BSL Financial Services

UK mortgage market contracts for fifth month after Liz Truss mini-budget

Approvals at lowest since 2009 – bar during Covid lockdown – as demand for new homes continues to fall Britain’s mortgage market has contracted for a fifth month in a row, official figures show, as the jump in interest rates that followed Liz Truss’s September 2022 mini-budget continued to trigger a collapse in demand for […]

UK house prices fall at fastest annual rate since 2012

Year-on-year February 1.1% decline comes as average price of property drops to £257,406, says Nationwide BoE boss says interest rates may have peaked How rising rates sent the UK housing market into reverse Annual house price growth in the UK turned negative in February for the first time in almost three years, Nationwide data shows, […]

UK property demand declines as house prices in England fall

Further slowdown likely amid interest rate rise and cost of living crisis, says surveyors’ body Rics Property sales and house prices continued to decline across the UK in January, while new buyer demand and fresh listings were also down, surveyors have reported. A net balance of -47% for new buyer inquiries was reported, down from […]

UK house sales outlook for 2023 remains ‘uncertain’, says Barratt

Housebuilder reports ‘modest uplift’ in reservations of new homes in January but remains cautious Britain’s largest housebuilder, Barratt Developments, has reported grounds for optimism in the UK housing market after an increase in sales in January – but it said the trading outlook for 2023 remains “uncertain”. Barratt reported a “modest uplift” in reservations of […]

UK house prices flat after four-month fall as interest rates bite

Halifax figures show average house price largely unchanged in January at £281,684 UK house prices were roughly flat in January, having fallen in the previous four months, according to Halifax. Average prices were stable at £281,684 last month, the lender said, after sharp falls of 1.3% in December and 2.4% in November. Continue reading…

‘I’m really worried’: homeowners and would-be buyers on UK interest rates

As the base rate reaches 4%, we hear from people concerned about rising mortgage costs Chris Felix-Hill, 47, and his wife, Adeline, from Steeple, Essex, are struggling to keep alive their dream of one day becoming homeowners, after “demoralising” house price rises during the pandemic and yet another interest rate rise from the Bank of […]

Bank of England raises UK interest rates to 4%

Hike of 0.5 percentage points lifts rates to 14-year high, but BoE says shorter and shallower recession now more likely Interest rates rise again but Bank of England hints at a brighter future The Bank of England raised interest rates for a tenth consecutive time on Thursday from 3.5% to 4%, but said inflation may […]