Business School

More likely is you’ll receive an answer from one of the unlucky many whose finances have been stretched and tested – especially those with mortgages. In just a couple of years, the face of the mortgage market has changed dramatically, with banks and lenders desperate to pull something back in the wake of some reckless credit lending in recent years.

These changes are reflected in the results of recent studies into the mortgage market, in particular the facts showing the limiting of mortgage products available. March 2008 alone saw a drop of 2026 mortgage products (from 7726 to 5700) across the residential and buy-to-let markets, while home-loan deals have seen a fall from the 15,600 available in July 2007, to just 4,700 available today. Overall, then, mortgage lending has declined to an estimated £24 billion, a 6% decrease from February 2007, while February 2008 saw the lowest number of new mortgages approved since July 1995.

Homeowners looking at fixed rate mortgages will, however, be hit by a sudden rise in payments when they switch to a new mortgage; the average to fix a mortgage for 10 or more years now being 6.14%, compared to an average 5.89% a year ago. With the future of interest rates uncertain though, fixed-rate mortgages still provide a more stable and secure payment plan – which is why the Chancellor announced his support for lengthy fixed deals in his Budget.

What is important for all homeowners or first time buyers thinking of going down this avenue of payment is that they compare fixed-rate mortgages and judge for themselves whether fixed-rate is the correct choice for them. A recent study showed that three out of four people didn’t know the difference an extra 1% had on mortgage payments, so if you’re unsure, also make certain you calculate the amounts you’d need to pay on different packages using an online mortgage calculator and be sure to speak to a professional beforehand.

Keywords in this article: Money Save, Money Save, Market Money

If the uncertainty over house prices is causing you to sit tight in your current property rather than move, you are not alone! Not only are house prices dropping but the costs of moving home have soared and many more people are considering it more economic to make home improvements than move.

Let’s take a closer look at the actual costs of moving itself.

Don’t forget the cut for the agents. They are hurting this year. Remember that they are completely commission driven.

Then you have taxes. Taxes will take a huge bite out of your earnings (or loss) from a sale.

Then there are solicitors and their legal fees which will account for £1,000 upwards depending upon the values of the properties you are buying and selling. Next come removal and possibly storage costs, and all the associated costs of transferring utilities, telephone lines and a myriad of other items. That will take care of at least another £1,000.

They all add up to a tidy sum, somewhere between £15,000 - £20,000 for a move between two modest properties, where the one being bought costs over £250,000, and that does not include any fees that may be applied to your new hard-to-get mortgage.

Look at it like that and it’s easy to see why many people are opting to think about shelling out on home improvements rather than go through the stress and incur the financial costs of moving.

Maybe find other ways to make your life better and keep the old house for a while until the economy and housing market are stronger.

Entry Keywords: From home work, Big Make Money, Big Make Money