Thankfully, I wasn’t too far from the mark as intermediaries across the country saw a number of lenders light a fire under the buy-to-let (BTL) market with product numbers rocketing and some sparkling deals on offer.
Let’s start with some bangers from the more mainstream lenders.
NatWest and Barclays
NatWest has reduced selected buy-to-let products by up to 84bps.
In addition, the lender has reintroduced free valuations for intermediary purchase products, reduced its interest coverage ratio (ICR) and increased the maximum age at the end of term for buy-to-let applications.
Barclays has also made cuts on 14 BTL products by up to 35 basis points on purchase and remortgage deals.
The largest cut is on its five-year fix for large loans between £1m and £2m in value at up to 60 per cent loan to value (LTV) with a £2,495 fee, which is being reduced to 2.1 per cent.
Meanwhile, for standard loans between £35,000 and £1m, the two-year fix at up to 60 per cent LTV with no fee has fallen from 2.39 per cent to 2.15 per cent.
Interestingly, customers who have a residential mortgage with Barclays will now be allowed to let their property on a short-term basis after the bank made changes to its mortgage policy.
Borrowers can list a room, or their whole property, on online platforms to be let out for a maximum of 90 days a year but for no longer than 30 days to the same person.
Bluestone and Kent Reliance
Moving on to specialist lenders, positive news has emerged from Bluestone Mortgages as it has just announced the resumption of 85 per cent LTV lending on residential and buy-to-let products.
Kent Reliance for Intermediaries has extended its offering within its houses in multiple occupation (HMO) and multi-unit freehold blocks (MUFB) range to include 10 bedrooms or units.
The decision stems from wanting to create greater choice for its intermediary partners who are seeking solutions for larger HMO and MUFB cases.
Products within its HMO and MUFB range, starting from 3.79 per cent, are available up to 75 per cent LTV to £3m on one to six bedrooms or units, and up to 70 per cent LTV to £1.5m on seven to 10 bedrooms or units.
In addition, the lender is accepting limited company structures and those with less than perfect credit profiles.
TML and HTB
The Mortgage Lender (TML) has released a special edition £30m five-year fixed rate buy-to-let tranche with rates starting at 3.49 per cent for a mortgage at 70 per cent LTV.
It has also launched a Mini MUB product for blocks of two units with a minimum loan of £150,000 and a five-year initial fixed rate of 3.74 per cent at 75 per cent LTV.
The special edition and Mini MUB products are whole of market for purchase or remortgage and available to individuals and limited company applicants with a 1.5 per cent completion fee and a £150 application fee.
Hampshire Trust Bank (HTB) has launched a large loan buy-to-let offering.
The product is a 60 per cent LTV five-year fix at 3.25 per cent. It is only available for buy-to-let purposes and the minimum loan amount is £1m, with the maximum being set at £15m.
Competitive Christmas rates
Finally, The Mortgage Works (TMW) has also reduced rates on its limited company 75 per cent LTV range by up to 0.25 per cent.
The two-year fixed has been reduced from 3.39 per cent to 3.19 per cent with a £1,995 fee, while the £995 fee alternative has seen a reduction of 25 basis points to 3.34 per cent.
Across its five-year fixes, the product with a £1,995 fee is now 3.64 per cent, down by 0.25 per cent while the deal with a £995 fee has been reduced by the same amount to 3.74 per cent.
All the products also have free valuations.
There are some highly competitive rates on show here, and it will be interesting to see what kind of opportunities are being presented in the weeks leading up to Christmas.
