Michael Usher Mortgages Camberley » Uncategorized

Camberley’s Handy Man

admin — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 22:56:46 +0000

When it comes to refurbishing your property in Camberley, I can recommend local handyman Trevor Sharp.

There is nothing he cannot see to turn his hand to.

Don’t expect him build an extension to your house or add a new loft.

He doesn’t actually do jobs of that size, he concentrates on the small jobs, like small electrical jobs, small plumbing jobs, puts up shelves, tiling , painting etc.

He also will fit out bathrooms and kitchens, from start to finish.

Trevor is based in Camberley, but covers North East Hampshire.

His website is below..Tell him I sent you.

http://www.handymancamberley.co.uk/

Getting a Mortgage in Camberley

admin — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 09:24:34 +0000

If you are thinking of buying a house in Camberley, Frimley, Farnborough or anywhere locally, we can help you. In fact we would love to help you.

But a reality check is required.

TO GET THE BEST RATE AVAILABLE YOU WILL NEED A DEPOSIT OF 25% … YIKES….

If you are buying a property locally valued at £150k you will need £37,500 just as a deposit. Now how many first time buyers can find that sort of money.

Yes with a 25% deposit you can get one of those low rates advertised 3.45% or 3.6%.

But if you only have 10% deposit, you are going to get offered a mortgage with a rate nearer to 6%.

It makes life very difficult for first time buyers, those who are desperate to move (for various reason,s change of job, divorce etc.) and a lot of people are suffering.

All that money pumped into the financial industry by our government with the aim of helping the banks, but the banks and building industry are not playing fair.

How can you ask a young couple or single person to find 25% for a deposit on a property in this area.

Nearly all of the industry experts are saying the house prices have bottomed out, meaning that property prices have probably reached their lowest price and many estate agents and Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors are saying the same.

Banks and buiding societies that have recieved all those Billions from us, yes us, should be now lowering their criteria for lending and those who have deposits of 10-15% should get those special “Headline Rates” that are advertised.

Once we get people buying houses, whether they be first time buyers or movers, we will also see those people buying furniture and other household goods, which will help the national and local economies.

Please note that mortgage products (deals) come out on a daily basis, we keep our finger firmly on the pulse and so if you are thinking of buying a property, or re-mortgaging your property, let us know by giving us a call and we’ll do our best to give you the benefit of our experience and contacts.

We try hard to be the best in the area.

Michael

Sales Of Mortgages Down

admin — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 10:12:25 +0000

There is no doubt that Michael Usher Mortgage Services are not as busy as we were this time last year, then again no-one is … or so we’re told by the media, no this is not another media bash.

Here is a quick press release for the Council of Mortgage Lenders, ( a very grand title don’t you think), they represent banks, building societies etc.

Gross mortgage lending declined to an estimated £12.4 billion in January, an 8% fall from £13.5 billion in December and a 52% fall from January 2008, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders.

A slight decline is typically experienced between December and January. However, this is the lowest monthly total since April 2001.

Bob Pannell, CML head of research, commented:

“Mortgage lending activity continues to be very weak and while people are searching eagerly for some signs of recovery, it would be unrealistic to expect a meaningful revival in lending in coming months. Even when conditions do improve, gross lending will be one of the later measures to recover.”

I have a friend who sells brand new houses locally for a large company, (sorry can’t say which company, she might get in trouble) and she told me that they have had their best month for over 7 months..

Now the truth is, they have reduced their prices (as everybody has to who really wants to sell), but at least they are selling.

Too many people are sitting in properties that they want to sell, but believe they should get the same price as they were quoted by the estate agent last year…hey it aint gonna happen.

People have to be realistic about there pricing.

But, its not all doom and gloom as the papers would like you to believe. Some areas in the Uk are doing well and prices have stabalised. There are a lot of property investors out there right now looking at buying up properties at 10% below today’s asking prices.

Why? because mortgages are cheap, there’s a shortage of housing and rents are high duh!

I’ve said it hear before on this blog, overall there is a shortage of houses for the growing Uk population, so in a supply and demand situation ie. lack of houses… price goes up eventually.

In any economy the value of “things” including houses go up and down and what I am saying are my personal thoughts.

