Mortgages now under FSA control
1 Nov 04
Financial Services Authority takes over mortgage regulation
The Financial Services Authority has assumed responsibility for regulating domestic mortgages in the UK.
As of Sunday 31 October the largely self-governing regime covering the mortgage industry has been superseded by detailed rules published by the FSA, setting out how mortgage lenders and brokers should deal with their customers.
One aim is to police more closely products such as equity release mortgages, some of which offer hidden dangers for borrowers.
Intending borrowers must be given a standard form document showing interest rate and likely payments and charges, to allow people to compare different mortgages.
For the effect of the new regime on legal firms offering mortgage advice, see the article "Far from incidental" in the April issue of The Journal at page 44. The article also previews the further extension of regulation to insurance business as from 14 January 2005.