Payment Holiday Offer For Help To Buy Homeowners

The government is to give homeowners who used a Help to Buy loan to purchase their property a payment holiday if they run into financial difficulties due to the coronavirus outbreak. While no details have been published on how the holiday would work, Homes England said it would offer similar repayment breaks for those who were struggling to pay interest fees on their equity loans.

The news from Homes England follows the chancellor of the exchequer’s announcement on Tuesday that homeowners with standard mortgages would be offered a three-month payment break. Read more on Housing Today.

https://www.housingtoday.co.uk/news/payment-holiday-offer-for-help-to-buy-homeowners/5105021.article

Buy-To-Let Payment Holiday

Payment holidays for landlords with buy-to-let mortgages are among a package of measures introduced by the government in response to the coronavirus pandemic. The payment holidays, for up to three months, will be offered on the understanding the benefit is to be passed on to the tenant. Read more on the RLA website.

https://news.rla.org.uk/coronavirus-buy-to-let-payment-holiday-and-eviction-ban-announced/

Mortgage Repayments More Affordable Than 10 Years Ago

New research and analysis from Private Finance has shown that once buyers have made the upfront purchase for their home, the ongoing cost of ownership is broadly in line with levels seen in 1998. The independent mortgage broker revealed that in 2008, the average borrower could expect their mortgage to account for two fifths (43%) of their monthly income (if purchasing alone), compared to 31% of monthly income in 2018. In terms of actual payments, the average borrower is now saving £104 a month, with monthly repayments down from £804 to £700, a decrease of 13%. This is despite the average house price growing by £51,660 over the same period. Read more on the Property Reporter website.

https://www.propertyreporter.co.uk/finance/mortgage-repayments-more-affordable-than-10-years-ago.html

‘Crisis’ Warning With Rent And Mortgage Payments Near Parity

The amount being paid by private renters in England is approaching parity with mortgage payments having jumped more than 160% in less than a decade. Now, campaigners warn of a coming ‘rent crisis’ as the number of renters rises. Ten years ago, the amount of rent being paid was only 30%of the total handed over by homeowners. New analysis for Shelter shows the current figure pushing past 75%. Overall, the Shelter figures – not adjusted for inflation – show the total amount spent on private rent jumped more than 160% in under a decade – from £15.9bn in 2006 to £41.3bn in 2015-16. The total spent by home owners almost flatlined – rising just 5% from £52.1bn to £54.9bn. Read more on 24housing.

https://www.24housing.co.uk/news/crisis-warning-with-rent-and-mortgage-payments-near-parity/

Renting Costs More Than Buying In Nottingham

If you're thinking about renting in Nottingham anytime soon, you might want to think again. A survey of Britain's 50 biggest cities, comparing the costs of buying and renting, has revealed that in Nottingham, the average monthly mortgage repayment is actually more than £100 CHEAPER than renting. Not only that, but Nottingham ranks fifth in the top ten cities around the nation where you're better off buying. The only cities which were cheaper were Glasgow, Birmingham, Bradford and Coventry. Residents in Nottingham told the Post that many are caught in an "economic trap", with the cost of renting spiralling out of control. Read more on the Nottingham Post website.

Help To Buy ISA Can’t Be Used Towards First-Time Buyers’ Deposits

Savers have expressed their shock after it was revealed the Government’s Help to Buy ISA cannot actually be used by first-time buyers towards a deposit on a house. Paid in a lump sum, deposits are usually 10 per cent of the total cost of a house and worth tens of thousands of pounds. They are widely considered the largest obstacle to home ownership. But contrary to how the scheme appears to have been portrayed, the ISA is not actually allowed to contribute towards the deposit and instead can only be used after the house purchase has been completed. This means it can only to be used towards the more easily managed monthly mortgage payment. Read more on the Independent website.

Mortgage Payments For UK First Time Buyers Have Fallen Sharply

First time buyers in the UK with small deposits are making savings of more than £790 a year, when comparing monthly mortgage payments to the same time last year, new research suggests. This is in part due to competitive interest rates now available as monthly mortgage costs for first time buyers have fallen sharply. The average house price for a first time buyer is £154,559 and for those with a 10% deposit, lower mortgage interest rates mean they can save £67 a month compared to what they would have paid if they’d taken out the same loan a year ago. This adds up to savings of £800 over the course of a year. Read more on the Property Wire website.

Nationwide Tightens Lending Criteria For Buy-To-Let Landlords

Nationwide building society is tightening up its criteria for lending to buy-to-let landlords ahead of changes to how much tax relief they will be allowed to claim against their repayments. Landlords who take new loans from the society’s specialist arm The Mortgage Works (TMW) will only be able to borrow up to 75% of a property’s value, instead of the current 80%, and will have to prove that their rental income is at least 145% of their monthly mortgage payments. Currently the figure is 125%, in line with most other lenders. The changes come ahead of new rules on mortgage interest relief for landlords, which will begin to take effect in April 2017, and as the Bank of England attempts to rein in buy-to-let lending. Read more on the Guardian website.

Almost Half Of Landlords To Raise Rent In 2016

With an uncertain year ahead for buy-to-let landlords, almost half (45%) are planning to raise their rents in 2016, and almost one in five (18%) are planning inflation-busting increases of more than 3%, according to a survey carried out by SpareRoom.co.uk. The most common reason landlords cite (38%) for raising rents is the additional costs incurred by new government legislation, meaning future cuts to mortgage interest and wear and tear tax relief, stamp duty changes and costs of the 2016 Right to Rent roll out will be felt by tenants as well as landlords. Other reasons for rent increases include rents rising locally (23%), expensive property repairs and maintenance (6%) and higher mortgage repayments (4%). Read more on 24dash.

Lower Income Households 'Struggling To Pay For Accommodation'

More than one in four of the poorest households has had difficulty paying for their accommodation in the last year, compared with just 7% of those in the top fifth by income, according to a new report.  The Resolution Foundation said almost a third of the lowest income households have debts of four times their gross income. An increase in inequality appears "inevitable", even with the introduction of the £7.20 an hour national living wage from April, predicted the think-tank's chief economist Matt Whittaker. People on lower incomes are more likely to be spending over a third of their gross income on mortgage repayments, he added. Read more on the BT website.

Mortgages: Nearly One Million 'Face Difficulties'

Nearly a million homeowners have no way of paying off their mortgages because they opted for interest-only loans, according to Citizens Advice. The new figure is much higher than previous estimates from lenders and from the City watchdog, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Citizens Advice said 934,000 owners did not have a plan for how to pay back the money at the end of the mortgage term. It warned that time was running out for some to organise their finances. They faced having to sell their homes or even have the property repossessed if they were unable to find other funds, the charity said. Read more on the BBC website.

First Million Pound 'Affordable' Housing Property Goes On Sale

Britain's first £1million 'affordable' housing property has gone on the market but its prospective buyer will need to earn £82,000-a-year to cover the cost. The three-bedroom flat in Hackney, east London, has come under fire from housing charities after being valued at £1,025,000 with would-be homeowners offered a 25 per cent stake in the property. It means that if prospective buyers only have the minimum deposit of £12,813, they would need to be earning £82,000-a-year to get a mortgage on the remaining £243,437. With this agreed, mortgage repayments on the 25 per cent stake would work out at around £1,352-a-month. Housing association rent on the remaining three quarters of £1,121, and an additional monthly service charge of £250, would then push up the total monthly outgoings to £2,723. Read more on the Daily Mail website.