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Front page coverage for Bien Media client in The Times

Melanie Bien • 27 April 2017

Bien Media Client SPF Private Clients quoted on the front page of The Times on the cheapest ever mortgage rate

With interest rates at all-time lows, lenders continue to cut mortgage rates. But what caught the imagination of journalists was Yorkshire Building Society’s decision to launch the cheapest mortgage rate ever – a two-year discounted rate at just 0.89 per cent. While mortgage rates are cheap, a rate this low was unheard of and The Times reported it as the lead story or ‘splash’ on its front page.

Bien Media client Mark Harris, chief executive of mortgage broker SPF Private Clients, was subsequently quoted on the front page of The Times , providing insight as to why the lender was launching this rate at this particular time: ‘The debt market is oversupplied and when supply outstrips demand the simple economics is that mortgages become cheaper. If the [general] election means people put decisions to buy on hold then we could see even more competitive deals in an effort to attract borrowers,’ he said.

He added that this may not be the last we have seen of the cheapest rates: ‘The message is the same from all lenders – none of them are overly happy with the volume of business they are doing and want to do more. It’s great news for borrowers.’

To read the article in full, click on the link (subscription required): https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/lenders-square-up-for-mortgage-price-war-as-rates-hit-record-low-l62vz8bk0

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Houso, the off-market property app, hires Bien Media to boost its profile

by Melanie Bien • 03 Feb, 2020

Houso, a revolutionary new property app which allows vendors to gain pre-market exposure for their home in order to gauge interest before committing to selling for free, has hired property PR agency Bien Media to raise its profile in the press. Ben Johnston, founder and director of Houso, says: ‘Anyone who’s experienced the torturous home-buying and selling process knows the current system is simply not working. With so little stock for sale, and far more demand than supply, vendors won’t seriously entertain an offer from a buyer unless the buyer’s own home is under offer. But if you haven’t found a dream home to buy, why risk marketing your own property? If you receive an offer, the pressure is on to find your next home and you may end up buying something which is ok, not brilliant, just for the sake of it. This is where wrong decisions are made.’ Houso aims to solve these problems and remove uncertainty by enabling vendors to list their home, for free, in order to gauge buyer interest. This pre-market exposure enables vendors to build a waiting list of people keen to buy their home. It gives the vendor the confidence to go house-hunting themselves, safe in the knowledge that there are interested parties in their own home. Then when the vendor finds their perfect next home, the transactional time could be greatly reduced. Melanie Bien, director of property PR agency Bien Media, says : ‘We are delighted to be working with Houso to raise awareness of what they are trying to do, which is to resolve what are real issues with the whole process of buying and selling property. Anyone who has sold a home has been there – trying to find an interested and qualified buyer at the same time as finding the dream home that you wish to buy, and having an offer accepted on it. That’s a lot of pressure on things happening at the right time and in this market with such low levels of stock available, it’s increasingly difficult to achieve.’ www.houso.co.uk