Mortgage Strategy articles from November 2005

Mortgage Strategy archives from November 2005

COMMENT: Rogue clients must be warned off now.
November 7, 2005... There are worrying signs that consumers are getting the better of the Financial Services Authority and mortgage brokers. When we addressed the issue of regulatory costs for our cover feature, starting on page 38, we found one of the main...

Morgan Stanley might take Advantage.
November 7, 2005... US Financial giant Morgan Stanley is rumoured to be looking to buy Advantage Home Loans in a deal that could be announced in the next few months. One source tells Mortgage Strategy that the deal could be finalised as soon as December, and...

FSA warns on PPI selling practices.
November 7, 2005... The Financial Services Authority has called on firms to take urgent action to ensure their selling practices for payment protection insurance are in line with regulatory requirements. The warning follows a programme of FSA visits and...

Derbyshire launches sub-prime lender.
November 7, 2005... The Derbyshire is launching a standalone sub-prime brand today. Industry sources say the society had a choice of three names - Pepper, Salt or Butter - and has decided on Salt. From near-prime to heavy sub-prime, products will be available...

IN BRIEF: Leeds sees possessions fall.
November 7, 2005... Leeds has seen a 12% fall in possession actions in Q3 2005 compared with the same period in 2004, and a fall of 24% for the year to Q3 compared to the same period last year. This is despite a government report highlighting a 55% rise in actions...

IN BRIEF: Buying abroad could boom.
November 7, 2005... Barclays says the number of Brits who buy property abroad will double to 4.4 million. It says 37% of people are considering buying a place in the sun. Spain is the most popular choice of destination, closely followed by the US and France....

IN BRIEF: Combined loan.
November 7, 2005... Coventry has launched MOREgage, a combined mortgage and unsecured loan for first-time buyers and movers looking to not only buy a home but also cover the associated costs. Copyright: Centaur Communications Ltd. and licensors

IN BRIEF: House prices on hold.
November 7, 2005... The Halifax House Price Index shows prices in October remained unchanged. Though price movements during recent months show the market has strengthened, static prices in October suggest that another sustained period of sharply rising property...

IN BRIEF: PMPA escapes heavy fine.
November 7, 2005... The Professional Mortgage Packagers Alliance has avoided criminal charges and a hefty fine after failing to file its annual return. This was due on September 15 after which it had 28 days (until October 13) to file it. Failing to file an...

IN BRIEF: Consumers feel misled by ads.
November 7, 2005... An online survey by Moneyfacts.co.uk shows 55% of consumers feel they have been misled by an advert offering a headline-grabbing interest rate. The survey also shows that 16% of consumers have made an official complaint about a financial...

Think about HIPs, says AMI.
November 7, 2005... Senior figures from the mortgage industry met the Association of Mortgage Intermediaries last Wednesday to discuss how Home Information Packs will affect business and the housing market. The meeting was arranged in light of the publication...

Brokers split on merits of business back stabbing.
November 7, 2005... All's fair in love and war, but when it comes to business 54% of brokers say dirty tricks campaigns against competitors are not acceptable. But 46% of Mortgage Strategy Online readers polled in this week's straw poll say there's nothing...

Insurance broker under fire again.
November 7, 2005... Insurance brokerage Mortgage Protection UK has come under fire for unpaid commissions again. Alan Campbell, proprietor of Inglenook Financial Services, contacted Mortgage Strategy after battling with MPUK for six months to claim unpaid...

Scarborough to work with mortgage club.
November 7, 2005... Scarborough has signed an exclusive deal with mortgage club Portfoleo. The society says it hopes to build its presence in the broker market through its relationship managers. Through Portfoleo, the society will be offering a...

IFAs call for innovation in home reversion sector.
November 7, 2005... Independent financial advisers are calling for providers to show more innovation in home reversion schemes, says Bridgewater Equity Release. Peter Couch, managing director of Bridgewater, says advisers must be able to give clients what...

FSA says TCF applies to all firms.
November 7, 2005... Many small brokerages and sole traders fail to realise how Treating Customers Fairly applies to them, despite efforts by the Financial Standards Authority to highlight the issue. In a speech at the 'Treating Customers Fairly: progress and...

IN BRIEF: MPs to probe demutualisation.
November 7, 2005... The Parliamentary All-Party Group for Building Societies and Financial Mutuals is to conduct a short inquiry into the true cost of demutualisation. The Group will hold three hearings in November, during which evidence will be taken from...