But at then end of the day, you have to make the choice, but I would say get out there now get a bargain and buy a house.

Michael
01276 670777

www.mumsltd.co.uk

Property Asking Prices Are Up

admin — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 09:13:44 +0000

Despite the current gloom in the housing market, house seller have put their asking prices up.

In a recent survey www.RightMove.co.uk found that 9 out of 10 possible sellers believe that now is not a good time to sell. However this has not stopped people putting their houses on the market at higher prices, despite reports in the media that house prices may fall even more.

Miles Shipside from RightMove says “In spite of 25,000 out of 28,000 potential homemovers in the Rightmove Survey stating it was a bad time to sell, sellers appear to have ignored their fellow homemovers’ assessment of market conditions and put prices up.

While sellers have been more conservative in their New Year bullishness than last year, they may regret not pricing more aggressively to capitalise on the spring surge in buyer interest.

Sales are being achieved at around 25% below peak prices, yet new sellers coming to market are starting out asking an average of only 10% less.

Serious sellers need to set their initial asking price more realistically to get one up on the competition and take advantage of increasing numbers of bargain-hunters who have set their own price floor ahead of the return of mainstream purchasers.”

“New sellers are 45% down compared to February last year. In spite of these being ideal trading-up conditions, discretionary sellers are being deterred by uncertainty over mortgage finance and employment, while pending repossessions were delayed by an informal Christmas amnesty.

Repossessions are still concentrated in relatively few areas of the country, though unfortunately record numbers are rumoured to be in the pipeline with some auction houses scheduling several ‘pile them high’ auctions

The availability of good quality property at distressed sale prices is likely to present a wider choice for owner-occupiers as opposed to just investors.”

I keep saying it..its a good time to buy. Go an grab a bargain and come talk to me about a mortgage

Michael

01276 670777

website

House Prices Down Interest Up

admin — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 11:45:00 +0000

According to the The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyor (RICS) there has been renewed interest from people looking to buy property.

What this means is that surveyors, who look at property on behalf of the building society/bank (normally) have said there are more people are “taking a look at property”, (probably investors in most cases) , although this is not yet translated into sales.

But of course, surveyors are on the front line and are the first to notice any changes in the market, so take heed and read the following from the RICS website.

Michael 01276 670777

website

RICS UK housing market survey, January 2009

The average number of transactions per surveyor showed little fluctuation over the last three months despite buyer interest rising for the third successive month, says RICS’ UK housing market survey published today (10 February 2009).

The average number of transactions per agency (over the last three months) is now at 9.9, a small drop from 10.0 in December, and the lowest figure since the survey began in 1978. The balance of surveyors reporting house price falls increased slightly in December with 76.3 percent more Chartered Surveyors indicating a fall than rise in house prices, compared to 73.9 percent the previous month.

Significantly, interest in the market continued to pick up with 16 percent more Chartered Surveyors reporting a rise than a fall in new buyer enquiries. As both house prices and interest rates fall, those with finance are looking for bargain opportunities. Interest is strongest in Wales while the balance in London continues to edge upwards.

Expectations that sales will increase have turned positive once again with 10 percent more Chartered Surveyors expecting sales to pick up in the coming months. Optimism is most visible in London and across the South of England with the balance of surveyors expecting sales to increase in London rising from 18 percent to 38 percent. In contrast Chartered Surveyors expect house prices to continue to decline in the near term.

Commenting, RICS spokesperson Jeremy Leaf said:

“The latest survey provides further evidence of the eagerness of buyers to try and pick up bargains. This interest has yet to translate into sales but transactions may pick up in the coming months if the government follows through on its recent announcement and introduces guarantees for the issuance of residential mortgage backed securities. The latest cut in interest rates may improve confidence for those on the margins, encouraging buyers looking for more attractive finance deals.”

RICS UK housing market survey, January 2009

Commenting, RICS spokesperson Jeremy Leaf said:

Lease Hold Living

admin — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 10:32:44 +0000

Got contacted by the local press for tips on buying a lease hold property.

Thought I’d print the article here:

By Halima Sadat
5/ 2/2009

If you’re thinking of buying a flat, it is almost certain that you will be taking on a leasehold property. But what does that mean exactly and how does it differ from buying freehold?

