CFI: NACFB
Welcome news in commercial and invoice fi nance
In September we published the results of our annual business level survey and whilst the results from the survey did not show that all sectors are magically recovering, it did show decisive movements in the right direction. Overall commercial lending to SMEs by our members was up year
on year by 14% along with an increase in invoice fi nance increasing for the fourth year running and double the fi gure of 2007. Buy- to-let was also up by 46%. Whilst this needs to be seen in the context of how the market was at its peak in 2007, it is still positive news and signs that
things are improving in some areas. The statistics were covered
in the press, particularly in the industry news but it certainly seems that the fi gures were generally too positive for the national press. Again, it is important to view the market against the backdrop of the peak of the
market but in 2007 but the constant focus on the negative aspects of the market really does have an effect on confi dence in the market. With the constant emphasis
on negative press, it seems clear that this can damage confi dence and the ability to focus on the future in a positive light.
Buy-to-let looking strong Changes to pension schemes from 2012
Out of all of the sectors of the commercial market, it seems that buy to let has faired the downturn better than most. The growth of buy-to-let can hardly be seen as a ‘boom’ and the levels are inevitably down on the pre-crunch levels but its growth has been fuelled by the tightening of credit for residential mortgages and the deposits required for fi rst- time buyers leading to a sub- stantial increase in demand for rented accommodation. Recent news from Paragon
has also indicated that rents are continuing to rise for the third consecutive quarter with 34% of landlords ques- tioned having increased their rent.
The changing demograph-
ics, the reduction in social housing and the lack of credit available for fi rst-time buy- ers is helping the buy-to-let market grow, with private landlords stepping in to fi ll the void. The strong demand
from tenants is also encour- aging landlords to consider expanding their portfolios in the coming year. The increasing interest in buy-to-let and demand for rented property has also stim- ulated interest from a range of lenders, so it appears that we could experience needed competition in buy-to-let funding in the near future along with a broader range of products – all of which the experienced broker can ad- vise on.
From 2012 changes to pen- sion law will be implemented leading eventually to a large scale change in the funding of employees’ pension schemes. The pension crisis has been a hot topic of late and it is clear that decisive action is required to help fund em- ployees’ pensions. It is esti- mated that as many as 7m UK workers are failing to make any provisions for their retire- ment and with state pensions looking to become diffi cult to fund, the government is keen to ensure that the UK work- force is saving adequately for the future. The changes will take ef-
fect gradually but from 2012 all employers with a work- force of over 30,000 will be required by law to have a workplace pension scheme in place. This will also be rolled out in 2013 for all employees with a workforce of over 350
and 2013-14 will see these changes come in to place for businesses with fewer than 350 employees. These changes will un- doubtedly have an effect on small businesses and the way in which they operate, with rising costs being the primary concern. Sectors such as the retail industry have tradition- ally been the least receptive to pension schemes, so the mandatory requirement for businesses to offer pension schemes is looking to tackle this problem. The changes to pension
law will also have an effect on employers taking on new staff. There are concerns that employees that want to take up a pension scheme within a company may be looked on less favourably then employ- ees looking to opt out of the scheme, which would save the employers money.
A new service from the NACFB, launching 1st September MORTGAGE INTRODUCER NOVEMBER 2011 61
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68