News Review: The Month That Was
The Good, the Bad, the Each month The Outlaw draws some tongue in cheek parallels between s by The Outlaw I
t certainly feels like one step for- ward one step back right now. Cu- riously, we could end up with a
somewhat flat year in growth terms but one which nonetheless is punctuated with plenty of good news items. Nationwide has definitely picked up some of the slack which was the re- sult of Abbey and others retreating on various risk policies. They have a very balanced report card right now across all the important measurables such as pricing, underwriting and service etc. To be fair to Abbey, despite its defen- siveness on mainstream underwriting, the buy-to-let piece has gone very well and is some kind of silver lining for the disappointments on the residential suites. Aldermore continues to impress.
And standing up to the Financial Ser- vices Authority on the matter of high loan to value lending showed courage and class. They go from strength to strength. Further plaudits this month go to some of the less illustrious play- ers but ones who are really trying to support intermediaries. These include Kent Reliance, Saffron Walden, Leeds and the Cambridge. The mutual sector is really punching its weight this year and providing respite from some of the big six who are making life difficult. A final thank you to the Halifax. This
lender has been somewhat maligned in recent times, particularly during the years that Abbey’s stock rose to giddy heights. But Peter Curran, head of in- termediaries at the lender, regularly ris-
24 MORTGAGE INTRODUCER APRIL 2012
Good news for Manchester United
“The mutual sector is really punching its weight this year and providing respite from some of the big six who are making life difficult”
es above some of the friendly sledging that characterises the various skirmish- es we read in blogs and letters pages. The service of Halifax’s Premier Team is remarkably consistent and brokers should never take for granted its policy on product transfers where the procu- ration rewards are fair and the pricing is even fairer. Looking toward the horizon one number offers hope - £59bn. This is the scale of cessations ahead, with June and September in particular offering huge pickings. These months curi- ously coincide with two events which might otherwise have handbraked the recovery: the Diamond Jubilee and the Olympics. So hopefully the bright start
Woolwich: Out of get out of jail free cards
to the year which most businesses have made can be sustained. Elsewhere, The Outlaw see good
news for fans of West Ham, Spurs, Crawley and Manchester United. You do wonder what it’ll take however for a referee to give a penalty to a visiting side at Old Trafford!
O
ne thing The Outlaw never ceases to be surprised by is the extent to which large and
powerful brands can nonetheless make whopping great cock-ups! Step for- ward the Woolwich and NatWest. Both of these lenders have been
largely intermediary friendly for many years now and their rate cards have al- ways been top quartile. But they seem to continually shoot themselves in the foot on service and the thorny matter of dual pricing. In NatWest’s case the differential between branch and inter- mediary products has been as wide as 75 basis points of late which is simply outrageous, regardless of whether part of this strategy is to widen margins and get the Treasury’s loan repaid. Woolwich is also fast running out of
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