UK Housing Market Update Bank of England starts to take away the punch bowl The Bank of England has started the slow process of withdrawing support to the mortgage market. In our view, the acceleration of the review into the introduction of an industry-wide leverage ratio is... 2nd December 2013 · 1 min read
UK Economics Update Bank of England takes action to cool housing market Alongside the release of its Financial Stability Report, the Bank of England has unveiled new measures to blunt the incentives for banks to make new mortgage loans. While these initiatives may do... 28th November 2013 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Update How significant is October's jump in asking prices? Despite some of yesterday's headlines, London aside, October's jump in asking prices was not exceptional. But the data highlight the risk that, even if Help to Buy fails to boost transactions, it may... 22nd October 2013 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Update Is the ratio of mortgage debt to income really declining? The authorities are taking comfort from the fall in mortgage debt as a share of disposable income in recent years. But that primarily reflects a rise in benefit payments and net interest income, as... 18th October 2013 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Update Help to Buy mortgage guarantees – is it time to reassess? We have been more sceptical than most that the Help to Buy mortgage guarantee will spark a new house price boom. Although the complexity of the scheme makes it difficult to draw firm conclusions... 9th October 2013 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Update When will the Financial Policy Committee act to restrain house prices? Despite extensive media coverage, outside of central London there is little evidence of a house price boom, and there has been no increase in the stock of mortgage debt. Therefore, there seems little... 25th September 2013 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Update Are mortgage rates set to rise? The sharp rise in swap rates in recent months has raised concerns that fixed mortgage rates will now follow. But while lenders will still be keen to maintain a healthy margin on any new lending, some... 20th September 2013 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Update Have house prices returned to pre-crisis highs? The ONS house price index, which shows that prices in England have returned to pre-crisis highs, has made plenty of headlines today. But compared to other indices, the ONS measure places greater... 18th September 2013 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Update Should there be a cap on house price inflation? A boom in house prices would certainly not be sustainable, and the authorities should take action to prevent this. But the Bank of England already has new tools to prevent any unwarranted rise in... 13th September 2013 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Update Growth in buy-to-let lending lagging overall market There was a further slight uptick in mortgage approvals in September, but it would be premature to view this as the start of a sustained recovery in the housing market. The improvement was modest, and... 12th September 2013 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Update Dominance of first-time buyers unlikely to last Business cycles in advanced economies have been exceptionally closely aligned in recent years because of the global financial crisis, but they are likely to become less so in future. Although a global... 11th September 2013 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Update Recent trends in the new-build premium The new-build premium has more or less held its ground over the past year, with new homes around 15% more expensive than equivalent second-hand properties. But with new-build prices now receiving an... 29th August 2013 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Update Will forward guidance provide a further boost to the housing market? By reducing households’ concerns that mortgage rates will increase in the near future, forward guidance has the potential to provide a further boost to housing demand. But while the policy can’t harm... 21st August 2013 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Update Divergence in London house prices grows ever wider House prices in London as a whole have outperformed the rest of the country since the financial crisis, but this is not the case for all parts of the capital. Those boroughs with the highest prices... 31st July 2013 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Update Housebuilding starts to recover, but so do new-build prices The recent rise in demand for new-build homes, partly driven by Help to Buy, has helped private home starts reach their highest level since the start of the financial crisis. While this is good news... 26th July 2013 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Update Is gross or net mortgage lending more relevant for house prices? In the short term, whether gross or net mortgage lending matters more for house prices depends on the type of mortgage repayments being made. In that regard, with the recent rise in repayments being... 18th July 2013 · 1 min read
