In the news this morning, landlords applying for a buy-to-let mortgage will face increased scrutiny of their finances from next January, with the regulator setting tougher criteria that must be met in order to qualify for a loan. Also from next year, the government is ending its help-to-buy mortgage guarantee scheme, saying that it has achieved its purpose. Meanwhile, mortgage approvals dropped to their lowest level in 21 months in August.
Criteria for buy-to-let lending to get tighter (FT/£)
New rules are to be introduced from next year on the criteria landlords will need to meet in order to get a buy-to-let mortgage.
Mortgage approvals near two-year low (FT/£)
Mortgage approvals in August were the lowest since November 2014, figures from the Bank of England show.
Growing Chinese interest in foreign property ownership (The Guardian/FREE)
Chinese interest in buying UK property may just be starting to get serious.
Sadiq Khan launches inquiry into foreign ownership of London properties (The Times/£)
London mayor Sadiq Khan is launching an investigation into the impact of foreign ownership of properties in the capital.
Government ends help-to-buy mortgage scheme (The Independent/FREE)
The government is ending its help-to-buy mortgage guarantee scheme, although the help-to-buy equity loan scheme will continue to be available.
1980s’ children half as wealthy as prior generation (The Guardian/FREE)
People born in the 1980s are only half as wealthy as the children of the 1970s were at the same stage in their lives, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies.
Consumer confidence rebounds (The Times/£)
Consumer confidence continued to improve in September, after a sharp fall following the Brexit vote.
