Expert Knowledge & Professional Service

Some of the biggest banks and building societies have increased their mortgage rates marginally over the last few weeks, but Nationwide for Intermediaires is still offering some of the leading fixed rates.

Nationwide for Intermediaries offers a two-year fixed-rate mortgage at 3.80% and the lender has a five-year fix at just below 3.95%. These rates undercut many of the other big banks and building societies.

Nationwide’s most competitive rate is 3.80%, and it is available for homebuyers to borrow between £300,000 and £5 million. There is a £1,499 arrangement fee, and applicants must make a 40% deposit to qualify. The sub 3.99% five-year fix has the same minimum and maximum loan sizes and the same arrangement fee.

Aaron Strutt, product director at Trinity Financial, says: "Mortgage rates have edged up recently, and while they are more expensive, they still offer good value for money. 

"One of the good things about Nationwide is the way borrowers can book a rate for up to 90 days, providing a mortgage offer is produced in that time. Other lenders do not allow their decisions in principle to last so long."

Representative example: A Nationwide capital and interest mortgage of £1,000,000 payable over 30 years, initially on a fixed rate basis at 3.80% for 24 months and then on the lender's 6.24% standard variable rate for the remaining 28 years. The 3.80% rate would require 24 monthly repayments of £4,659.57 followed by 336 payments of £6,379.50. The total amount repayable would be £2,256,855.68 made up of the loan amount, plus interest (£1,255,342.80) and £1,499 (product fee), £80 (final repayment charge), £25 (completion fee). The overall cost for comparison is 6.4% APRC representative.

Greatest number of low-deposit deals for 17 years: Moneyfacts

The number of mortgage deals available for borrowers with a 10% or 5% deposit reached its highest level for 17 years this month, figures from Moneyfacts show. There are 464 deals for those with a 5% deposit and 896 deals with a 10% deposit, meaning a combined total of 1,360 product options for borrowers with a deposit of 10% or under. There are also more lenders offering really low deposit mortgages for those with less than 5% to put down.

Call Trinity Financial on 020 7267 9399 to secure a mortgage, book a consultation, or complete our mortgage questionnaire. 

The information contained within was correct at the time of publication but is subject to change.

Your mortgage is secured on your property. Your property may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage

New analysis from Nationwide’s House Price Index shows that well-planned home improvements — especially those that add usable space — can significantly increase your property’s value.

Many borrowers are remortgaging to release equity from their property to fund home improvement works as they are looking to improve rather than move.

• Top picks? Kitchens and bathrooms. Over the past five years, 71% of homeowners who renovated worked on either or both rooms. 

• Green is growing in appeal. 34% of renovatees made environmental upgrades, with solar panel installations leading the way. Younger homeowners (25-34) were most likely to go green.

• Space = value.  Extensions or loft conversions with a bedroom can increase value by up to 24%.

• Mostly satisfied renovators. Only 4% regretted investing in improvements—typically citing cost overruns or unsatisfactory results.

Commenting on the figures, Andrew Harvey, Nationwide's Senior Economist, said:

“Our recent research found that kitchen and bathroom renovations were the most popular amongst homeowners who have made improvements to their home in the last five years, with 71% undertaking either, or both, of these. More than two in five (42%) added a bathroom or an ensuite, whilst 25% added an additional toilet.

“Of those undertaking work, around a third (34%) made green improvements to their property, with over half of these (56%) adding solar panels. As we explored in our recent special report on the housing stock, solar panels are becoming an increasingly popular feature, with nearly 1.5 million dwellings in England having photovoltaic (PV) panels, equating to nearly 6% of total dwellings (up from less than 3% in 2013).

“Looking at other popular home improvements, 39% of homeowners who had renovated added an outbuilding, such as a shed or entertainment space, while 23% added a conservatory to their property. In terms of larger scale projects, 24% of those who had made improvements opted for a loft conversion, while 21% had a single storey extension built.

