Re: Exchange rate
 

basically stock markets are not liking the possibility of another UK bank being in it...that is also why sterling is weaker this morning.

Commodities not doing much, focus is all on stocks currently, we have a massive empiration/rollover tomorrow in equity futures.

Re: Exchange rate
 

I wouldn't worry about your mortgage if your application is away then your funds will be secured, and if you have your offer papers then your mortgage is pretty much complete just waiting on the legal side.:thumbup:

Re: Exchange rate
 

Commercial first, a specialist Commercial lending company has just suspended lending don't know if it will affect anything but another bleak sign.

Re: Exchange rate
 

BBC website shows the bank of england is not moving interest rates in march.
no idea what this will do to the £

Re: Exchange rate
 

Bank of England held the March meeting 6th March and were unchanged as expected. April meeting will probably be the 3rd and odds are increasing that they will cut by 1/4 %, especially with the chancellor harping on about rate cuts at the moment. This comment you refer to i think is addressing rumours which have been circulating that the Bank of England were about to do an emergency rate cut, between meetings.

Chris

Re: Exchange rate
 

you are right chris , it seems the press is heavy with speculation and market directions at the moment.

Re: Exchange rate
 

Not sure what impact this will have. Commercial First are essentially a sub prime commercial lender. I believe they raise their funding on the wholesale funding markets, and in the current climate the sector they operate in was never going to prove too attractive a proposition

Re: Exchange rate
 

I think things are going to get a lot worse before they start to improve as it's not just commercial but residential lending that has really tightened. Many people coming out of rates that will not be able to afford their property on the new rates offered.
And there are a lot of people who will get stuck on variable rate (mainly subprime) as they can't shift their 90% ltv mortgage to another the lender because they no longer offer ltv that high.

What a mess it could all become.

Re: Exchange rate
 

Yes, i was talking to an old school friend yesterday he comes off fixed rate at 4.5% in April and is very worried. This mess isn't going to be sorted anytime soon and will likely drag on until summer 2009.

Re: Exchange rate
 

But will this apply to Canada, where lending seems much more conservative?

Re: Exchange rate
 

Isn't there a rule for new PR's that we have to have minimum 25% deposit in Canada?

Re: Exchange rate
 

We don't have anything like that - not set in stone anyway, and yes most banks in Canada have been conservative with their lending but I heard on the grapevine that a couple of the big 5 are starting to branch out more into sub-prime.

That worries me

Re: Exchange rate
 

Do new PR's matter much? They must be a tiny minority.

Mandy.... I don't really believe that any bank is now seriously considering starting sub-prime. The favourite buzz phrase in risk analysis is "lessons learned". If they're starting now, I predict bank runs!

Re: Exchange rate
 

I'm not sure, I don't know how big the sub prime market is in Canada. I was thinking about the mess of the UK and the effects it will have on consumer spending, the economy and how poor it may become, and the overall effect it may have on the exchange rate.

The UK subprime market compared to the US was pretty conservative its still effecting it here, but it's the cost of lending from the US hangover that will effect both countries.

I think it's definitely tighten the belts time in the UK for many families.

Re: Exchange rate
 

Not so much new PR's, just if you don't want to prove your income chris, then used to be 25% down payment, most seem to be using 35% now

Regards

Steve