Posts with tag: mortgages

Nationwide announces new measures to combat unfair leasehold terms

Published On: May 4, 2017 at 12:06 pm

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The Nationwide Building Society has announced that it is to launch a new valuation policy for new build leasehold properties. This is aimed a protecting its mortgage members for suspect leasehold terms and spiralling ground rents.

As such, the Nationwide is the first large lender to impose more transparent lending conditions on these sorts of property.

Valuations

For valuation purposes for all new mortgage applications on new builds received from 11th May 2017, the minimum acceptable lease term will be 125 years for flats and 250 years for houses.

What’s more, the maximum acceptable starting ground rent on all new build leasehold properties will be limited to 0.1% of the overall property value.

Terms of the agreement state that the ground rent must be reasonable at all times during the lease. Doubling of rent every five, ten or fifteen years will not be permitted without good reason.

Unfair leasehold terms and increasing rents have recently seen much media attention and political criticism.

Nationwide announces new measures to combat unfair leasehold terms

Nationwide announces new measures to combat unfair leasehold terms

Safeguarding

Robert Stevens, Nationwide’s Head of Property Risk, Data and Strategy noted: ‘As a mutual building society that looks to protect its members, we have decided to make changes to the way we value new build properties on a leasehold basis. We are doing this to address the practice of using leasehold tenure where this is unnecessary, particularly for new build houses, and to ensure that onerous leasehold terms, including ground rents, are properly considered and controlled in order to safeguard our mortgage members.’[1]

‘Nationwide is taking a proactive, leading position on this issue to address a significant risk facing our members and to challenge what we believe to be poor practice in the new build market,’ he added.[1]

[1] http://www.propertyreporter.co.uk/property/nationwide-announce-new-measures-to-combat-unfair-leasehold-practices.html

 

Lender Targets High Net Worth Buy-to-Let Investors with New Range

Published On: May 4, 2017 at 10:03 am

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Lender Targets High Net Worth Buy-to-Let Investors with New Range

Lender Targets High Net Worth Buy-to-Let Investors with New Range

Specialist mortgage lender Investec Private Banking is hoping to attract more high net worth buy-to-let investors with a new range of buy-to-let mortgages.

The selection of two, three, four and five-year fixed rate buy-to-let mortgage products on offer have been linked to Investec bank’s base rate, rather than the three-month LIBOR.

The fixed rate deals, available to individual landlords and those investing through a limited company structure, feature rates starting from 2.69% at 50% loan-to-value (LTV), and are available up to 70% LTV.

The buy-to-let base rate tracker product currently has rates starting from 2.25% over Investec bank’s base rate of 0.25% at 50% LTV, with rates also available up to 70% LTV.

A Business Development Manager at Investec Private Banking, Peter Izard, comments on the new range aimed at high net worth landlords: “We’re delighted to be expanding our buy-to-let range by offering brokers and their clients a choice of competitive fixed rates or trackers linked to Investec bank base rate.

“Our proposition is designed to appeal to high net worth borrowers, particularly those looking to acquire rental property in the higher value prime central London and South East property markets.”

The high net worth range follows an announcement from Paragon Mortgages yesterday, which included details of its updated buy-to-let range, with longer term planning in mind.

Landlords – including high net worth individuals – thinking of investing in the buy-to-let sector must be aware of the Government’s reduction in tax relief on mortgage interest and other finance costs, which is currently being gradually introduced.

Some basic rate taxpayers may be forced into the higher tax bracket as a result of the changes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Paragon Updates Buy-to-Let Range with Longer Term in Mind

Published On: May 3, 2017 at 9:09 am

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Paragon Updates Buy-to-Let Range with Longer Term in Mind

Paragon Updates Buy-to-Let Range with Longer Term in Mind

Paragon Mortgages has updated its buy-to-let range with longer term products in mind, for both property purchases and remortgages.

The fixed rate products, which are available to individual landlords and limited companies, include two and five-year fixed rate deals for self-contained units, Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) and multi-unit blocks (MUB).

As landlords continue to put longer term plans in place – with the phasing in of the Government’s reduction in mortgage interest tax relief now underway – highlights of the updated range include two five-year fixed rate products and a five-year stepped fixed rate deal.

Available from today is a five-year fixed rate product at 3.75%, with a 1.50% product fee at 75% loan-to-value (LTV) for single self-contained units, and a five-year fixed rate deal at 3.85%, with a 1.50% product fee at 75% LTV for HMOs and MUB.

The five-year stepped fixed rate product is at 3-4%, with a 2% product fee at 75% LTV for each property type.

Interest coverage ratios on these products are unchanged, starting at 125% at 4%, graduated to reflect each landlord’s individual tax status.

In addition to these new longer term offerings, the specialist lender’s range of shorter term, two-year fixed rate products has also been refreshed, with highlights including a two-year fix at 3.20% for lending up to 65% LTV, and another at 3.30% for lending up to 75% LTV.

The Managing Director of Paragon Mortgages, John Heron, comments on the updated range: “Our range of mortgage products is designed with a diverse market in mind, catering for different types of landlords with individual requirements.

“With the tax changes now being phased in, and continued challenges for landlords over the long term, these products support long term planning and reflect the trend we’ve seen of a preference towards longer term fixed rates.”

The Bank of Mum and Dad is Funding 23% More Purchases than Last Year

Published On: May 2, 2017 at 9:55 am

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The bank of mum and dad has leant 23% more for their children’s property purchases over the past year, which highlights a symptom of the UK’s broken housing market, according to research released by Legal & General (L&G) and Cebr.

