Finance Matters

Posts Tagged ‘Wales’

Mortgage lender the Halifax claims that house prices fell by 1.3 per cent last year to an average of £160,063, their lowest level since July 2009.

According to the Halifax House Price Index, house prices fell 0.9 per cent in December, compared with the previous month.

Although prices rose in the third quarter of 2010, they fell by 0.1 per cent in the fourth quarter, offsetting the earlier quarter’s increase.

The bank expects prices to be stable throughout 2012 unless the economy falls into another recession.

The report contradicts earlier figures from Nationwide, which suggested that house prices rose by 1 per cent in 2011.

Property prices have plummeted since the onset of the credit crunch, with banks and building societies exercising extreme caution over lending, making mortgages very difficult to obtain, especially for first-time buyers.

Recent research by property valuation website Zoopla suggests that some regions have fared significantly better than others when it comes to property prices.

Zoopla recorded an overall fall in UK house prices last year, but an increase of nearly 7 per cent in Scotland, where the average house now costs £164,844.

Zoopla’s research suggests the average house price in Britain is now £221,331, significantly higher than the Halifax’s figure of £160,063.

According to Zoopla the average price in England fell 0.75 per cent in 2011, to £228,926, whilst the average price in Wales fell 0.1 per cent to £153,826, compared with 2010.

Zoopla also reported a widening of the north/south divide in England, with house prices rising in London and the south-east, but falling in the north.

It suggests the average house price in London, where demand for property is high, increased 2.3 per cent last year to £416,890, while prices fell 5.8 per cent in north-east England to £156,659.

New figures from Sainsbury’s Bank suggest that nearly two million credit card holders intend to switch providers over the next year, when their 0 per cent balance transfer offer expires.

A further 900,000 card holders will switch when their 0 per cent purchase deal expires, according to the bank’s latest research.

After the introductory offer on these cards ends, the percentage rate charge rises to 18.2 per cent on average while the APR on new purchases rises to around 18 per cent, so it’s hardly surprising that customers chose to move their business elsewhere.

There are several cards offering a much more competitive rate including Sainsbury’s card at 6.9 per cent and Barclaycard at 7.9 per cent, while many customers are likely to take up a new 0 per cent balance transfer deal.

However, significantly fewer people will be using a credit card to pay for Christmas this year, according to new research by Legal & General.

Around a third of households paid for Christmas with credit cards last year, but this number is expected to drop to a fifth this year.

With increasing pressure on household incomes coming for all directions, a third of households are planning to spend less on gifts this year, according to the Money Mood survey of 1,000 adults.

Sixty-seven per cent said they had enough money put aside for Christmas, while in the London and West Midlands, just 60 per cent of people said they had enough money saved for the festive season.

People in the north of England are the best prepared, with 79 per cent saying they had saved enough money to pay for what they need, while in Wales and Scotland the figures fell to 72 per cent and 68 per cent respectively.

The housing market in England and Wales is “in broad equilibrium” despite prices continuing to edge lower, according to Hometrack, which recorded a 0.1% fall in the value of the typical dwelling in July, compared with June. However, there are wide regional variations: prices moved higher across 8% of postcodes (primarily in London) and were [...]

Latest figures from the Land Registry show house prices in England and Wales falling by 1.1% in March, marking the largest monthly decline seen since February 2009. The only region to experience a monthly rise was the North West, with an upward movement of 0.7%, while in Wales house prices tumbled by 3.3%, compared with [...]

House prices in England and Wales were unchanged in April, with no price fall recorded for the first time in nine months, according to Hometrack. A 0.3% rise in London prices offset small falls of up to -0.3% across other regions, with just under a quarter of the country showing falls. The housing intelligence firm [...]