The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has stepped in to look at the heavy-handed sales tactics employed by many sale and rent back companies.

Sale and rent back companies have seen a massive increase in growth over the past year thanks to the current recession. Many companies have cashed in on the fact that many people are struggling to keep up the repayments on their mortgage and coupled with other debts, they are looking for a quick way to get their hands on a large amount of cash whilst being able to stay in their homes.  Read more... (276 words, estimated 1:06 mins reading time)

Despite experts claiming that the housing market is slowly showing signs of bouncing back, some sellers are still finding it hard to shift their properties whilst some potential buyers are still unable to find mortgages. And this is where the rent-to-own scheme comes in.

The rent-to-own scheme, sometimes also known as lease-option, works well for both parties. The buyer normally puts in around 5% of the purchase price of the house plus pays slightly over the odds for their rent. The standard amount of rent goes straight to the home owner, whilst the additional rent is used as a down-payment for the property.  Read more... (501 words, estimated 2:00 mins reading time)

Overpaying your mortgage, particularly now when interest rates are low and therefore mortgage payments have decreased for those on tracker mortgages, could reap rewards in the long-term by substantially knocking down the amount of interest that you pay in total on your mortgage.

The base rate has tumbled and those who overpay their tracker mortgages may find the interest they pay over the term of their mortgage is significantly reduced. Home owners with a mortgage of £150,000 may have seen their mortgage payments fall by as much as £500 a month over the last year leaving them with £500 extra money per month.  Read more... (282 words, estimated 1:08 mins reading time)

Latest figures show that over a million home owners are currently in negative equity. The Council of Mortgage Lenders has collated data from the UK’s banks and building societies to analyse February’s mortgage state.

Around 565,000 homeowners have equity of 5% of less in their property and another half a million have under 10 percent equity in their home. All these homeowners may find it difficult to remortgage as many mortgage products now require 10% equity of more on new mortgage deals.  Read more... (215 words, estimated 52 secs reading time)

Following on from our news story last week which showed that nearly half of all landlords had experience of tenants defaulting on their rent payments, the MoneyTowers team have put together a guide for landlords on how to handle tenants that default.

The first thing to do is contact the tenant and ask if the payment is on its way. Communication is vital and talking to your tenant can give you a good feel for whether the problem is a one-off, or whether it is likely to be a more substantial problem.  Read more... (464 words, estimated 1:51 mins reading time)

Landlord rent guarantee insurance does exactly what it says on the tin – it is a form of insurance that protects you if your tenant fails to pay their rent. Even tenants who have excellent references may be unable to pay their rent for all sorts of reasons therefore if you are relying on the rent from your tenant to help pay the mortgage on your buy-to-let property, it is advisable to take out some form of landlord rent guarantee insurance.

It is important to shop around when looking for landlord rent guarantee insurance as the amounts that the insurance covers and the pre-requisites for a payout may all differ from insurer to insurer.  Read more... (269 words, estimated 1:05 mins reading time)

Recent research has shown that over half of non-retired adults in the UK do not contribute to a pension scheme. With the ending of many final-salary pension schemes and many people struggling to make ends meet in today’s financial climate, it’s no surprise that pensions have become highly unpopular.

However, that isn’t to say that people aren’t looking to their future – many people are looking to property to fund their retirement funds. But with fears over a property price slump, is property really a better investment than a pension?  Read more... (491 words, estimated 1:58 mins reading time)