Mortgage Strategy articles from August 2007

Mortgage Strategy archives from August 2007

COMMENT: The painful story of HIPs goes on.
August 6, 2007... It was perhaps appropriate that the introduction of Home Information Packs last week followed the worst floods the country has seen for a decade, causing untold damage to the nation's housing stock and misery for many home owners. That...

Blacklist fingers 140 brokers.
August 6, 2007... Personal Touch Packaging has revealed that a major lender maintains a blacklist of 140 delinquent brokers. The packager has told Mortgage Strategy that it is regularly sent updated lists from the unnamed lender, highlighting brokers it...

CML says repossessions have soared.
August 6, 2007... The Council of Mortgage Lenders says home repossessions rocketed by 30% in the first half of 2007 compared with the same period in 2006. And at 14,000, the number of properties taken into possession in the first six months of 2007 was up...

Tesco may launch price comparison website.
August 6, 2007... Tesco is rumoured to be entering the price comparison market after it revealed it has bought the web domain www.tescocompare.co.uk. This comes only weeks after the supermarket giant launched into the online property market with Tesco...

BoS restructures sales management team.
August 6, 2007... Bank of Scotland has reshuffled its sales management, axing the national accounts manager role held by David Gibb and reshaping the position of head of sales held by John Lloyd. Peter Curran was appointed managing director of mortgages at...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Get tough on debt firms, says Cable.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... Vince Cable MP, shadow chancellor for the Liberal Democrats, has called for tighter regulation of debt solution firms after it was revealed last week that some 300 people are declared insolvent every day. He says: "This figure shows the...

NEWS IN BRIEF: ARLA boss steps down.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... Adrian Turner has stepped down as chief executive of the Association of Residential Letting Agents to set up a consultancy service for the private rented sector. ARLA has yet to announce his successor. Copyright: Centaur Communications...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Conveyancing partnership.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... Goldsmith Williams has been appointed as the exclusive conveyancing partner of 3mc. The conveyancer says this will deliver immediate benefits to the packager's 2,000 brokers. Copyright: Centaur Communications Ltd. and licensors

NEWS IN BRIEF: MPC keeps base rate on hold.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee last week voted to hold the base rate at 5.75% for August. This follows a 25 basis point rise in July, the fifth rise seen since August 2006. Although the freeze was widely predicted, the...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Astra offers B2L exclusive via PMS.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... Astra is launching an exclusive three year buy-to-let product via Premier Mortgage Service. At 90% LTV, the initial rate is fixed for one year at 5.69%, followed by base rate plus 0.74% for years two and three. It has free valuations, free...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Equity release day next month.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... Equity Advice is to hold an equity release development day for brokers at the Heritage Motor Museum in Warwickshire on September 24. Chris Cummings, director-general of the Association of Mortgage Intermediaries, will speak at the event. ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Website looks for insurance partners.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... Online aggregator Onlyinsurance.com is in talks with potential third party providers to meet growing demand for critical illness and life cover. Copyright: Centaur Communications Ltd. and licensors

Fake FSA calls annoy brokers.
August 6, 2007... Mortgage Strategy was inundated last week by reports of a mystery caller masquerading as a Financial Services Authority employee. And the regulator has confirmed it is investigating reports of a phoney FSA employee operating under the name...

Readers back crackdown on bogus document sites.
August 6, 2007... A whopping 95% of Mortgage Strategy Online readers last week voted that more should be done to crack down on firms that offer fake financial documents. Just 5% said they shouldn't - clearly the likes of Replicadoc.co.uk still have a loyal...

HBOS pricing to put profits first.
August 6, 2007... HBOS says it will put profits first when it comes to pricing mortgage products to account for their decreasing lifespans. The lending giant's half-year results last week confirmed that its incorrect pricing in Q1 2007 had led to flagging...

Marks made chairman of Convex Conveyancing.
August 6, 2007... Paul Marks has been appointed chairman of Convex Conveyancing, replacing outgoing chairman Clive Russell. Marks has 40 years of experience in the mortgage and financial services sector. He is the founder and former managing director of...

