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Rise in mortgage products ’cause for optimism’

The number of mortgage products grew by 5.9 per cent in the past week in a sign the market is starting to recuperate, according to technology provider Mortgage Brain.

The number of products available last week stood at 8,044, marking the second consecutive week the number had risen, and up by 488 from the previous week.

The increase was mostly due to the remortgage sector, where product numbers went up by 5.4 per cent, while home mover products increased by 2 per cent, and buy-to-let products fell by 1.9 per cent.

When compared to pre-pandemic levels, the number of mortgage products is still 6,630 – or 45 per cent – lower than the nine week average to March 16, however.

According to Mortgage Brain the latest increase in numbers reflected lenders returning to the market, increasing their LTVs and relaxing some of their criteria.

Last week Nationwide resumed lending up to 85 per cent to new customers. Specialist lender Hodge followed and lifted restrictions on its mortgages, after announcing interim changes to its lending criteria last month.

Mark Lofthouse, CEO of Mortgage Brain, said the rise in product numbers in the past two weeks was “cause for cautious optimism”.

Describing the recent figures as “encouraging”, Mr Lofthouse added that “we could be at the end of the dramatic week on week reductions”.

Kevin Dunn, director at Furnley House, added: “Last week we thankfully saw the return to the market of some higher loan to value deals from some of the bigger lenders. Hopefully this will have a ripple effect to give other lenders the confidence to return more products to the market too.

“A higher increase in remortgage products makes sense, as often these are easier to complete without having to have a physical valuation.

“There are definitely some green shoots to suggest the market is slowly coming back.”

By Chloe Cheung

Source: FT Adviser

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Mortgage lenders temporarily restrict products on offer

Mortgage lenders are temporarily restricting the products on offer as the impact of coronavirus hits the market.

Borrowers who have lower deposits saved may find themselves particularly affected.

Lloyds Banking Group has temporarily withdrawn new mortgage and re-mortgage products with a loan-to-value (LTV) ratio of over 60% across its broker channels – Halifax Intermediaries, Scottish Widows Bank and BM Solutions.

It said customers can still apply for a mortgage directly online as normal with Halifax and Lloyds Bank.

Product transfer and further advance products remain unchanged and customers with existing mortgage offers have been granted an additional three months to complete their home purchase or re-mortgage at the agreed mortgage rate.

Regrettably it has been necessary to withdraw a further selection of products across our residential and buy-to-let ranges.

Barclays

Meanwhile, Barclays said it has had to withdraw some products, although it said a number of lower deposit deals remain available.

A statement from Barclays said: “Regrettably it has been necessary to withdraw a further selection of products across our residential and buy-to-let ranges.

“This action has been taken to support us in managing the flow of applications into our UK underwriting teams following the closure of our key offshore sites.

“At the same time it enables our colleagues to provide greater help to those customers requesting mortgage payment holiday arrangements for financial support.”

The Barclays statement added: “We expect to launch a fresh range of residential and buy-to-let products shortly and we apologise for any inconvenience this causes in the interim.”

Mortgage lenders have already pledged to offer three-month payment holidays to borrowers suffering financial hardship due to coronavirus.

A report released by Zoopla on Thursday predicts that house sales volumes could plunge by as much as 60% over the next three months, compared with the second quarter of 2019, as the market reacts to the impact of Covid-19.

But, while property sales are expected to see a sharp drop-off, Zoopla said house prices are not expected to change materially in the next month or two.

Meanwhile, online buy-to-let mortgage broker Property Master warned that landlords generally may face a tougher struggle to get mortgages.

Angus Stewart, Property Master’s chief executive, said: “Landlords are finding that their borrowing options are being drastically reduced.”

Source: Border Telegraph

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Mortgage product numbers rise by 9.3%

The number of mortgage products available on the market has risen by 9.3% over the past 12 months to a record high of 14,437, according to the latest data from Mortgage Brain.

Within this increase of 1,233 products, remortgage deals saw the strongest growth, with product numbers increasing by 7.4% to a total of 9,718.

Despite the upheaval seen in the buy-to-let sector in recent years, the number of products for landlords to choose from has still grown by 4.5% since February 2019 to 4,263.

Product numbers rose across all LTV bands, with deals available at an LTV of 70% or more seeing the sharpest uplift.

There are 9,350 deals to choose from at this level, an increase of 15.1% since February 2019.

At the other end of the scale, the number of products available to borrowers at 90% LTV has grown by 3.2% over this time period.

Looking over a three-year period the rise in products is even more significant, with the total number of mortgage deals on the market jumping by 72.7%.

This rise is most pronounced in buy-to-let, with product numbers rising by 2,007 (89%).

Mark Lofthouse, chief executive officer of Mortgage Brain, said: “Mortgage borrowers are the big beneficiaries of the heightened competition within the mortgage market now, with a greater level of choice than ever before.

“What’s more, this increase isn’t limited to a single area of the market, with products of all types and across all LTV bands seeing an uplift over the last year.

“The sheer number of deals to choose from demonstrates the value provided by mortgage brokers in helping their clients navigate these competitive waters.

“But they too need to think carefully about what technology they can use to help them sift through the many home loans lenders have on offer.”

By Jessica Nangle

Source: Mortgage Introducer