“Across all homeowners making renovations in the last five years, the average spend was around £52,000, although there was significant variation, reflecting the range of work completed. Younger households (aged 25-34) tended to have a much higher average spend (c£97,000), reflecting that this group are more likely to have made more substantial improvements. Amongst older age groups, average spending was lower, with only a small proportion (c10%) of homeowners completing a major project such as an extension in the last five years."

Call Trinity Financial on 020 7267 9399 to secure a mortgage for home improvements, book a consultation, or complete our mortgage questionnaire. 

The information contained within was correct at the time of publication but is subject to change.

Your mortgage is secured on your property. Your property may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage

How Newcastle’s “First Step” 98% loan-to-value mortgage helps first-time buyers

Buying your first home is exciting — but with rising house prices and tighter lending criteria, many aspiring homeowners struggle to save large deposits. That’s why the recently launched “First Step” mortgage from Newcastle for Intermediaries is getting attention in the market: it aims to make it easier for first-time buyers with smaller deposits to get on the property ladder.

At Trinity Financial, we believe in giving you clear, practical mortgage advice — and First Step is a product worth understanding if you’re a first-time buyer or trying to help one. Below, we highlight how it works, when it might be suitable — and when it might not be — to help you decide if it could be your route to home ownership.

Page updated on 25/09/2025.

The biggest banks and building societies typically lend between four times single and joint salaries up to 5.5 times single and joint incomes. Some lenders sometimes allow you to borrow up to six times your salary, including with Nationwide's Helping Hand product.

If you are a single applicant with a clear credit history earning at least £75,000, borrowing up to £412,500 may be possible. If you have a partner going onto the mortgage and they earn £75,000, this could increase to £825,000.

With a £100,000 salary, a single applicant could borrow up to £550,000. If a partner earning £100,000 is added to the application, the loan could rise to £1,100,000.

Aaron Strutt, product director at Trinity Financial, says: "The lenders use affordability calculators to determine how much you can borrow, and the maximum loan sizes can vary quite a lot. Some providers are much more generous if you do not have debts like credit cards or loans, while others look more favourably if you are consolidating debts.  

"The strange thing about the mortgage market is how lenders calculate the amount they will lend using different figures. Some use the Office for National Statistics to generate national averages, while others use their figures. Some ignore pension contributions and living expenses, while others will not reduce the loan by such a large amount if you have children or kids in private school."

Smaller building societies offering higher income multiples for a mortgage

Some smaller building societies provide the most generous income multiples in the market, although they typically charge the highest rates. 

Many work on a true affordability basis, provide interest-only options and increase the loan size for certain borrowers. A few lenders provide up to six times the income for higher earners.

Here is a list of all of the main lenders offering up to six times salary mortgages.

Call Trinity Financial on 020 7267 9399 to secure a mortgage or book a consultation 

The information contained within was correct at the time of publication but is subject to change

Your mortgage is secured on your property. Your property may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage  

Why you should act now to grab a tax-efficient mortgage

One of the UK’s largest mortgage companies has become the latest lender to pull its offset mortgages.

Clydesdale Bank, which is part of Virgin Money, withdrew all its offset rates for new customers on the 2nd October. Family Building Society stopped offering offset mortgages in March, following First Direct in 2023. Scottish Widows Bank, which was known for offset deals, also stopped all new lending later that year.

Which lenders still offer offset mortgages?

This change means that new offset mortgages are now offered by just a few banks and building societies, including Barclays for Intermediaries, Handelsbanken, Coventry Building Society, and Accord Mortgages, as well as the private bank Coutts for loans of £1 million or more.

Why are offset mortgages beneficial?

Offset mortgages are tax-efficient because any loan interest you save by offsetting your savings is tax-free. You can pay less interest while still maintaining access to your savings, unlike when you make overpayments, which are normally capped at 10% of the outstanding balance.

Offsets are still popular among the self-employed or those with irregular earnings, who can use the accounts to set aside large chunks of money for tax bills or those who earn annual bonuses, which they can put away.

Why are offset mortgages being withdrawn?