Brokers fume as lenders fiddle with their exit fees.
August 6, 2007... Brokers have voiced their anger over lenders' attempts to retain, rename or even raise their exit fees in the wake of the Financial Services Authority's deadline to reveal their fee strategies for new customers. Surprisingly, Principality...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Home & Capital to focus on brokers.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... Simon Little has pledged to focus on the broker market in his new position as business development director of Home & Capital. Last week, Little quit as marketing manager of Tomorrow. He had been with the company for five years. In 2006, GE...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Hipstar cuts price of HIPs to #339.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... Hipstar has slashed the prices of its Home Information Packs on properties with four or more bedrooms to #339 plus VAT. Colin McLaren, national sales manager at Hipstar, says: "Improvements in our operational efficiency mean we have been able...

Sesame accused of poaching.
August 6, 2007... A directly authorised broker has accused Sesame of attempting to poach his brokers. Jim Tomczyk, director of Triangle Mortgage Solutions, found a letter had been sent to his firm from Sesame offering his brokers the chance to move to a...

Commercial First buys into Go Business Mortgages.
August 6, 2007... Commercial First has bought a minority stake in commercial broker Go Business Mortgages. The lender says it chose Go because it has become the first commercial broker to generate a successful direct-to-consumer brand. Staff numbers...

Dispute over trend in high LTV deals.
August 6, 2007... Lenders have disputed claims by the Council of Mortgage Lenders that demand for 100%-plus LTV mortgages is falling. In its most recent newsletter, the CML says its research shows demand for such mortgages is on the decline. The CML...

NEWS IN BRIEF: L&G academy to train underwriters.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... Legal & General is to launch an underwriting academy in conjunction with Cardiff University. The academy, which will open in October, will provide in-depth training to senior underwriters and claims handlers. Copyright: Centaur...

NEWS IN BRIEF: TMB unveils self-cert range.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... The Mortgage Business has launched a range of self-cert rates. It includes a 5.59% fixed rate up to 85% LTV with an arrangement fee of #1,999, plus two 5.99% fixed rate self-cert deals also up to a maximum LTV of 85% but with arrangement fees...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Edeus sales appointments.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... Edeus has expanded its sales team with the appointment of Emma Price and Haydon Cooper. Price previously worked for The Nottingham and John Charcol. Cooper joins from AWD Moneyextra, where he worked as a senior mortgage broker. ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Skipton offers base rate trackers.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... Skipton has introduced three and five-year capped tracker mortgages. The three-year product has an initial rate of 6.09% with a 6.34% cap, while the five-year offering has a rate of 6.14% and is capped at 6.39%. Copyright: Centaur...

Mutual's plan for 25-year fix.
August 6, 2007... Kent Reliance could scrap early repayment charges on its 25-year fixed rate products following the government's drive to make long-term fixes more accessible to borrowers. The government has proposed backing covered bonds to make 25-year...

Call to regulate lenders' account audits.
August 6, 2007... Omnicheck has called for lenders' account auditing to be regulated to stop a rise in mortgage overcharging. A recent study by auditing firm BankCheck found that out of a sample of 30 mortgages, all had interest mistakes. This means that...

BM gives firms link to One Minute Mortgage.
August 6, 2007... BM Solutions has launched a technology proposition that allows partners to plug into its instant decision system. The initiative, which will be piloted with a number of key partners such as Mortgage 2000, allows brokers and packagers to...

Loansetc becomes ADV2 distribution partner.
August 6, 2007... Loansetc.co.uk has been made the second distribution partner for Advantage's secured loans range ADV2. Last month, Advantage launched into the secured loans market through Enterprise Finance. Advantage's distribution agreements with...

Regulator finds TCF failings.
August 6, 2007... The Financial Services Authority has slammed the industry for failing to implement its Treating Customers Fairly initiative. The regulator has released the findings of its study into TCF, which scrutinised firms' strategies,...

PTP signs exclusive DA partnership with Fuel.
August 6, 2007... Personal Touch Packaging has unveiled a directly authorised partnership with Fuel Investments. From September 1, Fuel will place all its mortgage business exclusively with PTP. Rob Jupp, managing director of PTP, says: "Fuel is...

UK one of world's riskiest markets.
August 6, 2007... Houses in the UK are overpriced by over 20%, research by Fitch Ratings claims. The ratings agency says the UK housing market is one of the most over- priced and risky in the world. Only New Zealand and Denmark are rated as bigger risks....

NEWS IN BRIEF: Leeds offers B2L range to Ireland.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... Leeds is offering its full buy-to-let product range to Irish customers. This move will enable Irish residents to purchase investment properties in the UK. Leeds will lend up to 80% LTV and rental income should cover 130% of payments,...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Abacus launches discount deals.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... Abacus Permanent has launched a two-year discounted product range funded by Future Mortgages. It includes an additional 0.35% discount from the core range offered by Future. Rates start from 6.25% with no higher lending charges or upfront fees....

