Rates decreasing again!

Just a few weeks from the festivities and a number of lenders are still cutting rates.  Plaudits go to Natwest Intermediary Solutions who cut 87 rates in their Residential and Buy to Let range with the largest being a reduction by a huge 0.91%.  All good news heading into the final stages of the year.

The Council of Mortgage Lenders have released figures confirming that Octobers gross lending figures were up 8% compared to the same time in 2013.  Circa £19bn was lent during the month, compared to £17.5bn a year earlier and up £1bn from this September. If activity here is anything to go by, this will be higher again in November.  Busy times!

The market is experiencing large increases in requests for secured loans.  A secured loan is a 2nd, or subsequent charge, designed for homeowners and which allows the equity in their property to be used as security. Loans are usually between £3.5k and £2.5m. There are usually no 'up-front' fees to find although costs are added to the advance.

Often, customers looking to remortgage to raise additional funds are already on an attractive rate with their lender.  To move away could be costly and they could end up on a much higher interest rate.  Depending on the amount already lent as a mortgage, compared to the value of the property, most lenders will allow a secured loan to be added as additional borrowing.  

And finally, I’ve mentioned it a number of times throughout the year, but make no apology for mentioning it again!  If you have an Interest Only mortgage, do make sure you keep reviewing the options for repaying it back.  For a customer to get to the end of their mortgage term and still owe exactly the same as when they took it out, with no form of repayment apart from selling their property, creates a major headache for the lender, especially when they want their money back!  This will once again be a major part of lenders reviews in 2015, so be on top of your options before the lender calls!  If in doubt, seek professional advice.