Rising house prices driving away first-time buyers - 2005-02-04
Home loans to first-time buyers is continuing to fall as rising house prices push ever higher the first rung on the property ladder.

The share of home loans going to first-time buyers last year slipped to just 26 percent, compared with 29 percent in 2003 and 38 percent the year before, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML).

Data from the council show how the financial burden of paying a mortgage is growing.
Read the full story at Reuters.co.uk

Interest Rates Are Key to Robust Home Sales - 2005-02-04
Home sellers and real estate agents have low interest rates to be grateful for homes selling quicker and for more money than ever before in the Buffalo Niagara region.

Merle Whitehead, president of RealtyUSA, expects home sales to stay strong in 2005 and 2006. About mortgage interest rates, he said: "I think we'd have to see something with an 8 in front of it to slow the market down."
Read the full story at Builder Online