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Mortgage Trust has made a welcome return to the buy-to-let mortgage market after they withdrew from lending due to the effects of the credit crunch. They are part of the Paragon Group and offer less complex mortgages than Paragon, who specialise in mortgages for professional landlords.

Mortgage Trust currently offers two deals aimed at landlords looking to remortgage in to a fixed or low tracker rate.

Their two-year fix is competitively priced at 4.99% and the two year LIBOR tracker is cheap at 3.99%. The arrangement fee for both mortgages is £999 and 25% equity in the property is required. The maximum loan size is £500,000.  

A number of lenders have made changes to their buy-to-let rates this week and Northern Rock significantly increased the number of rates that they offer. There’s now the option to take a base rate tracker and a percentage based arrangement fee. One of the most competitive mortgages that Northern Rock offers is a tracker rate at 4.29% and it has a £1995 arrangement fee. A 30% deposit is required.

Aaron Strutt, a broker at Trinity Financial, said: “It’s been a good week for borrowers looking to take a buy-to-let mortgage as the level of competition between the lenders has increased. Mortgage Trust used to be a huge lender and we are expecting their return to have a positive effect on the buy-to-let market.  They generally have low rates and low arrangement fees.

“Godiva Mortgages are another lender with excellent mortgages. We currently have access to a tracker rate with them at 3.99% and it has no early repayment charges.

“We are taking more enquiries about investment mortgages at the moment and lenders are certainly looking to increase lending in this area.”

April 21, 2011

Gross mortgage lending was an estimated £11.3 billion in March, a 21% rise from £9.3 bn in February, according to figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders.

But gross lending still registered a 2% decline compared to the £11.5 bn in March 2010.  Gross lending for Q1 2011 was therefore estimated at £30.1 bn, an 11% decline from Q4 2010 -£33.9bn – and a 1% increase from £29.7 bn in the first three months of 2010.

Bob Pannell, chief economist at the CML, says: “The housing market has emerged hesitantly from hibernation. Household finances are under a lot of pressure, and as a result demand for house purchase loans fell in the first three months of 2011. Lenders expect mortgage credit availability to improve this quarter, and this should help to underpin house purchase activity albeit at pretty low levels.”

April 21, 2011 

The increase in Stamp Duty Land Tax for properties over £1m caused a rush to compete sales in London and the South-East in March, Countrywide’s market insight report shows.

The number of agreed sales across the group increased 41% in March compared to the previous month. But the picture across the UK is very different, with the overall number of sales in the UK falling by 0.8% in March.

Their research shows that the number of new properties coming onto the sales market rose by 4% in the month, the third consecutive monthly increase.

April 21, 2011

Tesco has revealed that they are on track to launch its mortgage proposition this year. The supermarket says that its Core Tier 1 capital ratio has risen substantially to 15.9% at the year-end. 

Tesco announced plans to launch in to mortgages in April 2010 and joined the Council of Mortgage Lenders as an associate member is November 2010.

April 21, 2011

Coutts, the private banking arm of Royal Bank of Scotland, has tightened up the minimum amount of investable income required for new clients as part of its plan to push in to investment management services in the UK.

The bank now requires £1 million in liquid assets to be invested with them before they offer clients a mortgage.

Aaron Strutt, a broker at Trinity Financial, says: “Over the last year we have really started to see other banks coming into the market targeting wealthy borrowers. There are a number of private banks that will even consider lending 100% loan to value on properties, providing they can see how the loan is going to be repaid. For the right type of client there are some very interesting options that are not available on the high street.”

Page updated January 2013

Rents rose for the second consecutive month in March, up by 0.4% to reach £687 per month, the latest Buy-To-Let Index from LSL Property Services shows.

The average rent in March 2011 was 4.2% higher than in March 2010 and the highest level since November 2010. The greatest monthly increases were seen in east England, where they rose 2.2%, and the south-east at 1.7%. Rents fell by 1.6% in the west Midlands.

Trinity Financial has seen an increase in demand for buy to let mortgages since the start of the year and we can access some excellent rates for our clients. Godiva Mortgages offer a range of fantastically low rates for borrowers with a 35% deposit. The lowest is variable for the term of the mortgage and is currently priced at 3.99%. There are no early repayment charges and this makes the lender attractive to investors planning to improve properties before they are sold on.

For investors wanting the security of a fixed rate, two year fixes start at 4.49% for those with a 40% deposit. The arrangement fees on both mortgages are low at £1249 and the property valuation fee is included.