IN BRIEF: M2000 to recruit head of operations.
November 7, 2005... Mortgage 2000 Finance Group is looking to appoint a head of operations to run mortgage processing facilities offered by a number of its distribution channels, and a key account manager to manage the relationship with the groups' top 100...

IN BRIEF: Insolvencies rise.
November 7, 2005... The Department of Trade and Industry has published statistics on insolvencies in Q3 2005. There were 3,389 liquidations in England and Wales, an increase of 0.3% on the previous quarter. Copyright: Centaur Communications Ltd. and licensors

Pensioners will be hit hardest by hike in Council Tax bills.
November 7, 2005... Pensioners will not be able to cope with Council Tax bills when they rise again next year, says Key Retirement Solutions. The rise will mean Council Tax will have virtually doubled since Labour came to power nine years ago, and will cost...

Broomstick Ball raises #159,000.
November 7, 2005... The mortgage industry turned out in force last week for the seventh Broomstick Ball, held at The Marriott hotel on London's Grosvenor Square and organised by Deirdre McManus, head of sales at Bristol & West Mortgages. The event is the only...

Largest study on lender technology is complete.
November 7, 2005... The 2005 Mortgage Lender Intermediary Technology Benchmark Study, carried out by Frank Eve Consulting, is now complete. The study is the largest and most detailed of its type in the industry. It offers lenders information on how to...

GE to launch range of deals through RAMP.
November 7, 2005... GE Money Home Lending plans to launch its products into the packager market exclusively via the Regulatory Alliance of Mortgage Packagers. The lender has confirmed to Mortgage Strategy that it has been working with RAMP for some months...

IN BRIEF: Roy Leighton is chair of FSPP.
November 7, 2005... Roy Leighton has taken over as chairman of the Financial Services Practitioner Panel. He succeeds Jonathan Bloomer, who assumes the role of deputy chairman for one year. Leighton is chairman of Nymex Europe. The Panel is a statutory body...

IN BRIEF: Secured loan service from LIME.
November 7, 2005... Lifetime Insurance Mortgage Experts now offers a secured loan service, in partnership with Norton Finance. Secured lending grew in 2005 to an all time high of #8.9bn in August, and the number of people choosing a secured loan as opposed...

Compliance help for brokers.
November 7, 2005... Comprehensive compliance support is available to intermediaries, despite a recent survey that highlighted their dissatisfaction with the support offered by providers. CeMAP Regulatory Services, a division of the Institute of Financial...

CML scotches repossessions rumour.
November 7, 2005... The Council of Mortgage Lenders has branded rumours the recent rise in repossession orders has been fuelled by dodgy sub-prime and self-cert mortgages as pure speculation. One industry pundit contacted Mortgage Strategy to say that they...

Free valuations on B2L product.
November 7, 2005... Capital Home Loans is offering free valuations on a 85% LTV three-year fixed rate buy-to-let mortgage at 4.89%. This is the latest free valuation offer from CHL and applies to properties valued up to #500,000. The buy-to-let product,...

c2 extends cashback offer.
November 7, 2005... c2 financial has extended its cashback offer to Victoria Mortgages' heavy adverse range as well as to Mortgages PLC's entire range, excluding near prime. The increase in broker proc fees to 1.25% with the addition of a 0.75% customer...

Pink in the pink as it raises money for charity.
November 7, 2005... Those charitable folk at Pink Home Loans were in the pink on October 28 as they raised money for Breast Cancer Campaign. The team raided their wardrobes for the BCC's annual 'Wear it Pink' day and raised #100, which will help fund research...

Network Data launches proposition for DA firms.
November 7, 2005... Network Data has launched a proposition for directly authorised brokers. It offers a range of benefits including access to exclusive mortgage and insurance products and free access to Network Data's mortgageLink software which includes...

IN BRIEF: Net valuations.
November 7, 2005... Hometrack has launched an online service allowing home owners and buyers to value a property to a level only previously available to high street mortgage lenders. The service could revolutionise the house buying process as the public can use...

IN BRIEF: Online help with conveyancing.
November 7, 2005... eConveyancer, the online system for instructing conveyancers, is to be made available to Mortgage Promotions' brokers. eConveyancer gives brokers an easy way to select and instruct a conveyancer on behalf of their client, then monitor the...

Aussies take control of Propertyfinder.com.
November 7, 2005... Media magnate Rupert Murdoch's News International and Australian website Realestate.com.au last week jointly bought UK property portal Propertyfinder.com. The two firms purchased 95% of Asserta Holdings - which owns Propertyfinder.com -...

