The latest figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders demonstrate the changes to the mortgage market since October last year.
First-time buyers have suffered, with only 12,400 buyers managing to secure a property in November.
Remortgage deals remain difficult to find and expensive to take out due to falling house prices and a shortage of bank funds [...]

High street lender HSBC has launched a mortgage with its lowest ever interest rate.
The rate, which will take effect on 6th February, is just 2.99%.
The standard variable rate will also decrease in February to 3.94%.
The new deal may give hope to property owners struggling to afford expensive remortgage deals.

Mortgage firm Legal & General predicts that SVRs falling into line with base rate cuts will hit the remortgage market hard.
Following analysis of L&G’s mortgage purchase index for the final quarter of 2008, the company claims that there were 17% fewer borrowers taking up variable rate mortgage products than in the previous quarter.
L&G housing director [...]

Research conducted for the Independent released today shows that since the Bank of England’s base rate cuts, lenders have failed to pass on the saving.
The research claims that out of 1,000 mortgage deals, the greater majority of lenders have not passed on the 1% cut.
Instead, the Independent says, lenders have reduced the average fixed rate [...]

Coventry Building Society yesterday launched a range of new mortgages.
The range includes a mortgage with a two year fixed rate of 4.99%, an 85% LTV, and free valuation.
The product is also designed to attract remortgage customers, offering a free remortgage transfer service.
Colin Franklin, head of sales at the Coventry, said: “This new range will appeal [...]

In the wake of the credit crunch, the mortgage market has become ever more difficult.
Financial information firm Moneyfacts revealed today that 25% of mortgage deals require a deposit of 40% of the property value.
Last year, only 24 deals in the market required a deposit this large; at the dawn of 2009, that number has reached [...]

Capital Economics predicts that house prices could crash to even lower levels in the new year.
The market could fall by 35% of its 2007 value, the organisation said.
The fall, however, could help as bargain-hunting boosts transactions.
This, in turn, could help increase confidence and the availability of affordable remortgage deals.

New research from financial data provider Defaqto shows that many home owners are paying £2,000 per year extra on their mortgage as lenders have not passed on rate cuts.
The Bank of England made several cuts to the base rate in late 2008, but lenders have refused to pass these cuts on in full.
Northern Rock has [...]

Alliance and Leicester (A&L) announced a range of fixed rate and tracker mortgage products on 23rd December.
The lender offers remortgage customers a refunded valuation and free legals or £200 cashback on all products.
Fixed rate mortgage deals include one with a rate of 3.99%, 60% LTV, over a  two year fixed period, with a fee of [...]

The British Bankers’ Association announced in late December that the number of mortgages granted to new borrowers in November hit a record slump.
The number of mortgage deals granted fell by nearly two thirds from October to November; only 17,773 mortgages for new house purchases were approved during the month.
The BBA said that it was not [...]