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This week’s top headlines: NatWest and Santander join FCA's AI testing scheme and the average age of a first-time buyer has risen by 2 years since the pandemic. Explore these and other major industry updates below:  NatWest and Santander join FCA's AI testing scheme… The post Mortgage Strategy’s Top 10 Stories: 01 Dec to 05 Dec appeared first on Mortgage Strategy.

My alarm goes off at… ...around 5.30am. Depending on the day, I like to make sure I have time for a gym session or yoga flow before my workday starts. I’m very much a morning person and feel the early start sets the right tone… The post Day in the Life of… Ashleigh Clark, Gatehouse Bank appeared first on Mortgage Strategy.

Building society growth is on the agenda of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) with a new report into the mutuals sector. The Mutuals Landscape Report, published today, reinforces the regulators' belief that mutuals are regulated according to the risks they… The post Building society growth on regulators’ agenda as sourcebook scrapped appeared first on Mortgage Strategy.

The number of lenders repricing mortgage rates doubled from 11 to 22 this week compared to last, the latest rate watch data from Moneyfacts reveals Average two-year fixed rates fell by 2 basis points over the past week to 4.85%, while three and five-year averages… The post Number of lenders repricing doubles week on week: Moneyfacts appeared first on Mortgage Strategy.

Kensington Mortgages has cut buy-to-let rates by up to 40 basis points and Coventry for Intermediaries has trimmed residential costs by up to 15 bps. At Kensington two-year fixed rates have been reduced by up to 15bps and five-year fixes by up to 9bps. Products… The post Kensington cuts BTL rates and Coventry trims resi prices appeared first on Mortgage Strategy.

The average house price was almost flat in November, according to the latest Halifax house price index - but the growth of £139 was still enough to push property values to a new record high. The average house is now worth £299,892, up 4bps for… The post House prices tiptoe to new record high, says Halifax appeared first on Mortgage Strategy.

Over the past few years, many people have become enthralled by property market doomsters - the ones who predict catastrophic crashes with such certainty they grab headlines and rack up views. I'm here to tell you to ignore them. Not because crashes never happen, but… The post Blog: Give the doomsters a wide berth appeared first on Mortgage Strategy.

First Mortgage has acquired Kinleigh Folkard & Hayward's (KFH) Financial Services mortgage division. KFH is a London estate agency, with more than 50 branches across the capital. As part of the acquisition, First Mortgage will be joined by KFH’s mortgage advisory team, led by Kelly… The post First Mortgage acquires Kinleigh Folkard & Hayward’s mortgage division appeared first on Mortgage Strategy.

The number of over-65s renting rather than owning a home is rising, according to a government survey. The English Housing Survey found that 461,000 over-65s lived in private rented households in 2024/25. That is only 6% of the total 7.4 million homes where the main… The post More retirees now renting, says government survey appeared first on Mortgage Strategy.

Nationwide will cut its fixed rate mortgage range, with the lowest rate now at 3.58%. The lowest rate now stands at 3.58% and it is the first time that Nationwide has offered a fixed mortgage rate lower than 3.60% since September 2022. First-time buyers reductions… The post Nationwide launches lowest fixed rate since September 2022 at 3.58% appeared first on Mortgage Strategy.