M-Next expands overseas offering.
November 7, 2005... Mortgage Next has joined forces with International Property Sales to expand its offering in the overseas property arena. IPS offers mortgages upto 80% LTV, selling properties to clients from a worldwide portfolio. Lee Connolly,...

Unsecured loans solution for timeshare industry.
November 7, 2005... HMC Funding has launched an unsecured personal loans facility for the timeshare industry. Ron Howell, director of HMC Funding, says: "For many years, the industry has been constrained by lack of choice and innovation in its finance...

Homes plan faces green opposition.
November 7, 2005... The Countryside Agency and English Nature are poised to throw a spanner in the works of deputy prime minister John Prescott's Sustainable Communities Plan to build millions of affordable homes across the country. The two agencies, soon...

IN BRIEF: Landlords wary of benefit tenants.
November 7, 2005... Over half of landlords and letting agents polled on the Local Housing Allowance Pathfinders scheme say it has made them less likely to want to let to Housing Benefit tenants. Awareness of the scheme was common among respondents. Some 85%...

IN BRIEF: Dunfermline buys portfolio.
November 7, 2005... Dunfermline has added a further #56m to its mortgage book through the purchase of a portfolio of residential investment loans from Southern Pacific Mortgages Limited. Copyright: Centaur Communications Ltd. and licensors

IN BRIEF: Yorkshire donation.
November 7, 2005... The Yorkshire has funded a guide dog puppy through its first year of life via donated mobile phones. Over 1,500 old phones were donated by the society's staff and customers. Copyright: Centaur Communications Ltd. and licensors

NU backs education scheme.
November 7, 2005... Norwich Union is to become a partner in a project to create a National Financial Services Academy as part of its plan to support local education. There will initially be three centres with one in Norwich, where the insurance giant...

Labour to invest in schemes to cut homelessness.
November 7, 2005... The government is to invest over #32m in developing ways to tackle homelessness. The Homelessness Innovation Fund is part of the government's strategy to cut the number of households in temporary accommodation by 50% by 2010. Funded...

Lending volumes top #18bn at L&G.
November 7, 2005... The Legal & General Partnership says that since Mortgage Day, it has seen lending volumes of #18.5bn. L&G went through a huge transformation pre-Mortgage Day to ensure its firms had enough compliance support to be able to trade...

Insurer highlights flood risk.
November 7, 2005... A report by insurer More Th>n warns that five million people in the UK are at risk of flooding, with 1.5 million being at high risk. One of the concerns in the report is that around 200,000 properties are planned to be built in flood risk...

Pink's revamped broker site goes live.
November 7, 2005... Pink Home Loans' website for the intermediary market went live last week. The site has been redesigned to improve navigation, make information more accessible and give intermediaries a greater understanding of what Pink offers. The...

Elephant plans to seek AIM listing this month.
November 7, 2005... Elephant Loans & Mortgages is planning to seek a listing on the Alternative Investment Market on November 18. ARM Corporate Finance is acting as the company's adviser and SVS Securities is its broker. Some 21.6 million new ordinary...

IN BRIEF: Sesame chooses Assureweb.
November 7, 2005... Sesame has chosen Assureweb to power its Select multi-tie proposition in a deal designed to offer increased efficiency for advisers through its e-enabled service. The Select proposition offers a broad range of products from AXA, Legal &...

IN BRIEF: HoC appoints ex-Zurich man.
November 7, 2005... Home of Choice has appointed former Zurich employee Frank Lowe as its national estate agency director. Lowe will recruit estate agency practices into the Home of Choice network either as appointed representatives or as introducers. ...

IN BRIEF: Unisys launches mortgage modules.
November 7, 2005... Unisys has launched a major extension to its Unisys Financial Services Solution. Mortgage Origination modules enable the management of processing requirements by mortgage providers, with the ability to meet FSA requirements. Copyright:...

IN BRIEF: Welcome for HIPs.
November 7, 2005... Barnetts Solicitors has welcomed HIPs as a benefit to first-time buyers and potential cost cutter for customers. A spokesman says: "HIPs will make the whole home buying process more transparent by giving consumers more information...

VOX POP: Is it time for a rethink on Right to Buy?
November 7, 2005... The Right to Buy scheme celebrated its 25th anniversary last week. First introduced in 1980, Right to Buy is aimed at secure tenants of local authorities and those assured tenants of registered social landlords or housing associations who...

