"Not that difficult" to buy a home, says NatWest chair...

[dutchman]

NatWest's chair has said he believes it is not currently "that difficult" for people to get on the housing ladder.

Sir Howard Davies said people have always had to save for a deposit but admitted they had to save more today, warning of "easy access" to credit.

Critics said his comments on the BBC's Today programme were "astounding" and "out of touch with reality".

In the interview, Sir Howard was asked when he thought it would be easier for people to get on to the property ladder in the UK. He replied: "Well, I don't think it's that difficult at the moment. You have to save, and that's the way it always used to be."

Pressed on his reasoning, the NatWest chair admitted people found it "difficult to start the process" in saving, but said it was also due to fundamental changes in the housing market seen in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis.

"What we saw in the financial crisis was the risk of having people being able to borrow 100% and then suffering severe falls in the equity value of their houses and having to leave and having a bad credit record so there were dangers in very, very easy access to mortgage credit," he added.

Sir Howard has been chair of NatWest, which is 39%-owned by the taxpayer, since 2015, having previously been the deputy governor of the Bank of England.

He receives a salary of more than £750,000 a year and is due to stand down in April.

Sir Howard said later on Friday that he recognised the difficulty in buying a home, acknowledging it "is very tough for first-time buyers".

He said the role of banks was to "lend responsibly and support customers to build a savings habit and move towards home ownership".

[dutchman]

NatWest banker Sir Howard Davies on £750,000-a-year lives mortgage free in £2million townhouse



The banking boss who sparked outrage by claiming it's 'not that difficult' for Brits to get on the property ladder lives in smart, mortgage-free £2million London townhouse.

Sir Howard Davies made the controversial comment as he argued that prospective buyers needed to save up - adding that 'is the way it always used to be'.

But the £750,000-a-year banker's claim, during an interview on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, was greeted with incredulity.

The 72-year-old, who once owned a second home in Paris, later tried to cool the row by 'clarifying' his remarks, with a statement stressing he was trying to convey that the mortgage market had improved recently.

Sir Howard himself lives in an exclusive and highly desirable part of West London where homes cost in excess of £2million.

Sir Howard lives on a tranquil, tree-lined road in a fashionable neighbourhood made of a mixture of wealthy middle-class residents and others who purchased flats many years ago when property prices were cheaper.

His stylish home is worth close to £3million and is made up of five bedrooms and three living rooms.

It is spread across four floors, including a basement and has use of a sunken designer front garden and a well maintained rear garden that is hemmed in by high brick walls.

It is one of the best kept properties on the road along which it is located.

He and his wife Prue, who have two adult sons, have lived in the house for some time.

There was nobody at the house this afternoon and neighbours suggested Sir Howard may have already decamped to the second home where it's understood he spends most weekends - thought to be in the west country.

[rebbonk]

Man is an ar$ehole