February 8, 2010 by theplace4mortgages
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St Barnabas Church, Curbridge
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Pictured l-r: Chris Langdale, Russell Mogridge (Hughes Ellard) & Jon Walker (The Place 4 Mortgages)
A couple’s dream of buying a former church in Curbridge was close to collapse until a Winchester based mortgage expert came to the rescue.
Having been turned down by numerous lenders, Chris and Tracy Langdale had all but given up hope of securing a mortgage to buy St Barnabas Church on Botley Road, near Southampton.
That was until the sellers agent Russell Mogridge, of selling agent Hughes Ellard, suggested they contact Jon Walker from The Place 4 Mortgages. Jon, a commercial and residential mortgage specialist quickly met the couple and obtained a mortgage saving the sale.
The former church, which was built in 1892, sits in a quarter of an acre plot and is now being transformed into a holiday home.
“My commercial experience coupled with 15 years working in financial services offering a whole of market approach was crucial in getting a positive result for the Langdales,” said Jon Walker, director of The Place 4 Mortgages.
Jon added: “Chris and Tracy needed to find a mortgage fast or they were going to lose their property. I was delighted to be able to help them secure the lending with the help of Royal Bank of Scotland.”
Jon and Russell are fellow committee members of the Southampton Property Association and believe it was this connection that enabled two property professionals to make trusted referrals to each other.
Russell Mogridge, director at Southampton based Hughes Ellard, commented: “The property attracted significant interest but the banking crisis couldn’t have come at a worse time for its sale. I’m thrilled it’s worked out for the Langdales.”
Tracy Langdale said: “We are very grateful to Jon for arranging the mortgage. We have retained many of the church’s features in the project to convert it into a holiday home.”
Posted in TPM News | Tagged hughes ellard agents, southampton property association, St Barnabas Church, the place 4 mortgages, winchester mortgages | Leave a Comment »
February 4, 2010 by theplace4mortgages
I have already detailed previously how QE works, however this video produced ’straight from the horses mouth’ offers a great insight into what £200bn has been used for so far.
With QE expected to be eased today (ie no likely introduction of additional funds into the banking system), we will have to wait and see how the next inflation report makes the bank of england react with both QE and the bank base rate.
With the next report due shortly before the general election, the decisions will be very interesting indeed for both residential and commercial mortgage lending alike!
Posted in Economic News | Tagged commercial mortgage, general election, interest rates, mortgage lending | Leave a Comment »
December 22, 2009 by theplace4mortgages
Jon Walker & Matthew Whitfield with their fleet of branded Minis
PRESS RELEASE
Two old school friends from Romsey are celebrating the fifth anniversary of their business partnerships 15 years after leaving Embley Park (now Hampshire Collegiate).
Jon Walker, 31, director of The Place 4 Mortgages, the top rated whole of market mortgage broker, and Matthew Whitfield, 33, director of The Flat Agency started a strategic alliance in 2004 which has since blossomed.
The business partnership started as a one stop shop to customers buying or selling a flat or securing a mortgage or remortgage. The two friends then went on to launch Michael Brown estate agency with prime locations in Southampton and Southsea which has been very successful.
“Matthew and I both grew up in and around Romsey and stayed in the area after leaving school,” said Jon. He added: “We remained in contact and the circumstances of us both working in the property sector pulled us together. It’s a great partnership and one which has gone from strength to strength.”
Jon now lives in Bassett and Matthew in North Baddesley remaining close to their roots.
Matthew added: “Embley Park was a great school and we both have fond memories of it. I’m sure having been friends at school has made our bond closer. It would be nice to go back and see some of our old teachers!”
The two businesses employ over 30 staff in the Southampton and Southsea offices.
The Place 4 Mortgages launched its first office in Southampton over two years ago and
has already established itself as one of the leading whole of market commercial and residential mortgage brokers in Southampton with its headquarters on Brunswick Place. Jon recently opened a second office in Winchester.
For more information or 01962 353000.
Posted in 1 | Tagged jon walker winchester, matthew whitfield, michael browns estate agents, Mortgages winchester, the flat agency, the place 4 mortgages winchester | Leave a Comment »
December 15, 2009 by theplace4mortgages
Whole of market mortgage brokers The Place 4 Mortgages hosted a party to celebrate the opening of its new office on Southgate Street in Winchester.
The event, at Greens Wine Bar was attended by over 80 business people from the region.
Director Jon Walker was delighted with the turn out. “We actually opened in May but we were so busy it’s the first opportunity to say thanks to everyone who has played a part in our success. It’s been a fantastic six months of opening and I couldn’t have been more delighted in the way things have gone.
