Rebecca Rutt

HSBC has launched a 90 per cent loan-to-value (LTV) mortgage in an effort to help out first-time buyers.

Investors are being misled by the investment management industry and are hit with more than £18 billion in hidden dealing costs each year, says SCM Private.

Annuity rates have plummeted 9.3 per cent over the past three years, meaning less money for people about to draw their pensions, according to the latest results of MGM Advantage's Annuity Index.

Annual pension incomes for people about to retire are at their lowest levels for five years, according to research from Prudential.

Interest rates on personal loans have dropped to their lowest levels in four years, giving some light relief to borrowers.

Banks and credit card companies have agreed to scrap some fees for holidaymakers buying foreign currency, following pressure from the Office of Fair Trading (OFT).

New rules to prevent risky mortgage lending are due to be introduced in 2013 by the Financial Services Authority (FSA).

Rents in England and Wales rose for the ninth consecutive in October, according to LSL Property Services. The average monthly rent is now £720.

Northern Rock is to be sold to Virgin Money for £747 million, the Treasury has announced.

The bank will be rebranded Virgin Money, and will see Sir Richard Branson’s bank entering the high street for the first time.

Youth unemployment reached a record high in the last quarter, as UK unemployment shot up by 129,000, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).