John Yerou, MD of C&F Mortgages, will be giving his expert opinion on the latest issues affecting Contractors and Freelancers.
New Risk and its Impact on Contractor Mortgage Borrowing
Posted by September 28th, 2020 in John’s Blog
onEarlier in September, we saw six of the biggest lenders withdraw 10% deposit mortgages. This unprecedented move has decimated the first-time-buyer market in one fell swoop.
What’s behind the move? Why have so many banks looked at the market and decided there’s a new level of risk attached to buying houses? Let’s take a look.
Continue reading »New Risk and its Impact on Contractor Mortgage Borrowing
HMRC’s flawed IR35 conceptions: the real threat to contractors
Posted by March 17th, 2020 in John’s Blog
onSo. Any delay/postponement of Private Sector IR35 rollout didn’t transpire in last week’s budget. After HMRC‘s hat-tip review in February, it’s hardly a surprise.
In a budget that contained so many ‘giveaways’, the Chancellor had to claw back tax from somewhere. Trimming Entrepreneur Relief was one method; forging ahead with IR35 another.
The latter may yet come back to bite him (or whichever Chancellor resides at Number 11) in the future. But what about the immediate impacts on contractors and the UK economy?
Continue reading »HMRC’s flawed IR35 conceptions: the real threat to contractors
IR35 – build your case before HMRC gets involved
Posted by December 6th, 2019 in John’s Blog
onDespite recent catastrophic public losses, HMRC continues to push IR35. Managed service companies, contractors working ‘outside’ IR35 and clients employing them? This is the taxman’s stance:
HMRC will investigate and challenge these arrangements through every route open to it (including litigation)
This statement signals clear intent. It also explains why so many large corporates have already scrapped their contractor policies.
Continue reading »IR35 – build your case before HMRC gets involved
Contractors’ Earning Power vs First-Time Buyers: No Contest
Posted by November 13th, 2019 in John’s Blog
onNow and then, housing market stars align to present a surprise opportunity. Such is the case now.
But it’s very much of the moment and this sweet spot won’t last forever.
Brexit fears aside, many other factors could pull these stars out of true. Not least the upcoming General Election.
But right now, there’s a unique opportunity for contractors looking to buy a home!!
Continue reading »Contractors’ Earning Power vs First-Time Buyers: No Contest
Steady Increase in House Prices Prolongs Market Recovery
Posted by May 20th, 2013 in John’s Blog
onThe housing market has bounced back in a big way – and home prices have increased to keep up with this trend in a major way over the past month.
While this isn’t necessarily good news for anyone looking to secure a home loan, owners looking to sell their homes will indeed be happy to learn that the price of the average home increase by around 2.1 per cent over the past 30 days. This has added around £5,000 to the price of your typical home, leading to an average price of almost £250,000.
Continue reading »Steady Increase in House Prices Prolongs Market Recovery
Halifax Welcomes Non-IT Contractors into its Mortgage Fold
Posted by May 17th, 2013 in John’s Blog
onThere’s been a ground-breaking shift on the High Street this week as the Halifax welcomed contractors outside the IT sector into its mortgage fold.
Banks and building societies recognising that contractors don’t have to be servicing computer systems to command a livable self-employed wage has been a long time coming.Continue reading »Halifax Welcomes Non-IT Contractors into its Mortgage Fold
“Interest only” mortgages for contractors not the pipe dream they were
Posted by May 10th, 2013 in John’s Blog
onThe Council of Mortgage Lenders has reinforced its message that monitoring forecasts and budgets for repaying interest only home loans is the safest way to ensure mortgagees are not left high and dry.
Many banks and building societies pulled out of interest only or ‘endowment’ mortgages at the end of 2012. One reason was the creditworthiness potential customers needed to bring to the table, but weren’t.
The other was the lack of long-term verification that any plans in place would actually produce enough capital to pay off the mortgage at the end of the term.Continue reading »“Interest only” mortgages for contractors not the pipe dream they were
Chancellor’s new Help to Buy scheme strongly criticised by MPs
Posted by April 22nd, 2013 in John’s Blog
onOne of Chancellor Osborne’s newest schemes announced in the Budget specifically designed to support the mortgage lending market has been criticised by MPs.Continue reading »Chancellor’s new Help to Buy scheme strongly criticised by MPs
Lenders To Make First Time Buyer Mortgages More Competitive
Posted by April 15th, 2013 in John’s Blog
onThere may be some good news for those first time buyers that have grown weary of being tossed table scraps by major home lending providers.
It turns out that first time buyers – especially those that lack the cash on hand to put down weighty deposits – may finally be able to find a relatively affordable mortgage loan, even though they don’t have much in the way of a deposit amount. This is because both Halifax and First Direct recently announced that interest rates on lending products ideal for low-deposit first time buyers were being slashed.
Continue reading »Lenders To Make First Time Buyer Mortgages More Competitive
Beware of Too-Good-To-Be-True Deals on Low Rate Mortgages
Posted by April 8th, 2013 in John’s Blog
onThat attractive fixed rate mortgage loan might look like a fantastic deal, especially in the wake of ultra-low interest rates, but beware the bait and switch. Continue reading »Beware of Too-Good-To-Be-True Deals on Low Rate Mortgages