“There are very few independent mortgage brokers in Winchester and I’ve made some very useful contacts with estate agents, accountants and solicitors in the town.”
Greens Wine Bar, Winchester
Victoria Read (RBS) & Rupi Basi (The Place 4 Mortgages)
Helen McGee & Lucy Turner - The Coast 106fm
Sue Cornall & Lorna Munro - Blake Lapthorn
Rupi Basi, Jon Walker & Laura Krisiukaite - The Place 4 Mortgages
Paul Basham (Paul Basham & Associates Ltd), Jon Walker (The Place 4 Mortgages) & Steve Brine (Prospective MP, Winchester Chandlers Ford)
Raj Mandair & Hera Basra - Basra & Basra
Ian Tudor (RBS) & Steve Brine (Prospective MP, Winchester & Chandlers Ford)
Robert Mott, Elliott Trodd & Tim Branston - Charters Estate Agents
Michelle Jones (Client of The Place 4 Mortgages), Jon Walker (The Place 4 Mortgages) & Chris Wotton (Remarkable Group)
Posted in TPM News | Tagged greens wine bar winchester, Mortgages winchester, southgate street winchester, the place 4 mortgages, the place 4 mortgages winchester, whole of market mortgage broker | Leave a Comment »
August 28, 2009 by theplace4mortgages
‘Which? Magazine’ has recently been a keen follower of Utility Warehouse and the services that it can offer to both consumer households and businesses alike.
With energy ‘Guarantees’ on prices to be cheaper than British Gas and Southern Electric in your area, and the same compared to BT, explore their website for more information on how much you can save.
Whether you review your household or business utility bills on an annual or quarterly basis, unlockthefuture can help!
You can also call 023 8098 7644 for more information.
Brought to you in association with The Place 4 Mortgages in Winchester and Southampton.
Posted in TPM News | Tagged mortgages southampton, Mortgages winchester, reduce bills, reduce utility bills, utility switching, utility warehouse | Leave a Comment »
Radio ad from The Coast 106fm
The Place 4 Mortgages Radio 09
The Mortgage Doctor, Winchester
The Place 4 Mortgages
Southgate Street
Winchester SO23 9DT
Posted in TPM News | Tagged coast106 advert, mortgage doctor winchester, mortgage dr winchester, Mortgages, Mortgages winchester | Leave a Comment »
People, and when I say people I refer to colleagues, property professionals and clients alike, often ask me why mortgage rates are still so much higher than the Bank of England base rate.
Well, here goes as to why.
The days of the Bank of England (BoE) base rate being a good guide as to the kind of rates that lenders will offer it’s borrowing clients, have been gone for some time. It was coincidental that people used to compare to the BoE rate as it was actually our dear friend ‘Libor’ (London Interbank Offered Rate) that controls these rates offered to borrowers. The reason for the coincidence being that both the BoE and Libor were very close, as rates go. For example, prior to the downturn, Libor was only a few tenths of a percentage point above the BoE rate. Today it is still up at 1.30% compared to the BoE base rate at 0.5%.
In recent months though this has been far higher and the differential between BoE was what spurred the Bank of England to introduce measures other than just hacking away at the base rate.
This does now seem to be reflective of the increased amount of funds available to banks, largely including the Quantitive Easing reported about so much recently.
With the Libor now getting back to a friendly relationship alongside BoE base rate, and with competition starting to come back into the market, all this points to lower and competitive short term fixed interest rates which is very positive news.
To discuss this further, or your own personal requirements, please do call us at either Southampton on 023 8033 1189, or in the new Mortgage Shop in Winchester on 01962 353000.
Notes:
the place 4 mortgages. mortgage broker winchester. mortgage broker southampton
Posted in Economic News | Tagged bank of england base rate, competitive interest rates, interest rates, libor, mortgage broker southampton, mortgage broker winchester, quantitive easing | Leave a Comment »
April 29, 2009 by theplace4mortgages
I watched with interest the attached link from the BBC this week, that looks at all aspects of ‘rentable’ products.
Not only does this clip show how these products are rented in times of difficulty (ie this Credit Crunch we hear so much about when there’s nothing else worth reporting), but also shows how when prices come down they attract buyers back into the market.
Watch Video clip here
Not too dissimilar to the housing market, and certainly what we have seen has been happening over the past 12-18 months.
How has the past year to 18 months affected you? Would you rent goods/property in order to beat the Crunch?