NEWS IN BRIEF: M2000 launches integrated system.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... Mortgage 2000 has launched its integrated case management and mortgage sourcing system Encore Plus. The software provides brokers with a product that imports leads and facilitates mortgage sourcing, electronic submission, case and fee...

NEWS IN BRIEF: CHL appoints head of operations.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... CHL has appointed Keith Murrell as head of operations. Murrell joined CHL in 2004. Before that, he spent two years as IT director at Abbey and worked at Midland Bank, Mortgage Systems and Wagon Finance. Copyright: Centaur...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Borrowers could turn to lodgers.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... Propertyfinder.com says one in four home owners would consider taking in lodgers to boost their incomes if interest rates rise further. A survey by the website in July also found that a further 19% would consider taking in lodgers if they...

NEWS IN BRIEF: West Bromwich appointment.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... West Bromwich Commercial has appointed Chris Miller as director of lending operations. Miller's job will be to strengthen the commercial team. He will have responsibility for processing, loan servicing, administration and securitisation....

Tornado decimates US sub-prime sector.
August 6, 2007... What's the difference between a hurricane and a tornado? Depending on the severity of the storm, a hurricane can cause severe damage but leave buildings still standing, albeit under water or minus their roofs. When a tornado strikes it...

Legal reform for couples.
August 6, 2007... Brokers have been blamed for not ensuring unmarried couples understand their legal rights when buying homes. Last week, the Law Commission proposed a reform that means unmarried couples will have the same rights as married couples when it...

Brokers affected growth, says HSBC.
August 6, 2007... HSBC has reported that the buoyant broker sector means it has seen only modest growth in its UK mortgage business. In its half-year report, the banking giant states: "Average mortgage balances rose modestly as HSBC continued to restrict...

TBMC restructures its commercial team.
August 6, 2007... The Business Mortgage Company has unveiled a restructured commercial lending team to provide whole of market solutions. The team will be based in TBMC's Cardiff office and be led by head of commercial lending Nick Reeves. As well as...

PMS sees first half business rise by 20%.
August 6, 2007... Premier Mortgage Service has reported doing #20bn worth of business in the first half of this year - up 20% on the same period last year. The mortgage club says applications and completion numbers have both risen by 10,000 compared with...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Edeus asset sales top #1bn.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... Edeus has now sold over #1bn of its assets in the whole loan sale market. Its latest sale last week was worth #200m and was to Topaz Finance, a subsidiary of ABN AMRO Bank. Copyright: Centaur Communications Ltd. and licensors

NEWS IN BRIEF: Discount deals are good value.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... Home owners nervous about rising mortgage rates should switch their focus from fixed rates to discounts, a study by mform.co.uk suggests. It finds the average true cost of the 10 best two-year discount deals is #1,697.04 lower than the average...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Multi-property B2L deal unveiled.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... Wave has launched a multi-property buy-to-let mortgage, allowing brokers to submit applications covering up to five properties. It takes into account both rental and earned income and there is an online calculator brokers can use to calculate...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Hometrack buys software firm.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... Hometrack has acquired SIA, a provider of geographic software. SIA provides a mapping model that is capable of graphically highlighting a range of market analysis features including house prices, local demand profiling and rents. ...

Would you be interested in a property that has fallen in price?
August 6, 2007... Last week, Mortgage Strategy reported that an anonymous IT professional has launched a website showcasing properties with reduced price tags. Propertysnake.co.uk says it averages 5,000 hits a day, producing 1,000 leads. House price inflation...

C2 spices up product range with Salt exclusive.
August 6, 2007... c2-financial has launched an exclusive two-year fixed product at 6.89% from Salt. The product has no early repayment or higher lending charges and features free valuations. It allows for two months of mortgage or loan arrears in the...