The main and vital difference is that with a freehold property, the building and the land it sits on belong to the owner.

But with a leasehold property, the person who owns the lease only has ownership of the relevant internal part of the building. The freeholder (or landlord) retains ownership of the external walls, the roof, any structural walls, communal areas and the plot.

In effect, therefore, someone with a lease has bought the right to live in the property rather than the actual bricks and mortar.

Buying a lease of this type involves a large one-off payment to obtain this right for a defined number of years, in contrast to short-term tenancies where monthly rent is paid and termination of the agreement between the parties can be made at any time.

In practice, few houses for sale are leasehold, although they do crop up from time to time. The vast majority of leasehold properties are flats, with each resident in the building having their own individual lease.

The lease is a contract between the freeholder and the leaseholder and sets out the rights and obligations of each party. And where contracts for sale may generally be relatively standard, the huge variation between leases means that terms must be carefully scrutinised before signing on the dotted line.

The lease will be included in the Home Information Pack, so you will be able to read this well in advance of agreeing to the purchase.

Because of all the possible variations, particularly regarding add-on payments, it is imperative to understand the various clauses within it — or ask your solicitor to explain them to you because leases can be complicated.

In effect, landlords can insert whatever terms they wish. This could include restrictions such as not keeping pets, not making excessive noise, not hanging washing from a balcony or disallowing sub-letting.

You may be permitted to make cosmetic alterations inside the apartment, including redecorating or adding a new kitchen or bathroom, but it is unlikely you would be allowed to undertake radical changes, like replacing the windows or making permanent changes to the room layout of the flat and so on.

Conversely, a leaseholder is entitled to ‘quiet enjoyment’ without interference from the landlord.

In addition, nothing should be assumed. For example, although a landlord is usually responsible for maintaining communal areas, check the lease to ensure this is the case.

And remember, once a lease is signed, terms and conditions within it cannot be changed, so it’s essential to be happy with its contents from the outset.

Michael Usher, an independent mortgage adviser based in Frimley, calls for caution when buying leasehold.

“Although leasehold is commonplace in England and Wales and the norm when it comes to purchasing a flat, we recommend that our clients get as much information as possible upfront,” he said.

“They should make sure they have conversations that they understand with their solicitors to ensure any curious restrictions are well explained.

“What may seem an obvious right of way may not be, and it is important for your future happiness in the property to fully understand the terms on which you are buying it.

“There could be unreasonable restrictions, for instance, and you need to fully understand the maintenance and repair obligations. You don’t want to move in one day and find you’re asked for £5,000 towards the roof repairs the next.”

Perhaps the most important term is that concerning the length of the lease. A lease will be for a set period and within this time, it can be sold on by the leaseholder to a buyer, with the seller relinquishing their interest in the property.

In this case, the purchaser will buy the period remaining on the original lease rather than creating a new one from scratch, and the terms will stay the same.

However, sometimes a leaseholder can create another lease within the original lease which they then sell to a third party while retaining their own leasehold agreement with the freeholder. This is known as sub-letting and it is even possible to have a chain of landlords, each sub-letting their interest to the next in line.

A typical situation where this could arise is where a buy-to-let landlord has bought the leasehold on a flat with a view to sub-letting it to a tenant, although this second lease is likely to differ considerably in its terms and duration from the original lease.

However, if this is something you have in mind to do at some time in the future, it is important to ensure that this is permitted under the terms of the lease you are buying.

Most new leases are drawn up to run for either 99 or 125 years, and a few for as long as 999 years. The length of time is important, as it will affect the value of the lease, particularly where an existing lease is being sold on.

Pricewise, leases follow the freehold market, so when property prices go up, so does the value of leases and vice versa. This means that despite a lease becoming shorter, it can still increase in value over time.

As a general rule of thumb, the shorter the lease, the lower its value. But if you’re a purchaser, don’t look on a very short lease as an unrepeatable bargain. It could be storing up trouble for the future.

Michael Usher said: “There must be at least 60 years to run to get a mortgage on a leasehold property, and you must think about what will happen if you decide to sell in 10 years’ time.”

So if you’re buying an existing lease, establish how much time will remain should you decide to sell at a future date. If it will fall below the 60-year threshold or will be near to it, your lease could be extremely difficult to pass on.

