Phase Two of Help-To-Buy (HTB), in which taxpayers guarantee up to 15% of a new mortgage, means that Applications will now be allowed from early October. However, lenders will not be able to buy guarantees for the mortgages they offer until January 1, 2014.  Lenders will be able to start writing loans but it’s still unclear when they can advertise their deals, how much it will cost them to take up the mortgage guarantee or if they will be 80% mortgages – crucial factors in cost for the borrower.

The UK economy is currently growing at the fastest pace since the financial crisis and is set to be maintained in Q4; Q3 GDP figures are due out in October.

Despite Interest Rates staying the same, thousands of landlords are facing a rise on their Tracker mortgages with the West Bromwich Building Society’s former specialist arm,  West Bromwich Mortgage Company.  The rise in December is similar to that of the Bank of Ireland (BOI) whose customers face a further rate rise in October, from 1.35% (o.5% base, plus 0.85% margin) to 3.99%.

Finally, October will see Royal Mail privatised, with orders for far more than the entire number of shares being offered already made well before  the 8 October deadline. The float (11 October) is being handled by City firms and banks including UBS, Goldman Sachs, Barclays, Merrill Lynch, Investec, Nomura, RBS Europe.

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