The Nationwide Building Society house price index showed a fall in property prices of 2.5 percent in May, making them almost 4.5 percent lower than this time last year.
Despite the falling numbers, when compared with two years ago house prices are still higher now than they were then. This reflects the dramatic price rises the country has experienced and may make existing property owners feel a little better since they can see that the value of their home is still very strong.
A Nationwide Building Society spokeswoman supported this view, feeling that the price reductions were of limited concern to home owners in the short term. As she pointed out it is only those who bought at the very peak of the prices who may feel a little concerned at the moment, though even then property in the medium to long term has always proved to be a good investment.
Well known high street building society the Alliance and Leicester has just announced some new mortgage offers offering a variety of options for housebuyers.
Fixed rate mortgages are very popular right now as people look to get some stability with their repayments. To this end the Alliance and Leicester mortgage offers include two new fixed rate options. Their five year fixed rate deal will cover up to 90 percent of the property price and stands at 7.14 percent interest. There is also a shorter two year rate, quoting just 6.14 percent interest but restricted to those able to put down a deposit of 25 percent or more.
Catering for the variable rate market the Alliance and Leicester have also introduced a tracker mortgage that follows the Bank of England base rate. Of course this does not ensure a fixed repayment amount but the interest rates are currently lower than the fixed rate alternatives so can prove enticing.
The Halifax is to close over 50 of its estate agent branches across the country with the loss of around a hundred jobs.
The move by the Halifax comes on the back of what they have described as a significant decline in house sale numbers over the last 12 months. The heart of the Halifax estate agency business is in the North and Midlands, and it is here that they will focus most of their efforts moving forwards.
Around 550 people will find their estate agency branches closing but the Halifax will be able to relocate most of these people, with a hundred that will hopefully be taken up primarily through voluntary redundancies and natural staff turnover.