The rise in funding by the bank of mum and dad emphasises the supply-side crisis in the UK property market, and the critical need to build more homes across all tenures.

The research found that the bank of mum and dad will lend over £6.5 billion in 2017 – up from £5 billion in 2016, providing deposits for more than 298,000 mortgages and helping their children purchase homes worth £75 billion.

The Bank of Mum and Dad is Funding 23% More Purchases than Last Year

BThe Bank of Mum and Dad is Funding 23% More Purchases than Last Year

The bank of mum and dad is now on par with the ninth largest mortgage lender in the UK – up from ten last year – and will be involved in 26% of all property transactions that take place in the UK market this year.

In 2016, a third of prospective homeowners received financial support to buy a property from friends and family. In 2017, that figure jumps to almost half (42%). The amount of assistance has risen from an average of £17,500 in 2016 to £21,600 in 2017 – an increase of 23%.

The research found that millennials are the biggest recipients of bank of mum and dad funding, with 79% of funds going to people aged under 30-years-old.

The study believes that the bank of mum and dad will fund less purchases in 2017 than in 2016 – a 2.5% decrease – from 305,900 to 298,300, but only because overall housing market transaction volumes are down.

Of all bank of mum and dad funding, 76% is used for the deposit, while just 4% goes solely to mortgage payments.

Parents in the South West are the most generous, providing £30,000 of financial support per transaction on average – even more than London (£29,400). Welsh parents were found to give the least – an average of £12,500.

Good quality, well-connected housing is critical to supporting the UK’s economic position and fuelling growth. If people cannot find affordable housing options that support a good quality lifestyle in places that they want to live, they will go elsewhere and take their skills with them.

L&G is playing its part in housing creation, backing a fast growing pipeline of over 70,000 new homes over the next five to ten years and looking to help provide the UK’s population with high quality, affordable living at all stages in their life cycle. This includes investment in Build to Rent projects.

The Head of LGIM Real Assets, Bill Hughes, says: “The growing role of the bank of mum and dad in supporting young people getting onto the housing ladder signifies that the UK property market is simply not building enough homes. This is not sustainable and, as an industry, we need to work together to fix the housing market so that we are providing housing in areas which are well connected and where people want to live. The right approach is to regenerate not just residential housing, but the totality of the built environment of towns and cities in which the homes are built. Infrastructure, local economic growth and jobs are all key to creating thriving communities.”

James Lidgate, the Director of Housing at Legal & General Capital, also comments: “This research further highlights that, as an industry, we need to diversify the housing market in order to keep up with the UK’s housing demands. There is no single solution to housing – it is about all tenures and all forms of construction. Good quality, well-connected housing is critical to supporting the UK’s economic position and fuelling future growth.”

Paragon Bank Finance Delivers Much Needed Housing in London

Published On: April 28, 2017 at 8:38 am

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Paragon Bank is celebrating the delivery of much needed housing in Catford, southeast London through its development finance loans.

Paragon Bank Finance Delivers Much Needed Housing in London

Paragon Bank Finance Delivers Much Needed Housing in London

The housing scheme in London is the result of the first loan the development finance team approved over a year ago.

Since launching in November 2015 with an initial focus on residential projects across London and the South East, Paragon Bank is now funding schemes elsewhere in the country.

The homes in Catford are a result of a 16-month development worth over £1.7m, which has seen a disused office building converted into five mews houses. The terraced properties are aimed at families, and come with three bedrooms and two bathrooms.

Since launching, the development finance team has expanded beyond the South East, and now has sales representatives in both the Midlands and the north of England. The team offers competitive loans ranging from £500,000 to £10m.

The Development Finance Director at Paragon Bank, Fintan O’Riordan, says: “Progress on this development has been excellent and it is great to see the first loan we approved now delivering homes. Small-scale builders and developers have an increasing role to play in helping deliver the housing the country needs, and development finance is key to facilitating this.

“It has also been fantastic to assist a highly experienced developer on this project. Our business is based upon developing meaningful relationships with experienced developers.”

The development at Colbeck Mews, Catford is here on Rightmove: http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-58154038.html

Other features of Paragon Bank’s development finance product include:

  • Interest and fees defined at the outset, with no additional fees for achieving a higher sales figure on final development
  • Finance for up to 80% of development costs for the strongest propositions
  • Competitively priced senior debt funding solutions

Are you looking to get involved in a similar project? Perhaps you could deliver much needed housing in parts of the country that are suffering!

Mortgage Trust Launches Lowest Ever Fixed Rates

Published On: April 25, 2017 at 10:05 am

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Mortgage Trust Launches Lowest Ever Fixed Rates

Mortgage Trust Launches Lowest Ever Fixed Rates

Specialist buy-to-let mortgage provider Mortgage Trust has launched its lowest ever fixed rates.

The three new limited edition products for buy-to-let property purchases and remortgages are being offered at the firm’s lowest ever rates.

These two-year fixed rate products are now available at the lowest rates ever offered by Mortgage Trust.

Addressing a continuing preference amongst buy-to-let landlords for fixed rates, the limited edition products include a two-year fixed rate deal at 1.95% for borrowing up to 75% loan-to-value (LTV). Product fees start at just £495, and each of the limited edition products includes a free valuation.

The mortgage provider is also offering a deal at 2.05%, while a 65% LTV ratio is available.

The Director of Mortgages at Mortgage Trust, John Heron, comments on the new offerings: “There is currently an overwhelming preference for fixed rates, with intermediaries now recommending them in 90% of cases. Half of all fixed rates sold are two-year products – these new fixed rates should therefore present an attractive option for many buy-to-let landlords.”