It's too early for doom mongers to write off HIPs.
November 7, 2005... Draft regulations on Home Information Packs published by the government last week have met with a mixed reaction from the mortgage industry. Though the market has long been aware of the plans to implement the packs and speculation...

ANALYSIS: Market Watch.
November 7, 2005... Swaps started to edge down before streaking ahead of their recent highs. * One-year money is up 0.05% at 4.70% * Two-year money is up 0.07% at 4.72% * Three-year money is up 0.05% at 4.74% * Five-year money is up 0.04% at...

ANALYSIS: MORTGAGE EXPRESS.
November 7, 2005... Should mortgage express have named and shamed the bdm advising brokers how to mis-sell self-cert? The industry must be seen to be clean but inappropriate naming and shaming risks blunting the enthusiasm of salespeople, say our experts ...

ANALYSIS: Battle for near-prime arena hots up.
November 7, 2005... Since the early 1990s, the sub-prime sector has matured into an industry in its own right. But a battle is now developing between advanced specialist lenders and traditional prime lenders. Sub-prime companies are starting to target their...

ANALYSIS: Assembling deals on flat-pack homes.
November 7, 2005... Brokers might not yet have been asked to find a client a mortgage for their dream home from IKEA but the question could be raised soon. The latest initiative to help first-time buyers and others struggling with affordability involves the...

ANALYSIS: Tortured figures will tell you anything.
November 7, 2005... Just past the first anniversary of Mortgage Day, it's time to bring a smile to the lives of my fellow brokers. Despite the views of those who wear rose tinted glasses, the past year has been a tough one for most brokers. So this week the...

ANALYSIS: Let's celebrate success of Right to Buy.
November 7, 2005... It's a big time for anniversaries. Of course it is the 12 months since the start of statutory regulation, and didn't that just grab the headlines in the trade press? But passing with much less fanfare is the 25th anniversary of the...

ANALYSIS: Beating the blame and claim bandits.
November 7, 2005... Lovers of Radio 4's The Archers will not be surprised to hear its true to life story lines included the rising cost of public liability insurance last month. The family that owns the riding stables is faced with a huge increase in their...

ANALYSIS: Avoid this West Brom penalty mortgage.
November 7, 2005... If I were to observe: "It's a funny old game, innit?" you'd immediately know I was talking football wouldn't you? Maybe not, because thanks to West Bromwich I could be talking about the mortgage business. One of the society's latest...

ANALYSIS: Lifestyle factors drive equity release.
November 7, 2005... While 2005 may be a year of consolidation for the equity release market as a whole, demand is clearly there. The challenge, as always, is to spot and court the potential clients. On whatever scale of operation, marketing to these...

LETTER: The Woolwich said yes and then no to my application.(Letter to the Editor)
November 7, 2005... From Steve Neale I recently met a client looking to buy a property, whose current mortgage is with The Woolwich tied on a fixed rate until June 2006. It made sense to stay with it until the rate expired and review the mortgage then. ...

LETTER: Lenders preparing to attract business direct from broker sector.(Letter to the Editor)
November 7, 2005... From Simon Mouncher We are now a year into regulation and the market seems to have settled well. Every week we read reports on record levels of business so the doom that was expected, along with the end of packaging, hasn't happened....

LETTER: I take pleasure in placing Paragon clients elsewhere.(Letter to the Editor)
November 7, 2005... From Richard Boundy I prefer not to jump on bandwagons but the letter from Peter Willingham of Accelerated Mortgages (Mortgage Strategy October 31) stirred me into action. Paragon is the most arrogant, ruthless and intermediary-averse...

LETTER: Report serves the interests of non-advising sellers like Tesco.(Letter to the Editor)
November 7, 2005... From Kevin Carr The report into the selling of life insurance published by Consumer Intelligence is clearly drawn up to further the cause of Consumer Intelligence's main clients, the non-advising protection sellers such as Tesco, Direct...

LETTER: I'm still waiting for a call from my B&W BDM, Deirdre.(Letter to the Editor)
November 7, 2005... From Steve Langrick I always enjoy the letters pages in Mortgage Strategy and last week's offerings (October 31) were better than most. Particularly Deirdre McManus and her posse of BDMs waiting for our call. I registered on Bristol &...

LETTER: I would like The Woolwich to pay up for wasting my time.(Letter to the Editor)
November 7, 2005... From Simon Fisher It's about time lenders were made to pay for wasting our time. My experience last week with The Woolwich was frustrating and costly. My client owns a property his mother lives in and wanted to increase the mortgage...

