House Buying Guide

Bank of England drops base rate to 5.0%

chris — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 15:59:26 +0000

Today the Bank of England has dropped its base rate by 0.25% to 5.0%. Variable rate mortgage holders will be please to know that the large lenders have promised to pass on the drop to their customers.

The cut was generally expected, and is seen as the Bank's attempt to stave off the credit crunch and encourage growth.

Base rate drops to 5.25%

chris — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 13:21:11 +0000

The Bank of England has today voted to reduce the base rate to 5.25%. The move has been made to help prevent recession gaining momentum in the British economy. Market commentators are generally predicting a continued slow fall in the base rate this year - gradually falling to around 4.5% by the end of 2008, or early 2009.

Base rate drops to 5.5%

chris — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 14:19:13 +0000

The Bank of England today voted to drop the base rate to 5.5% following indications that the economy is slowing.

The reduction is good news for mortgage holders with the two big lenders Halifax and Nationwide dropping their rates promptly following the cut.

Base rate drops to 5.5%

chris — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 14:13:51 +0000

The Bank of England today voted to drop the base rate to 5.5% following indications that the economy is slowing.

The reduction is good news for mortgage holders with the two big lenders Halifax and Nationwide dropping their rates promptly following the cut.

Base rate stays at 5.75%

chris — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 12:43:50 +0000

The Bank of England has voted to leave the base rate at 5.75% for the fourth month in a row. The last change was an increase of quarter of a percentage point to 5.75% on 5 July 2007.

A cut is expected in the near future, but it was widely recognised that there is insufficient pressure to cut the base rate just yet.

Base rate kept at 5.75%

chris — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 23:36:54 +0000

The Bank of England today voted to keep the base rate at 5.75%. The move was generally expected as the Bank needs to strike a balance between keeping inflation under control but also not increasing the cost of borrowing money further following the Northern Rock crisis.

It is generally expected that the next move will be downwards, and not in the too distant future.

Rate stays at 5.75%

chris — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 18:05:16 +0000

The Bank of England today voted to keep the base rate at 5.75% - the value it was raised to in July. This is good news for borrowers, after five rate increases in the last year. However, many commentators are expecting another rate rise before the end of 2007. This is because the Consumer Price Index at 2.4% - above the government's target of 2.0%.

Base rate increases to 5.75%

chris — Thu, 05 Jul 2007 16:58:46 +0000

The Bank of England today voted to increase the base rate by a quarter point from 5.5% to 5.75%. This will add around £16 to the monthly payment for a £100,000 mortgage that follows the base rate.

Despite 5 increases in less than a year, many market analysts predict that there may be another increase in 2007.

Base rate kept at 5.5%

chris — Sat, 09 Jun 2007 15:42:58 +0000

The Bank of England has voted to leave its base rate at 5.5% in June. This is good news for mortgage holders, however commentators widely expect another rate rise this year. The base rate has risen 1% since August last year, but inflation is still strong, so another rise may be necessary.

Home Information Packs delayed until August

chris — Tue, 22 May 2007 20:55:00 +0000

This afternoon Ruth Kelly, Communities Secretary, made a statement to the House of Commons regarding Home Information Packs (HIPs) and Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs). HIPs and EPCs will only be required for properties with for or more bedrooms from the 1st August though. The will only become mandatory for smaller properties as more assessors become available.

Another easing in the regulations is that until the end of 2007, sellers will be able to market their properties as soon as they have commissioned the packs, rather than having to wait until they have received them.

The delay follows a judge's ruling that the EPCs should be left out of the packs "for the time being". The court case was brought by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) who said they had not had proper consultation on the packs. Their disapproval of the manner the packs are being implemented is well known. RICS Housing Spokesperson Jeremy Leaf said: "This decision shows our fears and concerns were justified. We support the introduction of EPCs – we always have. The additional time should be used constructively to iron-out the problems. The practical implementation of HIPs must serve the best interests of the consumer."

A lack of assessors is also an issue - it is estimated that 2000 would be required on 1st June with the original plans, but there are only 520 who are currently fully accredited.

The change in plan for the pack's implementation is undoubtedly a good move. As the RICS spokesperson says, hopefully the delay will allow the problems to be solved before the packs come into force.