Posted in Economic News | Tagged buying products, credit crunch, renting products | Leave a Comment »
April 14, 2009 by theplace4mortgages
I am delighted to report today that The Place 4 Mortgages’ additional office in Winchester is now open.
Formerly a letting agents office, and having been empty for nearly 2 years, the lease has been secured and after a long slog decorating and renewing the shopfront, we opened for business at last!
As the Souths Premier Mortgage Brokers, The Place 4 Mortgages is very excited having launched in Southampton in March 2007, and now Winchester in May 2009. We will delivering our unique professional service across more of Hampshire and the South.
Take a look at the before, in progress, and after, shots that appear here.
Posted in TPM News | Tagged mortgage broker winchester, Mortgages winchester, southgate street winchester, winchester mortgages | Leave a Comment »
Congratulations to Mark Duddridge of CW Fellowes Ltd, local Business and Tax Advisers, who won the bottle of Champagne last week at the Southampton Property Association Friday Frolics event.
As always the event was a huge success at its new venue Tiger Lilly in Southampton, and The Place 4 Mortgages was proud sponsor of the Business Card Champagne draw.
If you would like to sponsor an SPA event in 2009 then please see the attached PDF Document for further details.
Membership to the SPA is also available to all local property professionals. Please speak to Jon Walker at The Place 4 Mortgages for more details.
Posted in TPM News | Tagged friday frolics, mortgages southampton, southampton property association | Leave a Comment »
November 27, 2008 by theplace4mortgages
A cut in interest rates in time for Christmas became a virtual certainty yesterday.
The current 3% rate is set to fall to 2.5% or even two. This would be the cheapest cost of borrowing since 1951 and equal to the lowest ever rate since the Bank of England was formed 1694.
Two weeks ago the Bank stunned the City with a 1.5% cut, the biggest since 1981.
But today minutes from its rate-setting Monetary Policy Committee revealed that even more drastic action – a two percentage cut – was seriously considered.
The Bank’s admission means that at least a half point cut, and possibly a full point, is almost unavoidable when the MPC makes its next decision on 4 December, according to City experts. The MPC only held back on 6 November from two percentage points because it was worried about shocking the City and damaging the pound.
It also decided to see what measures to boost the economy Chancellor Alistair Darling will unveil in his pre-Budget report on Monday. A cut would bring an immediate benefit for three million homeowners on tracker mortgages, although borrowers with the Nationwide would only get part of the windfall. The building society has said it will not pass on any benefit once base rates fall below 2.75%
A family with a typical London tracker mortgage of around £200,000 would see their monthly payments fall by around £55 to £1,011 from 1 January if there is a half point cut and by £110 to £957 if it is a full point.
Homeowners on mortgages linked to standard variable rates are unlikely to get the full benefit after Mr Darling persuaded reluctant high street lenders to pass on the full 1.5% this month.
The minutes published today reveal that all nine members of the MPC voted for the 1.5% move but also show that its members felt that ‘a very signficant reduction in Bank rate – possibly in excess of 200 basis points (two percentage points) might be required to meet the inflation target in the medium term.’
The inflation target is two per cent but the rate is now expected to drop well below that by this time next year.
City economists said the minutes ‘open the door very wide’ for further cuts. Howard Archer, chief UK and European economist at forecasters Global Insight, said the scale of the cut depends on how much money Mr Darling decides to pump into the economy.
- Source: blog.southernpropertyfinder.com
Posted in Economic News | 1 Comment »
November 28, 2008 by theplace4mortgages
The Government is to take a 57.9% stake in the troubled bank RBS, at a cost to the taxpayer of £20bn.
RBS shareholders voted to receive the Government money at a meeting last week, but there are rules!
The bank has been told by the government that it is to resume its ‘normal’ mortgage lending practices and levels (as in 2007), and to help small businesses, which it has said it will.
What does this mean for the taxpayer going forward? Comment about this blog to have your say.
Posted in Economic News | Tagged mortgage lending, small business, tax payer | Leave a Comment »
December 3, 2008 by theplace4mortgages
To give Baddesley Park U-16’s a boost to their season, two local companies have come forward to support them.
The Place 4 Mortgages in Southampton have taken the unusual move of sponsoring the reverse of the team shirt (pictured above left), with Cedar Pest in North Baddesley sponsoring the front (pictured above right).
Romsey-bred Jon Walker of The Place 4 Mortgages says “I am delighted to be associated with a local team, and jumped at the chance of sponsoring the lads’ team. Normally the players name appears on the back of a shirt, so why not put a company name there instead, which is what we’ve done”.
