More than a quarter of working homeowners approaching retirement plan to use their house to help supplement retirement income, research from LV= reveals. Nearly half of all HIPpies, or the home in pension generation, say they would consider downsizing to a smaller property, or getting a mortgage over 70 such as an equity release product (17%) in order to access the money in their property during retirement.

Banks and building societies are handling an average of 19,550 complaints a day according to a recent FCA Report. These include complaints from those who have looked to get a mortgage, insurance, investments and general banking services.

In a credit crunch, doctors are still on call, dentists need to extract teeth, accountants still prepare accounts and Barristers still need to litigate contentious matters – or do they?

Measures to encourage construction through funding for homebuilding and less stringent planning controls, aimed at boosting the economy, have come under fire.

Santander research claims that over 1 million UK households are borrowing £2 billion a year by way of payday loans which they are using to pay essential household bills such as gas, electricity and water. “Whilst there may be a general necessity and clearly there is a need, the existence of payday loans can be viewed as a poor indicator of both overall affordability and general household management when it comes to mortgage lending” according to Rob Killeen, Business Manager at Capital Fortune.  

There is evidence that the very existence of a payday loan application, whether taken or not can now result in a mortgage application being declined.

UK households are set to see a rise in real income levels for the first time since the beginning of financial crisis which may assist people seeking to move up the property and get a mortgage. 

Over two fifths (41%) of female employees said they would take out a protection policy if they had children, a huge rise on just a quarter (25%) who said they would in 2011. A further 28% said someone close to them getting a serious illness would make them consider purchasing critical illness cover, whilst a fifth (21%) cite getting married as something that would motivate them to do so.

If you are from abroad and buying in the UK and require a mortgage, then how much you can borrow will depend on your individual circumstances. The factors involved are much the same as those that apply when a UK national goes for a mortgage, but with added complications. There will be a few more things to take into consideration.

The main extra questions to ask here are - do you have a visa to work in the uk, what type of visa and what rights it gives you and how long is left until it expires?

The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has revealed an extra £50 a year is added to the annual insurance bill, for every UK policyholder as a consequence of fraudulent claims. The premium is attached to policies for freehold buildings insurance and all other types of policy.

Landlords with buy to let mortgages saw rents rise for a fifth consecutive month as tenant arrears fell for the first time in three months.