April 15, 2011

The number of first-time buyers getting on the property ladder increased 13% in February, but the figures remain down on last year.

According to figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML), new homeowners borrowed 12,400 loans worth £1.4 bn in February, which is 13% more than January, but still down 13% from February 2010.

First-time buyers typically borrowed 80% of the property value in February and 3.11 times their income. The average loan-to-value taken out by home-movers is 70% and has remained at a similar level since mid-2009.

Aaron Strutt, a broker at Trinity Financial, says: “For borrowers with a 20% deposit there are a lot of mortgages available and they are now very competitively priced. Most lenders stop offering lower rates for borrowers with less than a 15% deposit.”

April 15, 2011

Inflation fell by 0.4% to 4% in March, but was still double the Bank of England’s target.

The fall in the consumer price index (CPI) marks a drop from the 28-month high of 4.4% in February.

More than a third of economists polled by Reuters predicted that the Monetary Policy Committee will raise the base rate next month, but this does now look more unlikely. Market rates in the City suggest that there is a 70% chance of a rise in May, according to MarketGuard, the rate insurance provider.

April 15, 2011

Communities and Local Government are set to stagger changes to Energy Performance Certificate regulations that were previously expected on July 1, according to a story in The Negotiator magazine.

The Negotiator say that the department is working towards the July 1 introduction date for the change in time-frame, but the requirement to attach an EPC to written particulars along with the asset rating, which is currently optional, will be delayed until October.

The story goes on to say: “The Energy Performance of Buildings (Certificates and Inspections) (England and Wales) Regulations 2007 (the EPB Regulations) currently require an EPC to be commissioned before the property is marketed, with the onus on the ‘relevant person’ – the seller or landlord or their representative agent – to commission it and secure it within 28 days.

“The forthcoming changes extend the regulations to commercial property and reduce the required time-frame to seven days.

“A further 21 days will be allowed to secure the EPC in the event that the seven day time-frame is not met.”

April 15, 2011

Fraud attempts against financial services providers increased by 11% in 2010, according to a report by Experian.

Last year, 20 in every 10,000 applications for credit cards and other financial products were found to be fraudulent, up from 18 in 2009.

The report says that there was a significant rise in the attempted first-party mortgage and automotive fraud in 2010, and typically it is young professionals who try their luck. Mortgage fraud attempts increased by 14 per cent to 32 in every 10,000 applications in 2010, with first-party fraudsters responsible for 97 per cent of cases.

First-party fraud, where an individual applies for credit cards and other financial services that they are not entitled, accounts for more than half of frauds attempted against financial providers.

April 15, 2011

Over the last year the vast majority of mortgage lenders have made changes to their interest-only lending policies and this week we have seen the last few remaining lenders offering more generous options for borrowers make changes.

The Nationwide Building Society, Halifax and The Post Office have all tightened their lending criteria. Nationwide were still offering 95% loan to value interest only mortgages to existing customers at the start of the week and Halifax have now reduced their maximum interest only mortgage to 75% loan to value. The Post Office now offers a maximum loan to value of 75% for interest only borrowers, down from 90%.

Aaron Strutt, a broker at Trinity Financial, says: “Mortgage lenders mostly ask for a 25% deposit to qualify for interest only now and if you want to borrow more than that, in many cases, the whole mortgage will have to be on full capital repayment. This will increase your monthly payments, but the mortgage will be repaid at the end of the term.

“Some lenders are still more generous than others and we will continue to advise our clients of the best ways to structure their mortgage payments.”

April 8, 2011

Mortgage lenders have made reductions to their fixed rates this week and as lenders try to slow down demand for their trackers.

Over the last few weeks demand for Northern Rock’s tracker rates has increased and this has led to their leading two year tracker rates being increased by up to 0.41%. At the same time some of their short term fixes have been lowered and now look more attractive.

Despite an interest rate rise in the euro zone many economists say that a quick rise in the Bank of England base rate would be too soon for our economy. This has led to the demand for tracker rates to increase as they are so competitively priced.

If you take a base rate tracker with the Woolwich or Nationwide Building Society, then they will allow you to switch in to a fixed rate at any time and this does provide added payment security.

The lowest two year tracker rate Trinity Financial can access is as low as 2.28% and it is available to borrowers with a 40% deposit. For those with a 25% deposit the rate increases to 2.68%. The arrangement fee on both mortgages is £1190 and the lender will pay for the property valuation and legals service if you are remortgaging.