All is not entirely lost because, as a leaseholder, you have the right to extend your lease — and thereby increase its value — for up to 90 years, although this could be an expensive process.

As James Baldry of Bridges explained, the cost of doing this varies widely depending on the attitude of the landlord.

“Some landlords will extend the lease for a nominal sum, while others will ask for thousands of pounds,” he said. “There is no hard and fast rule other than the fact it must be reasonably priced.”

Assuming that you have your mortgage, there are just one or two other financial considerations to take into account when calculating your outgoings.

There will be some extra expenses to be paid on a regular basis and these include ground rent. This is an amount of money which is paid to the landlord to allow you to use his land and, again, it can vary from a small sum to something more substantial.

Similarly, service charges, which cover maintenance and repairs of communal areas, will differ according to the size and age of the building and the provision of any ‘extras’, such as garage parking or the employment of staff, for example, a regular gardener, window cleaner or porter.

But it doesn’t end there. Many landlords also establish a ‘sinking fund’ into which the leaseholders pay a specific sum every so often to cover large repairs when they crop up, such as a new roof, redecoration of the exterior or repaving of walkways.

Alternatively, leaseholders may be asked for a one-off payment to cover this kind of eventuality as it arises, although the landlord must consult them before instigating such works.

ut for anyone thinking of buying leasehold, as long as you know what to expect, these extra costs should not be a deterrent. According to Robert Bassett of Romans, splitting the cost of maintenance can actually be an advantage of living in a leasehold property.

“Unlike the situation for freehold owners, for leaseholders any costs for maintenance and major repairs is spread between the tenants, so you don’t have to find all the money yourself,” he said.

“For example, an apartment block might have a bigger roof in need of repair than that on a house, but the financial outlay is shared. And you don’t have to sort it all out yourself, either. Someone else will do that for you.”

And this was not the only advantage to leasehold living, he added. “The vast majority of leasehold properties are apartments and per square foot, a leasehold property works out cheaper than a freehold one,” he said.

“This means a £200,000 flat will be bigger than the equivalent freehold house.
“Other advantages include the fact that, by living within a community, the level of security is higher, too, and there could be things like door entry codes and answering services to keep out unwanted visitors.

“In addition, many of the new apartment blocks are in town centres, so if you want a bit of night life and good communications for work and social reasons, it can make sense to live in one of these new buildings.

“With more single-member households and the fact the government is calling for increased development in the form of apartments, it could be that in this country we will become more accustomed to a way of living that is already commonplace in the rest of Europe.”

The link to the newspaper is here

Michael 01276 670777

New Interest Rate 1% Great for Local House Owners

admin — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 10:08:36 +0000

The Bank of England has reduced interest rates to a record low of 1% from 1.5%.

Back in October last year, the Bank of England rate was 5%.

Great news for house buyers, especially with tracker mortgages, but of course bad news for savers.

Of course this is the 5th interest rate cut in five months and I believe this will help to stimulate the housing market.

Already I have seen some loosening in the market and some banks are willing to listen and offer mortgages.

The media/press continue to churn out the bad news, which is not helping, but we as independent mortgage brokers are making headway and getting mortgages for our clients, today, this week, YES THIS WEEK.

I’m not saying its easy, but we are constantly in contact, on a daily basis with banks and building societies checking on the latest deals around.

It may suprise you to know that certain banks and building societies put out offers for just a couple of days, before withdrawing them after selling the multiple that they wanted… Thats where we come in and win as independents, because we hunt out the latest deals.

I do feel sorry for the savers, but with interest rates lower, those on tracker mortgages especially, have benefitted by having reduced mortgages, meaning these mortgage holders will have more money to spend in the local and national economy, which is good for us all.

So with all the savings you have made on your mortgage, go spend some in the local restaurants and shops and do your bit, but don’t spend it all, save some, put it into Gold, prices still going up and you can invest in a gold bar for less that £80….

If you would like to change your mortgage to a tracker or fixed rate, give me a call 01276 670777

Michael

Visit our website

First time buyers…Buy Now?

admin — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 16:35:54 +0000

Wherever you look its “Doom and Gloom”, I try not to watch too much TV news, I mean how many times can you listen to the news presenter read out bad story after bad story, without getting peed off.

