Money Buzz! Europa

Tag: mortgage

  • Danes can get 20-year mortgages with zero interest rate

    Danes can get 20-year mortgages with zero interest rate

    A bank in Denmark is offering 20-year mortgages with zero fixed interest rates, Bloomberg reports.

    Nordea Bank’s Danish customers can get such loans, which have a lower coupon than the 10-year government bond issued by the US Treasury.

    In the current global context, Denmark differs in that it has maintained a negative monetary policy interest rate more than any other country.

    In 2012, the Central Bank of Denmark decided to cut the reference interest rate to below zero and since then Danish customers have enjoyed a steady decline in borrowing costs.

    Even more, Danske Bank A/S, the largest bank in Denmark, is considering the possibility of issuing 20-year interest-free bonds.

  • UK mortgage approvals up by 50% in last 12 months, highest in over a decade

    UK mortgage approvals up by 50% in last 12 months, highest in over a decade

    Data presented by Buy Shares indicates that the UK mortgage approvals have grown by 50.97%. The growth is on a year-over-year basis between October 2019 and October 2020.

    As of October, the number of approvals stood at 97,530 while a year ago, the figure was 64,600. During the last 12 months, the lowest approvals were recorded in May this year at 9,270.

    A historical view of the approvals shows that October approvals are the highest in about 13 years.

    In September 2007, the mortgage approvals stood at 108,000. The approvals later slumped significantly to 27,000 in January 2009 in the wake of the economic crisis.

    The Buy Shares report attributed the recent surge in approvals to government measures like suspending the stamp duty as well as a change in consumer behavior.

  • Number of UK mortgages approvals slump to a new 27-year low

    Number of UK mortgages approvals slump to a new 27-year low

    Data gathered by Buyshares.co.uk shows that the United Kingdom mortgage approvals slumped by 71.76% between March 2020 and April 2020.

    The slump goes on record as the biggest in 27 years.

    In March, the approvals stood at 56.160 and later dropped to 15.850 for April. The highest mortgage approvals for 2020 in the UK were recorded in February at 73.550, an increase of 3.75% from January’s figure of 70.890.

    Between April 2019 and April 2020, the approvals dropped by 76.07%. In April last year, the figure stood at 66.260. In 2019 between April and December, the approvals remained constant with an average of 65,960.

    The drop in approvals can be attributed to the coronavirus pandemic and new homeowners are set to feel the full impact.

    The Buyshares.co.uk data also overviewed mortgage approvals in the UK between January 1987 and April 2020. During the period, the approvals registered a slump of 86.61%, the highest in history.

    In January 1987, the approvals were 118.400. The highest mortgage approvals were recorded in April 1988 at 151.500 before embarking on a downward trajectory to hit a low of 62.600 in December 1992.

    Another notable slump was recorded amid the financial crisis in February 2009 at 27.000. Over the last ten years, the highest UK mortgage approvals were in March 2014 at 76.950.