BM Solutions launches B2L trackers via MI.
August 6, 2007... BM Solutions has launched a range of two-year buy-to-let trackers through Mortgage Intelligence. The first product is base rate minus 0.75% and comes with an arrangement fee of #2,549 and a rental calculation of 125%. The second deal is at...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Brits reveal their money worries.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... Money worries weigh heavily on Brits' minds, research by Stroud & Swindon reveals. The society says the top five financial concerns among consumers are the rising cost of living, insufficient funds, lack of financial preparation for...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Woolwich unveils fees-free tracker.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... Woolwich has launched what it says is its best fees-free lifetime tracker. The product has no application fee and is priced at 0.17% above the base rate. Copyright: Centaur Communications Ltd. and licensors

NEWS IN BRIEF: Salt changes B2L criteria.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... Salt has changed the criteria of its buy-to-let deals. It now allows landlords to use rent as well as surplus income to improve their affordability. The Salt range includes a two-year fixed rate deal at 5.49% and a three-year fix at 5.59%. ...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Exclusive offers free valuations.(Brief article)
August 6, 2007... Exclusive Connections is offering free valuations on properties up to #500,000 for core product applications, excluding buy-to-let. The service is available on applications received by September 14 with five lenders on Exclusive's sub-prime...

ANALYSIS: Marketwatch - 06.08.07.
August 6, 2007... It was great to see swaps fall again - that's two weeks in a row. Two- year swaps are down 0.16% on their recent high and three-year swaps are down 0.18%. I think we'll have to see further swap rate reductions before there are rate cuts but...

ANALYSIS: Are further base rate rises likely before the end of the year.
August 6, 2007... Our experts are split this week. One believes a base rate of 6% is inevitable, but the other thinks it's best to pause to gauge the effects of previous rises Prior to every Monetary Policy Committee vote on interest rates, the question on...

ANALYSIS: Storms will pour VAT cash into Whitehall.
August 6, 2007... Need something to take your mind off the depressing arrival of Home Information Packs for five minutes? Try wading waist-deep through rising sewage in your dining room to get to a kitchen with no power or drinking water. I live in...

ANALYSIS: Lenders charging exit fees are justified.
August 6, 2007... The British like bandwagons. When they hear one rumbling by they rush out and clamber on board. When it comes to fees and charges, consumer groups are first in line howling for fairness, which they seem to define as the primacy of customers...

ANALYSIS: US backers could soon lose their nerve.
August 6, 2007... While Scotland experienced the joys of the smoking ban a year earlier than England and Wales, it has been given a reprieve when it comes to Home Information Packs. After much chopping and changing, last week HIPs finally became mandatory for...

ANALYSIS: An exit fee by any other name still stinks.
August 6, 2007... Lenders have a variety of strategies for dealing with difficult issues. Rewriting the script is one of their favourites. Only a few lenders are squaring up to the fact that their exit fees are unfair because they are far higher than the...

ANALYSIS: HIP's eco-spin won't stop gazumping.
August 6, 2007... Rejoice, rejoice, because the world has found its saviour. There will be no more flooding, no more drought, no more war. The government should abandon its flood defence plans as they won't be needed. World powers can cancel climate change...

ANALYSIS: Repossession figures add up to heartache.
August 6, 2007... Summer is a good time for banks. First, they make millions from customers who use their credit cards overseas and pay hefty charges for doing so. Second, they can post their bumper first half profit figures while those same customers are...

ANALYSIS: Base rate blackjack is the only game in town.
August 6, 2007... Last week, the Monetary Policy Committee voted to freeze the base rate at 5.75%. However, many pundits are predicting it will rise to 6% by the end of the year. There's no way rates are going to go down in the next few months so this...

ANALYSIS: Compensation scheme is poor value for money.
August 6, 2007... While soaking up the sun on a beach on your summer holiday, the latest Andy McNabb best-seller might not cure your work withdrawal symptoms and your BlackBerry might be in a no service area. If this is the case, I recommend the Financial...

ANALYSIS: I hope HIP farce has a happy ending.
August 6, 2007... July 31 saw the conclusion of one sorry mortgage tale as lenders drew a line under the exit fee saga. But August 1 saw the beginning of the first chapter in another epic story. Although there have probably been more words written about...

ANALYSIS: An interesting time to be a packager.
August 6, 2007... In January 2006, I set up Personal Touch Packaging as a joint venture between Personal Touch Financial Services and OFM Group, PTFS' biggest appointed representative. A year and a half later, I thought it would be a good idea to look at...

ANALYSIS: Bank charge claimants left in limbo.
August 6, 2007... There was a strange situation last week as the Financial Ombudsman Service, the Office of Fair Trading and the Financial Services Authority effectively teamed up with banks to put a temporary stop to claims about unfair bank charges. Siding...

