Lenders cut rates and revise buy to let affordability criteria

Saffron and Landbay cut rates across a range of products, while Aldermore improves affordability on five-year fixes and Platform confirms a mortgage retention process for brokers.

Saffron for Intermediaries has reviewed its mortgage offering for first-time buyers, the self-employed and contractors, reducing rates and extending the term of some of its products.

Its three-year fixed first time buyer mortgage is now available at a rate of 3.57%(5.1% APRC) up to 95% loan-to-value (LTV), having been reduced by 0.40%.

This rate is applicable on mortgages between £30,000 to £500,000, although the lender will consider applications up to £1m for properties that fall within the M25.

The product has early repayment charges (ERC) of 3% during the fixed term period. The lender has also cut the rates on its mortgages for self-employed borrowers.

Its self-employed variable loan has been cut by 1% to a rate of 2.79%(4.5% APRC), up to 80% LTV and its self-employed fixed term loans up to 85% LTV have been reduced by 0.30% to 3.67%(5% APRC) up until 31 January 2021.

Saffron has also cut the rates on its five-year variable 80% LTV contractor mortgages from 3.79% to 2.79%(4.5% APRC).

More rates cuts are to be had at Landbay.  The lender has cut its buy to let mortgage rates by up to 0.46% and arrangement fees by up to 0.25%.

A two-year fixed rate mortgage is now available at 3.39%(5.1% APR) and a five-year fix at 3.59%(5.2% APR).  Previously both were at a rate of 3.85%.

Arrangement fees on certain products have been reduced from 1.75% to 1.5% and Landbay has also reviewed its product criteria, increasing its maximum age at end of term from 80 to 85, for example.

In addition, the lender has cut the buy to let experience needed for a first-time Houses of Multiple Occupation (HMO) purchase from 24 to 12 months, expatriates can now borrow via a limited company and self-employed expatriates will also now be considered, providing a minimum income of £60,000 or equivalent.

Landbay products are available through selected brokers, including Mortgages for Business.

Aldermore, meanwhile, has revised its affordability stress rate on five-year fixed rate buy to let mortgages to the higher of either pay rate or reversion rate + 0.75%, down from pay rate or 5.5%. Reversion rates have also been reduced to 3.23% and the lender has launched a range of new five-year fixed rate products.

Aldermore’s new standard buy to let rates include: a rate of 3.28%(3.5% APR) at 75% LTV with reversion rate of 3.23% (stress rate of 3.98%), and a rate of 5.28%(5.1% APR) for 80% LTV (product fee 2.00%) with a reversion rate of 4.53% (stress rate of 5.28%).

Limited company five-year fixed rates are now available from 4.08%(3.8% APR) at 75% LTV with reversion rate of 3.33% (stress rate of 4.08%), and at 5.28%(5.4% APR) up to 80% LTV with reversion rate of 4.53% (stress rate of 5.28%).

Lastly, the Co-operative Bank’s intermediary lender, Platform, is due to launch a mortgage retention process starting from 31 May.

From this time, brokers will receive a gross procuration fee of 0.3% for all customer renewals with mortgage advice, where the deal switch goes to completion and where a retention request is submitted.

Product switching customers will be able to access all the lender’s new rates across mainstream and buy to let ranges and will be able to apply for the new rates up to 90 days before the maturity of their existing deal.

 

ANY PROPERTY USED AS SECURITY, WHICH MAY INCLUDE YOUR HOME, MAY BE REPOSSESSED IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP REPAYMENTS ON YOUR MORTGAGE. 

 

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5th April 2017