgage offer for an additional two weeks from 30 March.
Launched in mid-January, the offer will now be withdrawn at close of business on Thursday 14 April. Under its terms, self-certified borrowers remortgaging to the lender get a free property valuation and the £75 reservation fee is waived.
Pensioners down size
Research from lifetime mortgage and pensions provider, Prudential, shows that the huge majority of those over-65s who are considering a move are doing so because of financial difficulties. Over-55s, however, are demonstrating a different trend.
The research reveals they are becoming a generation of ‘lifesizers’ – choosing to move house to improve their lifestyle.
Club offers discounted legals
UK mortgage club Mortgage Promotions, and direct conveyancing firm, Goldsmith Williams, have announced the launch of a new Introducer Scheme, offering a range of flexible remortgage, purchase, sale and right-to-buy products.
The products will be available to registered user firms from 31 March 2004. It will offer brokers a range of benefits including a ten-day completion service on remortgages.
N&P launches new buy to let mortgage
Norwich and Peterborough Building Society (N&P) has launching a new buy-to-let mortgage with immediate effect.
The new scheme, available to purchasers and remortgages, tracks LIBOR (London Inter Bank Offer Rate) plus 0.59 per cent for the life of the loan (5.49 per cent at time of going to press).
Nationwide launches 10-year fix
Nationwide Building Society has announced the launch of a 10-year fix available from 5.19 per cent, which matches Nationwide’s two, three and five year fixed rates.
Customers are able to over or underpay and take the loan with them if they move home.
First-time buyers play the waiting game
Just under one in three (30 per cent) potential first-time buyers want to buy this year but only 5 per cent are confident they'll be able to do so, compared with 18 per cent three months ago.
However, 45 per cent think the time is right to make an offer lower than the asking price and of these people, more than three quarters (77 per cent) would consider doing this.
Abbey’s latest quarterly first-time buyer's report reveals that, in the space of just three months, the number of people who are confident about being able to buy a first home this year has dropped dramatically from 18 per cent to just 5 per cent.
