Mortgages

The minutes from this month's meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee has revealed eight of the nine members voted in favour of a cut of 50 basis points in Bank base rate (BBR).

The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has revealed lending totalled £256.4bn over 2008 as a whole, down 30% on the £363.7bn lent in 2007 and the lowest annual figure since 2002.

Independent buy-to-let mortgage broker Mortgages for Business has launched its specialist whole of market sourcing and portfolio management tool, Mortgage Flow.

The Mortgage Alliance (TMA) has confirmed it is the first affiliate distribution partner to offer Promise Solutions' series of secured loans training and induction modules to its members.

Woolwich is to launch a new distribution system for 2009, which will see the bigger networks and clubs given individual tranches of funding.

The FSA has banned two mortgage brokers, fining one of them more than £100,000, for submitting false mortgage applications.

The Government has told Northern Rock it should no longer attempt to get rid of mortgage lenders, as part of its latest package of measures to support banks and help borrowers.

Alliance & Leicester (A&L) has reduced rates across its mortgage range with a two-year fixed rate now starting from 3.19%.

Mortgage interest payments are consuming less of borrowers' incomes, as those able to get a mortgage are less stretched financially and are beginning to benefit from reductions in bank rates, data from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) reveals.

Mortgage sourcing provider Trigold is undertaking a survey of brokers to gauge their feelings about the need for sourcing systems to show direct-only products.