Archive for the 'research' Category

Tens of thousands trapped in negative equity until 2014

Tens of thousands of homeowners who bought during the housing boom face another four years of being trapped in negative equity. According to a new forecast from the National Housing Federation (NHF), those who purchased a property in England at the peak of the market in 2007 paid an average price of £216,800. They may [...]

Number of second homeowners soar to record levels

Research by estate agent Knight Frank has found the number of second homeowners in England has soared to a record level of almost a quarter of a million. According to the estate agent, a change in holiday plans mean an increasing amount of buyers believe that a second home is “an investment, rather than a [...]

Research shows 1.2m taking out payday loan each year

According to research by watchdog Consumer Focus, the number of people taking out a payday loan has quadrupled in the last 4 years. The consumer group said 1.2 million people are now taking out a payday loan every year – borrowing more than £1 billion. Payday loans are becoming more popular and are seen as [...]

UK housing assets double in value to £3,755bn

The total value of privately-owned homes in the UK has more than doubled over the past decade, new research from Halifax shows. The country saw a 118% surge, from £1,719 billion in 1999 to an estimated £3,755 billion in 2009, although the Retail Prices Index measure of inflation rose by only 29% during the same [...]

Mortgage lenders hold out on large deposits

Despite a rise in the number of mortgage deals on offer, a large deposit remains essential in securing a competitive loan, both for house purchasers and remortgagers.
According to research by Moneyfacts Group for the BBC, the number of mortgage products available has risen 66% so far this year, to 2,351.
However, the financial researcher found that [...]

Banks hide rate cuts from savers

Banks are keeping their customers in the dark about interest rate changes on their accounts, new research has found.
The study by Which? Money found most banks rely on newspaper adverts or customers popping into their local branch to keep savers informed of rate cuts
Only four of the twelve banks investigated guaranteed to keep customers informed [...]