Big demand for advice in BTL remortgage market – Cleary

According to research by BVA BDRC on behalf of Precise Mortgages, more than one in four landlords plan to remortgage over the next year.

Landlords with more than four properties were most likely to remortgage at 35 per cent compared to 19 per cent of those with one to three properties.

What’s the reason behind so many landlords considering whether to refinance?

Economic and political uncertainty is resulting in many property owners battening down the hatches and adopting a wait and see strategy before making decisions about the future.

It’s worth remembering, too, that remortgage activity is cyclical and depends on the maturity date of fixed-term deals, meaning that what happens now is determined by borrower behaviour in the past.

Broker opportunity

The recent spike can be explained by a surge in two-year fixed rate deals in 2016 and 2017, with those fixes now coming to an end.

Since then, low interest rates and an extremely competitive market have seen BTL mortgage rates drop nearly as low as residential rates.

Faced with such uncertainty and a choice of low-cost products, it’s no wonder that so many landlords are taking advantage and locking into new deals.

Our research found that, of the landlords who said they were planning to remortgage in the next year, 62 per cent would use the services of a broker to find the product they needed.

What this highlights is the number of opportunities for brokers prepared to talk to their customers about remortgaging and to help them secure the best deals available.

With so many landlords looking to refinance, whether it’s for some security in these uncertain times or because they’re nearing the end of their term and want to secure a better rate, it’s up to all of us to ensure they can continue to secure the remortgage they need.