West One Loans updates second charge self-employed criteria and adds deals

The company has brought out a limited edition Apex 0 products, which is for borrowers with good credit profiles but may have an occasional payment blip, for self-employed borrowers, with minimum income requirement of £15,000.

The standard minimum income is usually £40,000, which will allow more borrowers to access lower priced products.

The lender’s three-year fixed rate options are available for Apex 0 and Apex 1 borrowers. Rates begin from 8.19 per cent.

Apex 1 borrowers are borrowers with a less than perfect credit score who may have some historical credit histories.

The green products are eligible for borrowers with “slight adverse credit histories” buying properties with an EPC rating between A and C. Pricing starts from 8.59 per cent.

Marie Grundy (pictured), managing director of residential mortgages and second charges at West One Loans, said: “We believe that demand for second charge loans will remain strong over the next few years. Up until recently, homeowners were able to take advantage of record low five-year fixed rates.

“Preserving these preferential rates of interest will become increasingly important, which means more borrowers could benefit from considering the option of a second charge mortgage should they wish to capital raise during the fixed rate period.”

She added that with 1.8 million borrowers coming to the end of their deal in 2023, demand for product transfers will grow and consequently the demand second charge will grow with brokers to “address further borrowing needs for their clients”.

“We want to ensure we have a range that is suited to as many borrowers as possible who want access to finance but don’t want to disturb their original mortgage. Hence that is why we decided to have a refresh of our range to ensure that it is in tune with borrowers’ changing requirements,” Grundy said.