New capital lending rules have played a part, making offsets less profitable for banks, but largely due to the drop in interest rates after the crisis — if rates are at rock bottom, you are not saving much by offsetting your savings. Lenders also often struggle to allocate cash to borrowers making larger withdrawals from their offset mortgages. 

Aaron Strutt, product director at Trinity Financial, says: "Clydesdale have been offering offset mortgages for years, particularly when they were owned by National Australia Bank, and they have been popular with many of our clients. 

"The mortgage market constantly changes and this is just another example of how the market moves. If you want an offset mortgage, there are rates to choose from, but please note that they may not be available in a few years."

Virgin Money told George Nixon at The Times: “We regularly review our mortgage range and as a result of that review we have made the decision to withdraw offset mortgages to new customers.”

Call Trinity Financial on 020 7267 9399 to secure an offset mortgage or book a consultation 

The information contained within was correct at the time of publication but is subject to change

Your mortgage is secured on your property. Your property may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage  

New mortgage data from Barclays Property Insights reveals that more first-time buyers are purchasing semi-detached properties, as they report a greater appetite for ‘forever homes’.

The continued push by banks and building societies to offer income-stretch mortgages, larger loan sizes, and lower deposit deals is making it easier for many first-time buyers to secure more generous mortgages and buy semi-detached homes. 

Barclays mortgage data shows that three-bedroom homes are the most popular choice for properties, making up 46.4 per cent of all purchases in August. Millennial homeowners, aged 28 to 43, are the most likely age group to prioritise extra space – over a fifth (22 per cent) say they bought a property with more bedrooms than they currently need, to avoid upsizing later. This compares to just 13 per cent across all ages.

Aaron Strutt, product director at Trinity Financial, says: "Most people want to have outdoor space, but if they live in an expensive area, they need to have a sufficiently large salary to borrow enough to get a house. It is generally possible for first-time buyers to borrow between 4.5 and 6 times their salary through a range of lenders. Barclays' data is interesting because it highlights that the recent income multiple changes are allowing more younger people to buy larger properties. This is a trend our brokers have noticed."  

First-time buyers and semi-detached homes

Barclays data shows first-time buyers are increasingly turning to houses, with semi-detached properties making up over a third (33.5 per cent) of August’s first-time purchases, up 1.7 per cent year-on-year. The bank says flats declined in popularity by 2.7 per cent, accounting for a fifth (19.6 per cent) of first-time buyer homes. 

A third (33 per cent) of recent Gen Z buyers², aged 18 to 27, said they bought a ‘forever home’ so that they wouldn’t have to move. Similarly, nearly three in 10 (27 per cent) of all recent buyers said they intend to stay in their new home for at least 10 years.

When choosing a property, individuals at different life stages tend to prioritise certain features, but this really does depend on the area buyers are purchasing in. Nearly half (49 per cent) of those aged 44 to 59, and 40 per cent of Millennial homeowners said they prioritised having a garden or outdoor space. Comparatively, only a third (32 per cent) of Gen Z felt the same. Meanwhile, Gen Z were much more likely to want a dedicated work from home space (28 per cent) compared to 20 per cent of Millennials and just 9 per cent of Gen X.

Borrowers opting for longer mortgage terms to keep costs down

Barclays data also shows an increase in the popularity of 30+ year mortgage terms. Among first-time buyers, these account for 41.3 per cent of purchases, as they are typically younger and so have longer to pay back a mortgage.

When asked about their preferences, nearly four in 10 (37 per cent) mortgage holders feel 30-40-year terms are more desirable than shorter durations because they could mean lower monthly repayments. This comes as four in 10 homeowners (41 per cent) believe their mortgage payments take up too much of their monthly income. On average, homeowners report their mortgage accounts for 27.7 per cent of their take-home pay, up from 26.6 per cent in July.

Call Trinity Financial on 020 7267 9399 to secure a  mortgage to buy a semi-detached or detached house or book a consultation

The information contained within was correct at the time of publication but is subject to change.

Your mortgage is secured on your property. Your property may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage 

Source: Barclays press release