The supervisory arm of the EFTA, the ESA, has given Icelandic authorities a six-week deadline to implement changes to the public sector Housing Finance Fund — the country’s biggest mortgage lender. A formal investigation could take place if the deadline is missed. Read the full story

The state-owned Swedish mortgage lender SBAB has advised that home owners will suffer reduced spending power under sharp autumn interest rate increases predicted to be made by Riksbank. Read the full story

The increased duty on fuel and alcohol introduced in Iceland on 1st January will have the effect of pushing up the consumer price index by around one percent and therefore pushing up the cost of inflation-indexed mortgages. Read the full story

Several hundred people gathered outside the Icelandic parliament on Austurvollur Square in Reykjavik yesterday to protest on behalf of struggling householders. The three speakers were very well received by the crowd as they called, among other things, for continued payment strikes. Read the full story

Frjalsi Investment Bank won a house in a forced auction last November in the Reykjavik suburb of Alftanes. However, the bank still has not taken possession of the house keys and the former owner unilaterally decided to demolish the house yesterday. Read the full story

Iceland’s Housing Finance Fund (Íbúðalánasjóður) today lowered its interest rates. The general mortgage rate has now fallen to 4.7 percent from 4.9 percent. Interest on mortgages without prepayment clause is now 5.2 percent instead of 5.4.

Although the banks have offered mortgages for several years, the government-owned Housing Finance Fund remains the country’s biggest mortgage provider and usually offers the lowest interest rates.

The state-run Icelandic Housing Finance Fund was by far the biggest depositor in Straumur Burdaras investment bank, which was taken over by the FME financial regulatory body yesterday morning, it has now emerged. Read the full story

A new Capacent Gallup poll was carried out on behalf of ASI (Icelandic Confederation of Labour) to asses the situation of Icelandic personal debt. The survey revealed that the majority of those questioned (62 percent) had inflation indexed mortgages in Icelandic kronur. The next biggest group (30 percent) was those with car loans denominated in foreign currencies. Read the full story

IcelandReview.com reports that the OMX-NASDAQ stock exchange in Iceland took an upswing yesterday in response to positive economic news from the USA.

Stock markets all over the world went into positive territory on the back of news that US authorities would take over the loan funds Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the country’s two biggest mortgage lenders and underwriters. Read the full story