The Week In Mortgages
Thursday 08th March 2007
There was an up side which is detailed below, but it was forced into the admission it made serious errors in crucial data released last week on the highly-sensitive interest-only market.
The lender trade body was forced to revise its figures that underestimated the true number of borrowers without an evident repayment vehicle by over twenty thousand.
And the most embarrassing aspect of the saga was the simple nature of the error as the CML’s statisticians failed to properly add up what were correct quarterly figures, meaning the annual totals were badly skewed.
To be fair to the CML, it corrected the errors pointed out by Money Marketing, but further checks then found even more errors.
Unfortunately for the trade body, while the mistake was an honest one, it meant important data that the market, politicians and the media all rely on to build an accurate picture of the market was wrong.
It is also not the first time CML has had problems with its statistical output so many would argue something needs to change to ensure accuracy given its data is seen as the Bible of the mortgage market.
On the upside for the CML, it showed it teeth and authority by, for the first time many would argue, giving an outspoken view on the Hips debate. It is urging the government to postpone the sellers’ pack regime that is due to begin on June 1.
It says that until full evidence from research and area trials is available on which an informed decision about the likely effectiveness of Hips can be based, then they should not come into being as a compulsory tool.
That statement naturally prompted a flurry of responses from the Hips camp, with the Association of Home Information Pack Providers most vocal in its criticism of the CML’s views.
The CML will console itself, though, with the thought that Ahipps has been likened by some in the market to the former Iraqi spin doctor Comical Ali for its sometimes painfully embarrassing attempts to reassure the market that the path towards June 1 has been a smooth one and that Hips are wanted by many in the market.
Away from controversy, and the ever-blossoming Cobalt Capital bought its appointed representative Square Mile Mortgage Finance to further cement its place in the broking world.
The purchase marks the latest chapter in Cobalt’s growth, which is likely to see it continuing on the acquisition trail.
And on the job-hopping front, Lehman Brothers lost its mortgage capital UK sales and marketing director John Prust, who co-founded Lehman brand Southern Pacific Mortgages in 1997. A replacement is expected shortly as the US investment bank looks to grow its UK influence.
