Renting is on the rise. In the last 10 years, the UK private renting market has doubled. Trouble is, where homeowners see the need for protection to cover their mortgage, renters may not have considered protection to cover their rent. As a result they may be leaving themselves vulnerable if they became ill or injured and were unable to work.

– Nearly 1 in 4 people in the UK are expected to be renting privately by 2023
– UK rents are expected to climb by 15% over the next five years
– Renters spend 40% of their income on housing costs, double what owner-occupiers pay

That’s where Rental Protection Plan can help. It could help financially protect you by providing a monthly benefit which can be used to help pay the rent, in the event of a valid claim during the length of the plan. Give us a call today if you would like some further information, we would be happy to talk you through the options.

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Regionally, the North, South East and Scotland are seeing falls (between 0.3% and 1.9%) in the numbers of homemovers in the first half of 2019 compared to the same period in 2018. In 2019, four regions have seen increases in the numbers of homemovers by over 2% – North West (15,979 up 2.5%), West Midlands (13,634 up 2.6%) and Northern Ireland (3,280 up 2.5%). The South East has the highest number of homemovers in the UK at 36,316 – this has dipped slightly (0.9%) over the last year and 9.5% below its 2014 high of 40,120.
Over the past five years, the average price paid by homemovers has grown by a staggering £79,627 (32%) to £329,648. The South East has seen the highest growth, from £137,376 (43%) to £460,395 followed by East Anglia (41%), Greater London (37%), the North West and East Midlands (both at 36%). London remains the most expensive homemover region, almost twice the UK average (£329,648) at £650,510. The least expensive homemover region is Northern Ireland with an average price of £189,905.

The amount of deposit or existing equity required has increased by 22% over the past five years from £86,398 in 2014 to £105,260 in 2019. In the capital, the deposit required for London homes has increased to more than £200k (£213,907) for the first time, which represents an increase of 26% over the past five years. The next largest deposit amount is in the South East at £150,970 followed by South West (£117,298) and East Anglia (£110,207). All other regions have deposits at less than £100k. Northern Ireland has the least amount of deposit required at £56,763 but has seen the biggest increase over the past five years at 52%.

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In comparison, 3,502 new lump sum lifetime mortgages were taken out, higher than any quarter prior to Q2 2018 despite being the lowest quarterly total seen over the last year. The industry data highlights the average size of new drawdown plans was consistent with the previous quarter in terms of customers’ first withdrawal (£63,166 versus £62,416 in Q1), although customers reserved more modest amounts of housing wealth for future use (£35,903 compared to £37,069 in Q1). The average size of a new lump sum plan taken out in Q2 was also scaled back slightly to £93,712 (-4% on Q1).

Total clients served rose by 2% over the quarter to 20,866 and were up 3% year on year. Although the number of new customers was down 1% on Q1 to 10,731, the number of returning drawdown customers increased 7% to 9,154 over the same period, driven by more existing customers having these products. Total lending between April and June fell slightly compared to Q2 2018 (- 3%) to £911.3m with the year on year comparison decreasing by 6%. Following the busiest Q1 of any year to date, this meant overall market activity in the first half of 2019 was broadly in line with H1 2018. A total of £1.85bn of housing wealth was unlocked in H1 2019 (versus £1.84bn a year earlier) with 21,585 new plans agreed (versus 21,490 in H1 2018) and a total of 41,263 customers were served (compared to 38,912 in H1 last year).

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With the full new state pension currently valued at £168.80 per week, this adds up to a retirement income of £8,777.60 per year. Most employees (62%) aged 45+ do not know what the pension freedoms mean for them, while 37% do not know what type of pension scheme they have – for example whether it’s a defined contribution or defined benefit scheme.

However, the analysis also highlights it is never too late to save. Based on the average UK salary of £28,000, Aviva calculates that an employee aged 45 today with no savings to date could build a pension pot of £56,100 by the time they reach 65, based on the current minimum employee and employer pension contributions under auto-enrolment alone (a combined 8% of annual pensionable earnings).

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More than half (56%) of BoMaD lenders who have or would consider helping family to purchase property said they are willing to because ‘it was a nice thing to do’. Almost another fifth (19%) said they feel it’s their personal responsibility to help out. The Bank of Mum and Dad research has also revealed that consumers are increasingly considering other solutions that can help them to support family members but also pay for the retirement they want to lead.

Unlocking housing wealth with equity release is becoming more popular with the over-55s and many are now using the money to help with a deposit. 16% of BoMaD lenders have or would release equity and use that money to financially support their children or grandchildren. This makes it the third most popular source of funds for the Bank of Mum and Dad. But BoMaD lenders are using these funds to help with their own retirement ambitions too. More than a quarter (26%) would or have used their housing wealth to fund home renovations and nearly three in every five (58%) parents and grandparents are using it to free up cash to stay in their own home. Across the over-55s surveyed who haven’t released property equity already, well over a quarter (29%) said they would consider drawing equity from their home with a lifetime mortgage.

