House prices rebound
House prices rose 1.3 per cent in Octoer, according the Nationwide’s latest market survey. The rise reverses the falls seen in the previous two months and brings the annual rate of house price inflation to 3.3 per cent.
The price of a typical house in the UK is now £157,107, compared with £152,159 at this time last year. Fionnuala Earley, Nationwide’s group economist, said the annual growth rate ‘remains subdued in comparison to this time last year when house price inflation was running at over 15 per cent. Prices in the three months to October increased by a more modest 0.2 per cent. This remains in line with the gently slowing trend we have seen throughout this year but is a bounce back from the zero per cent increase in the three months to September.’
Today’s sassy woman: financially savvy
There’s a new girl on the block with influence on today’s property market, according to research by The One Account. The mortgage broker has identified a new breed of woman who has as sharp an eye for her finances as she does for fashion – and like many before her she comes armed with an acronym.
The SASSY woman is smart, ambitious, self-sufficient, and young. She is just as commanding over her money as she is at earning it. With role models such as Charlotte Church, this new breed of woman is emerging across the UK.
She is career-focused, ruthlessly competitive, rising to the top – and she doesn’t think twice about re-mortgaging her home if she finds a better product that will save her money and suit her lifestyle.
Research by the One account revealed that 43 per cent of women feel they are in control of their personal finances and are doing the best with their money, versus just 37 per cent of men. Also, most men and women know how much they pay each month on their mortgage, but women (35 per cent) are more likely than men (30 per cent) to shop around for a better deal when their discount period ends. Forty-five per cent of women say they regularly shop around for the best insurance deals, and 38 per cent regularly surf the web for ‘best buy’ tables for their financial products. Thirty-two per cent know their mortgage’s standard variable rate (SVR).