April, 2011

The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee once again kept the base rate on hold at 0.5%. There’s been no change now for 25 months and no new quantitative easing measures were unveiled.

Last month, three MPC members voted for a rise to the base rate and inflation increased to 4.4%. It seems more likely that we are now a step closer to raising the Bank of England base rate.

Following the decision by the European Central Bank to raise interest rates to 1.25% from the record low of 1%, many European variable rate borrowers will be worse off. Interest rates had been held at 1% for just under two years following the financial crisis.

April 8, 2011

WH Smith has joined forces with legal franchise network Quality Solicitors (QS) to offer legal services to its customers.

From July 1, Quality Solicitors representatives are set to offer a range of legal services from a concessionary stand at up to 150 of the high street retailer’s branches, each of them using just an ipad.

The network of solicitors eventually aims to increase the number of law firms that they work with to 300 and they expect to gain a significant market share over the coming years. The joint venture is based on QS members paying a fixed fee for the use of the WH Smith branch stand and QS say that they will subsidise the cost of the stand.

April 8, 2011

The Nationwide Building Society have made a return to the large loan market and they now offer mortgages above their previous limit of £1 million.

The lender has increased its maximum loan from £1 million up to £2 million. However, they say that it is possible to lend more on a case by case basis and Trinity Financial understands that the unofficial maximum mortgage is £5 million.

Nationwide’s lowest rate available up to £2 million is fixed at 3.84% for two years. It is aimed at the more wealthy borrowers able to put down a 50% deposit. For those with a 30% deposit, the two year fixed rate increases to 4.19%.

One of the most competitive mortgages that Nationwide offers up to £2 million is fixed for five years at 4.59%. It is marginally more expensive than the Nationwide’s market leading five year deal at 4.39% and it is available for mortgages up to £1 million. There are no arrangement fees attached to their mortgages over £1million.

Aaron Strutt, a broker at Trinity Financial, says: “Nationwide have said that they feel the property market has now settled down sufficiently for them to return to lending larger loans. Prior to the credit crunch they did not have an upper limit on lending.

“Most high-street mortgage lenders have not been particularly keen to offer mortgages over £1million, but things are certainly starting to change. In November, Abbey for Intermediaries launched mortgages with a maximum loan on £2 million and they are available up to 70% loan to value. Halifax have also lowered their two year fixed rates by 0.7% in an effort to keep pace with their competitors.”

April 3, 2011

Lloyds Banking Group have made changes to their interest only lending criteria and now Halifax, who are part of the group,  only offer a maximum loan to value of 75% for borrowers wanting to take out an interest only mortgage.

Virtually all lenders have tightened up on their interest only policy and 75% loan to value is now the average maximum that is allowed. With
effect from Wednesday 6th April, interest only borrowers will no longer be able to take a Halifax mortgage if they have a 15% deposit and this also affects customers wanting to port their mortgage.

A spokesperson for Lloyds is quoted as saying: “We had different policies cross the group and Halifax was out of line. This change means Halifax is now in line with a consistent approach across all brands.”

There are a few lenders who are still prepared to be more flexible with their interest only policy. Trinity Financial have access to a mortgage lender that allows customers to borrow 90% of the property value and 75% of the mortgage can be on capital repayment, with the remaining 15% on interest only.  This makes the monthly repayments more affordable and the loan is still on track to be repaid by the end of the term.

April 1, 2011

House prices increased by 0.5% in March, leaving them 0.1% higher than March 2010, according to the latest house price survey from the Nationwide
Building Society.

Prices have now increased, albeit modestly, in three of the past four months, the house price report shows. The average cost of a home was £164,751.

April 1, 2011

Northern Rock Asset Management and Bradford & Bingley made a combined profit of £477.5 million last year and repaid £1.1 billion of loans from the government.

In 2009, the one time giant mortgage lenders, made huge losses of around £480 million.  But, after a number of bad debt write-downs and significant cost cutting measures they have returned to profit.

Both businesses are run by the same management company (UK Asset Resolution) but remain separate entities. They do not offer new mortgages but with 850,000 customers they are the fifth largest mortgage provider in the country.

UKAR’s task is to run down the £110 billion loan book and eventually repay the taxpayers in full for the bailout during the financial crisis.

April 1, 2011