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Three out of four (74%) workers surveyed worried about the cost of cancer and how their families would cope with loss of income if they had to give up work. The major costs of cancer reported include travel, not being able to work and earn an income (either them or their caregiving spouse), and higher bills. Receiving repetitive treatment or recovering from surgery can require time away from work and understanding from an employer. Yet, a third (32%) of respondents revealed taking time off work for appointments is one of the biggest challenges they faced.
More than half (52%) of respondents thought insurance cover – either to help with loss of income from an inability to work or to provide a lump sum financial benefit to help with the cost of cancer – would be beneficial.

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New research, commissioned by the NLA, found that over three quarters (79%) of tenants need better information about what they should expect from their landlords or agents. Worryingly, the NLA also found that more than two thirds (67%) of tenants were not aware of the Government’s How To Rent guide that is designed to help them understand their rights and responsibilities. The guide provides tenants with key information on what to look out for before renting, living in a rented home, what happens at the end of a tenancy, and what to do if things go wrong.

Most tenants have a good relationship with their landlords. In the survey, 68% of tenants said they never had any cause to complain to their landlord. A further 12% said that when they had complained, the problem was solved to their satisfaction. But the NLA is concerned that tenants’ failure to fulfil their responsibilities will undermine their relationship with landlords.

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One of the major restraining factors on the volume of transactions in the market continues to be the very low level of stock for sale. Halifax highlight that, with the ongoing lack of clarity around Brexit, people will be looking for more certainty in the coming months, both to encourage them to list their property and to create the confidence needed to encourage buyers.

Supporting the analysis is the Bank of England industry-wide figures that show the number of mortgages approved to finance house purchases – a leading indicator of completed house sales – have fallen by 636 from April to 65,409 in May. The May rate is now just below the 5 year average monthly approval rate of 66,138 and 46 above the previous 12 month average of 65,363. (Source: Bank of England, seasonally-adjusted figures) The RICS UK Residential Market Survey saw a slightly more stable picture coming through during May. The sales to stock ratio increased slightly to 31.5%. Agreed sales fell for the tenth successive month, but less so than previously. Near term expectations remain subdued but sentiment on the longer term outlook for sales and prices signals modest recovery further out. (Source: Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors’ (RICS) monthly report)

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Just as digital technology has allowed people to customise the way they listen to music or read the news, it is now transforming the world of payments, as consumers take advantage of the ever-widening range of payment choices available to suit their needs and lifestyle.
The latest UK Payment Markets report found that almost half (48 per cent) of UK adults used mobile banking in 2018, up from 41 per cent the previous year. The number of bank payments made using online or mobile banking in 2018 grew to two billion, up from 1.6 billion in 2017, as consumers and businesses increasingly choose to bank using their phones, tablets or computers.
By the end of 2018, an estimated 8.5 million people were registered to buy goods and services using mobile payment services such as Google Pay, Apple Pay and Samsung Pay. This means that one in six (16 per cent) of the adult population are now registered for mobile payment services, up from just two per cent in 2016.
Having overtaken cash in 2017, debit cards remained the most frequently used payment method in 2018, accounting for nearly 40 per cent of all payments. Almost the entire adult UK population (98 per cent) now own a debit card and by 2024 debit cards are forecast to account for half of all payments in the country. The continued increase in debit card use has been in part driven by the growing popularity of contactless payments, which rose to 7.4 billion payments in 2018, an increase of 31 per cent on the previous year. The figures also show that older customers are increasingly embracing the convenience of this technology, with over three-fifths (61 per cent) of over-65s making contactless payments in 2018, up from 50 per cent in 2017. Overall 69 per cent of adults in the UK now use contactless payments, and no age group or region falls below 58 per cent usage.
Cash remains the second most frequently used payment method in the UK. It was used for 28 per cent of payments in 2018 and is forecast to still be used for one in ten payments in a decade’s time. However, the growth in contactless and mobile payments has meant consumers are choosing to pay less with cash, with overall cash payments falling by 16 per cent in 2018 and one in ten adults (5.4 million consumers) opting not to use cash at all. At the same time, many consumers value cash as a method of helping to manage their day-to-day finances, and this is expected to continue in future. UK Finance is working with the recently established Joint Authorities Cash Strategy Group (JACS) to help ensure cash continues to be available to those who need it.
Stephen Jones, Chief Executive of UK Finance, said:
“The same pick ‘n’ mix approach people now take when it comes to music, television or the news is expanding into payments, as consumers take advantage of new technologies to pay in a way that suits them.
More and more customers are now opting for the speed and convenience of paying with their contactless cards, or using mobile banking to check their balances and make transfers while on the move. This rapid rate of technological change is set to continue over the coming decade, as people embrace the ever-widening number of ways to pay and manage their finances, depending on their needs and lifestyle.
However, technology is not for everyone and cash remains a payment method that is valued and preferred by many, so maintaining access to cash will be vital to ensure no customer is left behind.
We are working with the Joint Authorities Cash Strategy Group (JACS) and wider stakeholders, to ensure all customers have a choice in how they pay for goods and services in future.”

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