9th October 2008
Golwg: Galw ar gynghorau i gynnig morgeisi: Calling on councils to offer mortgages
Amidst the economic downturn, one silver lining was supposed to happen - the comfort that some people who had been struggling for a long time would finally get a foothold on the property ladder. Its obvious that this hasn’t worked.
Its likely that house prices, which have already fallen by approximately 10%, will have eroded by a third of their worth by this time next year. But this will still mean that property prices are ten times higher than the average income in several places in Wales, particularly, the rural areas.
Credit which was flowing as freely as a waterfall this time last year, has now been frozen solid. No matter how much cheap money the Government and the Bank of England offer banks so that they can clear their bad debts, the fundamental problem remains - banks aren’t willing to lend money to others, be it others banks, businesses or individuals.
As well as the need for a clean credit rating to get a mortgage, its also necessary to be able to put down a deposit of at least 105. As a result of this, more and more first time buyers are finding it difficult to get a mortgage and even those with mortgages are getting into financial difficulties a banks increase their interests rates - even though the Bank of England’s rates have remained steady.
Now that the shiny Gods of the free market have failed, it is now necessary to look back upon old and forgotten beliefs in order to make any sense of the situation and also find any solutions. And this might surprise some first time buyers, but one of the main providers of mortgages between the 1950s and the beginning of the 1980s was local authorities.
In those days, when banks only seemed to serve the middle classes, local councils used to bridge the gap. By the 1980s, 600,000 people throughout Britain held mortgages from their local councils. I think its now time for councils to re-start this scheme. Indeed, they still have the legal right to do so. The Welsh Assembly Government could guarantee the mortgages, and offer a national order so as to be able to administrate the scheme. Councils could then borrow money through a prudent and steady lending system.
Even more useful is the fact that the Welsh Assembly Government has the right to decide on the interest rate - separate to England. Finally, an independent financial policy for Wales!
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Ynghanol y chwalfa ariannol, roedd un ymyl arian i fod - y cysur i bobol sydd wedi bod yn ymdrechu’n galed ers tro i gael troedle ar yr ysgol dai. Mae’n amlwg nad yw hynny wedi gweithio.
Mae’n debygol y bydd prisiau tai, sydd wedi disgyn tua 10% eisoes, wedi erydu traean o’u gwerth ar eu hanterth erbyn yr amser yma y flwyddyn nesaf. Ond mi fydd hynny’n dal i olygu fod prisiau eiddo ddeg gwaith yn uwch nag incwm cyfartalog mewn sawl man yng Nghymru, yn arbennig yr ardaloedd gwledig.
Mae credyd, oedd yn llifo dim ond blwyddyn yn ôl fel Pistyll Rhaeadr, bellach wedi ei rewi yn sownd. Faint bynnag o arian rhad y mae’r Llywodraeth a Banc Lloegr yn ei gynnig i’r banciau er mwyn clirio eu dyledion gwael, y broblem sylfaenol yw nad yw’r banciau’n fodlon ei fenthyg i unrhyw un arall: i fanciau eraill, busnesau nac unigolion.
Yn ogystal â’r angen am sgôr credyd dilychwin er mwyn cael morgais, mae gofyn am flaendal am o leiaf 10% fel arfer. O ganlyniad, mae mwy o brynwyr tro cyntaf yn ei chael hi’n anodd dod o hyd i forgais ac mae llawer o ddeiliaid morgeisi yn mynd i drafferthion wrth i’r banciau godi eu cyfraddau llog - er bod cyfradd Banc Lloegr wedi aros yn sefydlog.
A duwiau sgleiniog y farchnad rydd wedi methu, mae’n rhaid chwilota hen gredoau anghofiedig er mwyn gwneud synnwyr o’r sefyllfa a chanfod unrhyw atebion. Bydd hyn efallai yn syndod i’r rhan fwyaf o brynwyr tro cyntaf, ond un o brif ffynonellau morgeisi o’r 1950au i ddechrau’r 1980au oedd awdurdodau lleol.
Yn y dyddiau hynny, pan oedd y banciau ond’n gwasanaethu’r dosbarth canol, roedd cynghorau lleol wedi llenwi’r bwlch yn y farchnad ar gyfer cenedlaethau oedd wedi’u heithrio’n ariannol. Erbyn 1980 roedd 600,000 o bobl trwy Brydain yn dal morgais gan eu cyngor lleol.
Mae’n hen bryd nawr i’r cynghorau ailddechrau eu busnes morgeisi. Mae’r hawl cyfreithiol ganddyn nhw i wneud hynny o hyd. Gallai Llywodraeth y Cynulliad warantu’r morgeisi, a chynnig trefn genedlaethol er mwyn eu gweinyddu tra gallai’r cynghorau fenthyg yr arian trwy’r ’system fenthyg pwyllog’.
Yn fwy defnyddiol fyth mae gan Lywodraeth y Cynulliad yr hawl i benderfynu’r gyfradd llog – hynny yw, ar wahân i Loegr. O’r diwedd, polisi ariannol annibynnol i Gymru!
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