Costly business.
November 7, 2005... The cost of implementing FSA regulation has been higher than expected for the industry, with compliance being the biggest drain on brokers' pockets, says Harvey Jones Brokers spent heavily to make sure their systems and procedures were...

Complaints system is biased against brokers.
November 7, 2005... James Cotton, mortgage specialist, London & Country Mortgages Until now, the focus when it comes to regulatory costs has been on how much brokers and lenders spent on making sure they had compliant systems and procedures in place in the run...

Brokers look for ways to offset the costs.
November 7, 2005... More than three-quarters of mortgage intermediaries (84%) say business costs have increased since regulation, research from Marlborough Stirling and Trigold reveals. Around three-quarters of intermediaries claim they are increasing their...

Transition costs exceeded original estimates.
November 7, 2005... The Council of Mortgage Lenders has reviewed the transition to the regulated environment and argues the costs of regulation have greatly exceeded the original estimate - and that the jury is still out on whether the anticipated benefits have...

Indirect costs are more difficult to assess.
November 7, 2005... Brian Marsh, head of wholesale compliance, Mortgage Express Under the terms of the Financial Services and Markets Act, the FSA must provide cost beneficial regulation. It undertakes and publishes cost benefit analyses for all of the rules...

FEATURE: Weakening links.
November 7, 2005... With mergers and collapses, the mortgage network landscape is changing fast and the long-term success of the concept remains in doubt, says Rob Clifford Unbelievably, a whole year has passed since the mortgage market was transformed by...

COMMENT: Another way to pay for jet-to-lets.
November 7, 2005... Using a foreign exchange specialist rather than a high street bank when organising the finance for an overseas mortgage offers benefits to clients and brokers, says Marc Morely-Freer More and more UK buyers are looking to live the dream by...

Comment: Lies, damned lies and statistics.
November 7, 2005... Disraeli said the above and the old cliche still rings true today when considering the claimed numbers of advisers and firms registered as members of mortgage networks, says Richard Griffiths On the subject of statistics and mortgage...

Comment: leadgeneration.(Company Profile)
November 7, 2005... Mortgage Strategy's monthly guide to the lead generation companies brokers could be doing business with. Justine Tomlinson looks at the options available to intermediaries Positive Response UK was established in 2000 to provide a lead...

Dear Delia: Selling buy-to-let property.
November 7, 2005... Dear Delia Naomi has sold her buy-to-let property and is looking to buy again with Paul, her partner. They have found a property for #145,000 and Naomi is putting down a #52,000 deposit. They have a joint income of #45,000. Paul has two CCJs...

COMMENT: Go easy on your rivals to please FSA.
November 7, 2005... Some of the most important FSA's Principles for Business focus on management and market conduct - including not trying to damage the reputations of competitor firms, says Bill Warren Continuing my look at the Financial Service Authority's...

Insight: Internetinsite.
November 7, 2005... Mortgage Strategys weekly guide to whats hot and whats not on the web. Kevin Paterson takes a look at lender websites, working his way from A to Z The Mortgage Business www.t-m-b.co.uk Content: **** Usability: ****...

COMMENT: Time to take a fresh look at marketing.
November 7, 2005... Brokers are in a good position to make themselves the central contact for all their clients' needs and in the process build loyalty within their client base, says Payam Azadi What is marketing? Google throws up at least 20 definitions....

COMMENT: FSA should make us all charge fees.
November 7, 2005... All intermediaries should live off fees rather than commission and it would be a good thing if the regulator had the bottle to impose this on the industry, says Sue Read Monty Burn is absolutely right (Mortgage Strategy October 17)....

COMMENT: Rise above the crowd on the web.
November 7, 2005... Making sure you are seen prominently on the internet and linking up with firms that can channel traffic to your website are two important elements of an online strategy, says Frank Eve This week I'm focussing on search engine optimisation...

This week - 7 November 2005: JOHN WRIGLESWORTH.
November 7, 2005... JOHN WRIGLESWORTH, economist The Treasury revealed last week that home buyers paid a record #5.5bn in Stamp Duty Land Tax last year. This is 50% up on 2003 and means Stamp Duty now generates more money than spirits and beer combined and...

Curriculum Vitae: Simon Burgess.
November 7, 2005... Name: Simon Burgess Age: 44 Company: Burgesses Job title: Managing director Where do you live? A small village in the Essex countryside called Felsted. Describe your current job: I ensure that my staff function...