The first two months of 2010 have seen fixed rates chopped and tracker deals whittled down in cost and the best bit is that this is not only for those low-risk borrowers…

By whatever measure you care to apply, it can’t be denied that buying a house in 2010 is a whole different ballgame to buying one in 2008! We offer some easy-to-follow advice on getting the best mortgage you can.

Earlier this week the Financial Services Authority proposed new rules to govern mortgage lending in an attempt to put more onus on lenders to ensure that mortgages are affordable. If you are thinking of applying for a home loan, this is what those reforms will mean to you:

Despite Northern Rock coming under public ownership in February 2008, the number of customers in arrears with their mortgage or those having their homes repossessed rocketed during 2008: by the end of the year, 17,264 customers had at least 3 months’ of arrears, compared to 3,500 at the start of 2008 – a huge increase [...]

During the sixties, seventies, and early eighties, local authorities were a major lender of home loans. After this, their popularity waned as a result of the competition from banks and building societies, who offered attractively priced mortgages. Local authority mortgages were gradually phased out by the Government, as they believed that the banks offered adequate [...]