Baddesley park U-16’s play Home fixtures at Hunts Farm Sports Ground.
The Place 4 Mortgages are located on Brunswick Place, Southampton.
Cedar Pest is located in Cedar Crescent, North Baddesley.
For more information, please contact Jon Walker on 0845 226 8192.
Posted in TPM News | Tagged baddesley park, jon walker, mortgages southampton, pest control southampton | Leave a Comment »
December 3, 2008 by theplace4mortgages
The Place 4 Mortgages is delighted to have raised £1,800 for Rotary Club of Romsey Test in its annual Walk The Test Way event.
We supported the local Rotary Club with advertisements online, on leaflets, and by roping in 16 ‘walkers’ for the actual walk itself!
13 miles later (Stockbridge to Romsey), ‘Team TPM’ retired to a local pub for a well deserved Sunday Roast!
The Rotary Club of Romsey Test is a registered charity (No.1029525), and members provide their time as unpaid volunteers. All proceeds (less costs) from the walk will be donated to charity. The sponsorship monies collected will be donated 75% to the charity of your choice, and 25% to Rotary supported charities.
Posted in TPM News | Tagged jon walker, rotary club romsey test, walk the test way | Leave a Comment »
December 5, 2008 by theplace4mortgages
With the Bank of England reducing their base rate by 3% in as many months, are the days of quarter point moves behind us?
We appear to in a downturn that is running away with itself, so a wise decision to cut so much from the base rate yesterday I feel.
My only fear this week is whether the Bank are leaving enough of a rate at all to do something as we enter a recession. By reducing further in the coming months, are they not wise to ‘keep some up their sleeve’ in case a recession is long and painful?
Posted in Economic News | Tagged bank of england, base rate, recession | 1 Comment »
December 5, 2008 by theplace4mortgages
Professor Willem Buiter and Professor Charles Goodhart are two former members of the Monetary Policy Committee.
They told me they were in no doubt that rates would move eventually to zero or not far above it.
But they both highlighted the danger of a slump in the value of sterling.
The pound has fallen significantly since the summer as foreign investors reappraised the prospects for the British economy.
On a trade-weighted basis, it now stands at its lowest level since 1996.
Higher levels of household debt than in many other industrialised nations started to ring alarm bells.
The UK is perceived as more risky than many competitor economies.
Sterling did pick up a little after the rate decision, but only from new lows reached this morning.
It is a delicate balancing act.
If the Bank of England moves too aggressively on interest rates, confidence in the currency could be further undermined.
If the UK central bank was seen to be reducing the cost of borrowing more rapidly than others, incentives to hold sterling might be further diminished.
However, the fall in the pound has boosted the prospect of a rebalancing of the economy away from imports towards export-led growth.
But if an orderly decline turned into a currency rout, that would be a nightmare for the authorities.
Professors Buiter and Goodhart agree that big cuts in rates are necessary.
But they warn that currency fears may restrain the Bank just when restraint may be the least advisable option.
Right now the cost of borrowing, at 2%, is the lowest since 1951.
A further cut would take it to levels unseen since the Bank of England was founded in 1694.
Source: BBC News
Posted in Economic News | Tagged zero rates | 4 Comments »
December 11, 2008 by theplace4mortgages
…well, sort of!
When I got asked to help with the latest edition of BT Business Insight I couldn’t say no. As a young Company I was asked what the down sides are in a difficult market, and how to keep focussed.
Take a look at the attached for my responses to BT Business Insight.
Posted in TPM News | Tagged BT Business Insight, difficult market | Leave a Comment »
December 16, 2008 by theplace4mortgages
The Consumer Price Index, the measure that Economists use to predict inflation, is thought to be down to 4.1% in November.
This further fall comes directly off the back of the peak at 5.2% in September, and the drop to 4.5% in October. Oil and energy prices are the main cause for this further reduction, with household bills being welcomed by most of us at lower prices.
Economists do warn, however, that although we are rapidly approaching the Governements target of 2%, we could be set for deflation later in 2009. As is only natural, we are to blame in part as we see prices fall, and wait eagerly for them to fall further before buying.
What a greedy bunch we are!
Posted in Economic News | Tagged cpi, deflation, inflation | Leave a Comment »
December 17, 2008 by theplace4mortgages
As the minutes of the MPC (Bank of England “rate setters” to you an I) emerged today, it became quite clear from just a quick read that we are going to see further rate cuts as we steam into 2009. Great news for those Tracker mortgage holders. the Bank of England committee voted unanimously to cut rates by 1%, as was expected, which leads me to think that further rate reductions are likely in the first few months of next year.