ANALYSIS: Time to research new business areas.
August 6, 2007... In my last column, I wrote about using any spare time you might have over the summer to subject your firm to the same scrutiny the regulator might bring to bear should it conduct a mystery shop or a visit. It's possible that many of you read...

ANALYSIS: Web advertising can pay off for brokers.
August 6, 2007... Advertising costs money - often a great deal of money. But with the growth of the internet, the days of spending and simply hoping your advertising pays off are numbered. This is because online advertising is delivering previously undreamt...

ANALYSIS: Learn about the commercial options.
August 6, 2007... The traditional British approach to direct bank-based commercial lending will become history as a result of the market's realisation of the increasing volume of broker-introduced commercial loan business. But brokers must learn about the...

ANALYSIS: Revamp could boost HomeBuy take-up.
August 6, 2007... Having failed to scratch the surface of first-time buyer and key worker funding problems, the government is trying again with what is effectively a relaunch of its Open Market HomeBuy scheme. Interestingly, the new option of a 17.5%...

ANALYSIS: Let's start making money out of HIPs.
August 6, 2007... Home Information Packs have finally been introduced. How was it for you? Did the earth move, was it the best thing that's ever happened or was it business as usual? Judging by the conversations I've had with brokers over the past few...

ANALYSIS: Toe the line for equity release advice.
August 6, 2007... Under MCOB 8.5.4 R, the Financial Services Authority requires that when considering the suitability of an equity release transaction, brokers have "regard to the facts disclosed by the customer and other relevant facts about [them] of which...

ANALYSIS: Cover can treat cancer patients' anxiety.
August 6, 2007... It seems that hardly a day goes by without a new development in the fight against cancer and it's great to hear about breakthroughs that could save lives. Back in 2004, I wrote about one potential breakthrough - a pilot screening program...

LETTER: GMAC-RFC should address brokers' 0870 concerns.(Letter to the editor)
August 6, 2007... From Anne Clarke Let me begin by congratulating you on your excellent publication. I pick up other financial publications out of a sense of duty but look forward to reading Mortgage Strategy from cover to cover each week. (No, I'm not...

LETTER: Wrong to say no packagers are involved in second charge market.(Letter to the editor)
August 6, 2007... From Simon Stern I read Mortgage Strategy's cover story in the July 23 issue with great interest and although on the whole it was an informative article, I must correct some of the things stated in it. It is wrong to say that no...

LETTER: FSA should take a sensible attitude to cold calling.(Letter to the editor)
August 6, 2007... From Simon Robins It is pleasing to note that the Financial Services Authority has accepted the fact that under a rules-based regime, it was failing to police the area of financial promotions. To move from imposing strict rules to a...

LETTER: Brokers using fake documents must be charged with fraud.(Letter to the editor)
August 6, 2007... Name and address supplied Regarding one of your recent articles about a fake document website (Mortgage Strategy July 30), it does not surprise me to learn that mortgage brokers form the majority of the firm's clients. The company says...

LETTER: Cutting their business would make lenders focus on fees.(Letter to the editor)
August 6, 2007... From Danny Lovey Last week's statement by the Financial Services Authority on exit fees must rank as one of the most pathetic in its history. For example, take a look at the word 'action', as used in the regulator's document on good...

LETTER: Winter seems confused about the type of car he is driving.(Letter to the editor)
August 6, 2007... From James Town In the July 23 issue of Mortgage Strategy, the 'Me & My Car' section featured Paul Winter, chief executive of Ipswich. Winter extolled the virtues of his diesel-powered 2.0 litre Jaguar X- Type Incidentally, I am also...

TALKING SHOP: The conversation.
August 6, 2007... Client interviews are a crucial part of brokers' jobs but getting them right is not as easy as it sounds, as the regulator's recent sub-prime review revealed, says Harvey Jones The sound of the Financial Services Authority rapping the...

Interviews must be TCF compliant whether face-to-face or by phone.
August 6, 2007... Brian Murphy is head of lending at the Mortgage Advice Bureau We operate through an advice centre in Derby plus estate agency branches and mortgage shops across the country. Client leads for both operations require an informed and in-depth...

Building good relationships at the interview stage will pay dividends.
August 6, 2007... Duncan Loyd is assistant compliance manager at Beacon Homeloans The client meeting is usually arranged over the phone and held at a mutually convenient place - the client's home, place of work or the broker's office. The broker will explain the...