Last week the housing minister Margaret Beckett, said it was a good time for 1st time buyers to be buying homes. She was slammed for not recognising that our recession problems are not over. But I would like to defend her.

Yes that’s right, well up to a point. You see, it is a good time for first time buyers to be “looking” at property, so they can get a feel for the market. Now you notice that I didn’t say buy…

Of course they could buy if they have a big enough deposit and they can negotiate another 5-10% off the curent asking prices.

Most people who are desperate to move, are waiting for the price of homes to reach what they percieve to be the bottom of the market. When will this be?

Well in my opinion, sometime later this year I believe the value of houses will stop falling, then prices will stick for a while and the start to rise next year. Maybe not as dramatically as before, but they will rise in the foreseeable future.

And our 1st time buyers have to be ready. Now compared to this time last year, there are not as many mortgage products available, but there are a few alternatives and I would be glad to talk to you about your options, just give me a call 01276 67077

So I believe first time buyers should be taking a look at the market and getting a feel for the market.

As a 1st time buyer, what kind of deposit do you need?

Well the ideal customers from a lot of the banks and building societies point of view is a customer who has 20-30%, because the mortgage lenders are worried that the value of houses, still has another 10% to go down yet, so they want to minimize the risk they take..

But 10 and 15% deposit mortgages are available, but they come at a cost. If you want further information and options, call me and we’ll talk

Bye for now

Michael
www.mumsltd.co.uk

Outlook good for first-time buyers who have a deposit

admin — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 10:38:55 +0000

I was contacted by the local press for comments and to give advice for first time buyers, thought you might be interested in some of the things I told the reporter Halima Sadat the reporter for the Local news paper, Aldershot and Camberley News.

Michael Usher of Michael Usher Mortgage Services says in the first instance it is important to get sound advice from an independent financial adviser.

“At the moment, things can change very quickly, so keep an eye on the market because there will be some better lending opportunities in the next few months,” he said.

“I think the base rate will stay low for the rest of the year, so it could be a good idea to get a low fixed rate mortgage for two or three years.

“At the moment, lenders are not lending to low deposit borrowers because house prices are still falling, which means that the value of their loan in relation to that of the property is not so certain.

“But something has got to give and already there are one or two mortgages about with an interest rate of 4.9% against a 15% deposit.

“All we need is for one brave lender to start lending to low deposit borrowers and then the rest will be forced to follow.”

Commenting on the latest announcement from the government that it will offer state insurance for banks in an effort to shore them up and encourage lending to businesses and individuals,
Mr Usher continued: “The government’s recent decision to act positively is a welcome move.

“The intention to buy up bad assets and guarantee others forms a large part of these sweeping measures. Hopefully, a more balanced approach, with cushioning from the peaks and troughs we’ve seen lately, will bring confidence back to lending.

“It may take some time before we see these measures improve opportunities and offerings for first-time buyers, but they should filter through eventually.”

You can read the full report here

3.3% Mortgage Is It possible?

admin — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 10:05:37 +0000

We get offers all the the time….

And I have to say that 3.3% would be a good rate, but this is what is called the “Headline” rate, just to “oik you in” as the actor Mark Benton says in those famous Nationwide television ads.

Now I have to tell you that you have to jump through hoops to get a rate like that, but I’ll be clear and tell you something…(I have never been one to talk BULL)

But today I can achieve a two year fixed rate mortgage of 3.89%…Now this is obviously subject to status and you will need a deposit of 25-30%. Will it be available tomorrow, I don’t know.

Now you might say, “that’s a hefty deposit” but for some people who have equity in their houses already it is not. And believe me I have met many people still on standard variable rates, or of fixed rate mortgages that could do better by switching to fixed rate.

But for some it seems like too much trouble to change your mortgage, but if your are going to save money in the long term, YOU REALLY should consider taking the plunge and ask for advice. Thats what we are here for.

Other deals today include 4.99% fixed mortgage with a 15% deposit. Again subject to status.

LOCAL MARKET CONDITIONS

I am going to doing a series of recorded interviews with local estate agents to get a feel for the market and I will be publishing those on this blog in the near future.

So if you live in Camberley, Farnborough, Yateley or Aldershot, come back to this blog soon.

Michael