Only the wiltering pound seems to be saving us at the moment, as a cut of more than 1% in December could have seen our pound decline further. I am sure my Blog on Could rates go as low as zero will be read, amended and read again in January and February as we see rates change again.
Rate cuts are fair enough, but my question still remains how lending levels will recover in 2009. Rate cuts alone will not do this on their own, so the banks need to start talking; and further measures are still needed.
Posted in Economic News | Tagged bank of england, cheaper lending, mpc | Leave a Comment »
December 23, 2008 by theplace4mortgages
With reports out this week suggesting that the housing market is not set to recover for at least another 10 years, what do you make of it all?
Banks are clearly needing to react, and have done sharply, to their “how much do you want” attitude, as greed for business has been the thorn in many banks sides this year. Tightening up on their lending policy will not hurt, but it will hurt the housing market if more and more consumers are unable to borrow within such redefined policy.
Pricing is the next issue. Lenders are going to need to make cheaper mortgages available, not only to those with significant deposits, in 2009. I feel that a Bank of England rate reduction, expected within weeks, will force the banks’ hands even further, and such a move needs to be in the first half of 2009. Gone are the days of comparing mortgage rates with the Bank of England base rate, but try explaining that to a client who has been used to that comparison for so many years.
At The Place 4 Mortgages, we have already seen First Time Buyer volumes in and around Southampton increasing towards the end of 2008, as more and more schemes become available to fit their needs; be it Builder Gifted Deposits; Shared Ownership propositions; parental gifts etc. I see these numbers increasing in 2009 as more first time buyers see that renting is not the most cost effective way forward.
The rental market is growing and will continue to do so, although as mid-late 2009 greets us, the first time buyers moving onto the property ladder will mean that the rental figures will fall back slightly.
So, what do you make of all of this? Can the housing market only trickle along for the next 10 years, or is ther more that the government, Bank of England, and high street banks can still do to help move it along quicker?
Posted in Economic News | Tagged house prices, housing market, mortgages southampton, move up the ladder, property ladder, the place 4 mortgages | 1 Comment »
January 2, 2009 by theplace4mortgages
Despite telegraph.co.uk reporting yet more gloomy ’stories’ today, my thoughts are quite different.
Correct, lenders are still tightening up on who they lend to, and at what cost. Certainly at The Place 4 Mortgages we are not seeing clients struggle to get a mortgage. Prudence is just paying us all a quick – but possibly year-long visit. With a deposit and good credit status you’ll be welcomed with open arms. Without, and it’s a case of wait until an ease in criteria filters through, later this year in my opinion.
With the Bank of England MPC meeting next Thursday, a cut of upto 0.75% is expected. As mentioned in my previous blogs, this is not sufficient and lenders and the Government need to do more to bring the lending levels back to where they were in 2007 – which we are a long way away from.
The Place 4 Mortgages Southampton
Posted in Economic News | Tagged mortgages southampton, the place 4 mortgages | 3 Comments »
January 26, 2009 by theplace4mortgages
The Place 4 Mortgages is an established firm of mortgage brokers offering a wide range of financial services from their offices in Southampton. They decided to extend their service offering to include alternative debt solutions from EuroDebt Financial Services.
“We originally signed up with EuroDebt as an Introducer and discussed with Julie Symons, our Business Development Manager, the opportunity to undertake marketing campaigns to our existing database. In January we started this campaign by developing with EuroDebt 10,000 branded A5 leaflets which we started to distribute in the second week of January 2009”, confirmed Jon Walker, Managing Director.
“From registration in December 2008 we were immediately impressed by the EuroDebt Marketing Toolkit and took advantage of the start-up pack. We will assess the success of the initial campaign and then decide what collateral to develop further”, concluded Jon.
Vance Parsons, EuroDebt Sales Director commented; “The relationship with Jon and The Place 4 Mortgages has progressed rapidly and we have been pleased to fit in with their delivery schedule at a time of year when many consumers are concerned about their personal finances. It is not just homeowners that are suffering, we are seeing both homeowners and tenants with mortgage and rent arrears, respectively.”
Posted in TPM News | Tagged debt management, EuroDebt Marketing Toolkit, mortgages southampton, the place 4 mortgages southampton | Leave a Comment »
January 31, 2009 by theplace4mortgages
The office is still open as usual, so call Rupi on 023 8033 1189.
The Place 4 Mortgages
Southampton
Posted in TPM News | Tagged mortgages southampton | Leave a Comment »
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