Big UK building society warns of further pain

Calcutta News.Net
Monday 8th September, 2008

The chief executive of the Nationwide Building Society in the UK has told the BBC that he thinks house prices could fall as much as 25% from their peak.

22% of all householders with mortgages would have home loans greater than the value of their respective homes.

Graham Beale has also said he does not expect to see signs of recovery in the housing market until 2010.

Beale believes that there is little the government can do to stem what he believes is a necessary adjustment of prices.

But he has said the US Treasury's scheme to shore up the two great providers of housing finance, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, should help to restore confidence in financial markets.

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