Any suggestion that we have shoe-horned the festive season into an article about mortgages will be graciously ignored, as we look back at the 12 Months of Christmas in Financial Services.
12 MPC meetings
The MPC voted by a majority to maintain Bank Rate at 0.5% throughout 2015. During the meetings, Ian McCafferty has voted several times to increase Bank Rate by 25 basis points.
The Bank of England has admitted that it now seems more likely than not that inflation will remain below 1% until the second half of 2016.
The previous change in Bank Rate was a reduction of 0.5 percentage points to 0.5% on 5 March 2009.
11 year high for housing demand
The number of house hunters registered per branch is now at the highest level recorded in eleven years, while available housing also saw a 25% rise, according to research from the NAEA.
10-year fixed rates
10-year fixed rates have fallen to record lows this year.
The number of 10-year fixes on the market has soared from 12 in November 2013 to 108 in November this year, according to Moneyfacts data. Average rates have also dropped from 4.64% to 3.54% in the same period.
TSB currently has the lowest 10-year fixed rate on the market at 3.04%.
9 banks fined for forex
In November, Barclays Bank was fined $150m by the New York State Department of Financial Services for internal systems and controls failures relating to foreign exchange.
The fine came as part of the DFS' investigation into electronic trading of foreign exchange and FX electronic trading systems in the period 2009 to 2014.
In August, it was reported that nine banks would pay a total of $2bn (£1.3bn) to US investors after being accused of conspiring to manipulate foreign exchange rates.
The banks are HSBC, Barclays, BNP Paribas, Bank of America, JP Morgan, Citibank, Goldman Sachs, RBS and UBS.
8 in 10 remortgagors switch lenders
Eight in ten (82%) borrowers who remortgaged switched lenders to get a better deal, yet just 3% were incentivised by their existing lender to stay with them, according to LMS.
68% of those who remortgaged their properties did so in order to access lower mortgage rates.
£7bn 'affordable housing' programme
In this year’s Autumn Statement, George Osborne said that the government’s new 'affordable housing' plan is "the biggest house building programme by any government since the 1970s" and will include the building of 400,000 new homes.
£2.3bn will be paid directly to developers to build “starter homes” for first-time buyers, while £4bn will be spent on 135,000 Help to Buy: Shared Ownership homes. He announced that the government will "remove many of the restrictions on shared ownership – who can buy them, who can build them and who they can be sold on to."
6 times the average pension income?
According to Aegon. 16 to 24 year olds hope to retire with an average annual income of £64,000 a year - nearly six times the average income they are on track for.
This comes despite the fact this would require a savings pot of nearly £1.9million, a sum significantly greater than the pension lifetime allowance.
5% deposits on the rise
95% LTV mortgages almost doubled their contribution to overall mortgage activity during the first half of the Help to Buy mortgage guarantee scheme.
Total first time buyer lending grew by £14.4bn (29%) during the first 18 months of HTB2.
Since 95% LTV lending also grew by £5.9bn over the same period, it suggests a significant proportion of the extra £14.4bn lending to first time buyers has been made via 95% LTV loans.
4% HTB ISA
Since the launch of the Help to Buy ISA this month, Halifax is currently offering the highest interest rate at 4%.
According to a survey of over 2,000 prospective first-time buyers, almost half (48%) are likely to open a Help to Buy ISA, according Halifax’s research.
3% BTL stamp duty rise
George Osborne announced a 3% increase in stamp duty for buy-to-let properties and second homes from April next year.
Speaking during the Autumn Statement, he said that corporate property development would not be affected, and that the billion pounds raised by the increase would go towards building 400,000 new homes as part of the government's 'affordable housing' plan.
2 year FLS extension
The Bank of England and HM Treasury have announced a two-year extension to the Funding for Lending Scheme.
The government says the FLS has contributed to a substantial fall in bank funding costs since its launch in 2012. Reflecting these improvements, the scope of the scheme has been narrowed several times since it was launched. Most recently, the Scheme was re-focused towards lending to SMEs.
1 new FSE show
Financial Reporter are proud to support the Financial Services Expo and their three excellent events in Glasgow, Manchester and London in 2015, so we were delighted to hear that they will be adding one more show to their portfolio. FSE Cardiff will take place in June 2016 - see you there!
All in all, it’s been another interesting year. There’s certainly been no shortage of headlines from all corners of the industry, and 2016 looks set to be busy with tax changes in buy to let and the deadline for the Mortgage Credit Directive setting in.
We look forward to bringing you all the latest news in financial services next year - and in the meantime, have a wonderful Christmas!
