Barclays cuts select mortgage rates; Accord ups BTL PT pricing – round-up

Barclays cuts select mortgage rates; Accord ups BTL PT pricing – round-up

The changes to its mortgage rates include its two-year fix at 75% loan to value (LTV) with a £999 fee, which will be cut from 4.9% to 4.7%. 

The fee-free Great Escape product at the same tier, also fixed for two years, will be lowered from 5.2% to 4.95%. 

For existing borrowers making a purchase, Barclays will cut the five-year fixed Premier product at 60% LTV with a £699 fee from 4.28% to 4.16%. 

Also for purchase, the standard five-year fix at 60% LTV with a £899 product fee will go down from 4.29% to 4.17%. 

Its standard two-year fixed remortgage with a £999 fee at 75% LTV will decrease from 4.9% to 4.7%, while the corresponding Great Escape option with no fee will fall from 5.2% to 4.95%. 

These changes will apply from 27 March. 

Earlier this month, the bank increased select mortgage rates.

 

Accord increases mortgage rates 

Accord Mortgages has announced rate increases to its buy-to-let (BTL) product transfer deals. 

The changes will apply from 28 March, and the existing range will be withdrawn at 8pm on 27 March. 

Accord Mortgages will be increasing two- and three-year fixed mortgage rates by 0.05%. 

International Women’s Day: The power of allyship – Wager

International Women’s Day: The power of allyship – Wager

Within this, International Women’s Day is a global celebration of the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women.

This year’s theme is Inspire Inclusion, emphasising the importance of diversity and empowerment through all aspects of society.

This will result in a huge number and variety of female voices being raised and heard across the world, but this is not only a platform for women. In order to successfully accelerate this conversation and actions, all voices need to be raised – especially male voices – when it comes to harnessing the power of allyship. 

 

What is allyship? 

Allyship is being consciously inclusive. It helps colleagues to feel respected, involved and connected every day. It means: 

In order to make a real difference, allyship needs to be active, not passive. It can be all too easy to pay lip service, but change-makers act to call things out and use their own platform to try and make a difference.

Being an ally to women means putting the mirror up to yourself, being aware of unconscious biases and remaining curious. We might not ever fully understand the journey, obstacles or prejudices women face, but this only emphasises how well we need to listen. 

This isn’t always easy, and we constantly need to educate ourselves along the way. Here at Barclays, we are fortunate to have a great gender resource group called Win, which exists to encourage, inspire and support women in achieving their career goals and potential through a range of initiatives to increase the representation and decrease the turnover of women at every level of our business. Importantly, both men and women can join Win. 

Such accelerator and development programmes help deliver different learning styles to meet individual requirements, and it’s crucial that all organisations provide the platform for women to receive targeted career and personal development opportunities.

It’s all about achieving equity and providing opportunities to ensure everybody has the same access, the same vision, and the same privileges. However, even though this is improving throughout our industry, this remains an ongoing battle we must all fight.

Going forward, it’s not about lowering the bar but widening the gate, and active allies can play a key role in prising all these gates open, rather than being limited to a select few.

Barclays, Natwest and Clydesdale edge mortgage rates up – round-up

Barclays, Natwest and Clydesdale edge mortgage rates up – round-up

The reductions have been made to purchase-only tracker mortgage rates for existing buy-to-let (BTL) borrowers. 

This includes the two-year deal at 60 per cent loan to value (LTV) with a £1,295 fee. This has been cut from 6.48 per cent to 6.2 per cent. 

The corresponding option at 75 per cent LTV has been reduced from 6.5 per cent to 6.25 per cent. 

Barclays – which reported £22.7bn in gross mortgage lending in 2023 – has also launched a premier exclusive product for residential purchase. This is a three-year fix at 60 per cent LTV with a £999 fee. This has a rate of 4.34 per cent and is available for loans ranging from £5,000 to £2m. 

The lender has increased rates for existing purchase and remortgage products for residential borrowers. 

This includes the two-year fixed purchase mortgage at 60 per cent LTV with a £899 fee, which has risen from 4.39 per cent to 4.54 per cent, and the fee-free option, which has gone up by 0.1 per cent to 4.68 per cent. 

Across higher-LTV deals, the fee-free two-year fixed rate at 90 per cent LTV has been increased from 5.43 per cent to 5.66 per cent. 

Rate increases have also been made to Barclays’ five-year fixes, green mortgages and remortgage options. 

The lender has made changes to its fixed rate early repayment charges (ERCs) so all two-year products are set at two per cent of the balance repaid, three-year products at three per cent, five-year products at four per cent and 10-year products at six per cent. 

 

Natwest 

Natwest has increased rates for existing borrowers by up to 0.1 per cent. 

This applies to two- and five-year fixed switcher products, such as the two-year fix at 60 per cent LTV with no fee. This has risen by 0.05 per cent to 4.99 per cent, while the options with a £495 fee and a £995 fee have gone up by the same amount to 4.89 per cent and 4.69 per cent respectively. 

Increases across its five-year fixed switcher products include the product at 60 per cent LTV with a £995 fee, which has gone up from 4.24 per cent to 4.34 per cent. 

The equivalent options with a £495 fee and no fee have increased by the same amount to 4.44 per cent and 4.54 per cent respectively. 

At 90 per cent LTV, the fee-free five-year fixed switcher rate has increased by 0.05 per cent to 5.44 per cent. 

 

Clydesdale Bank 

Clydesdale Bank has made rate increases across select mortgage products. 

For new and existing residential borrowers, two- and five-year fixed rates at 65 and 75 per cent LTV will rise by up to 0.29 per cent. 

Its two- and five-year fixes for professional borrowers will increase by as much as 0.29 per cent. For BTL borrowers, two-year fixes at 60 per cent LTV will rise by up to 0.06 per cent in rate. 

Elsewhere, Clydesdale Bank will increase select two- and five-year fixed rates for BTL borrowers by as much as 0.45 per cent. 

It has launched exclusive remortgages for residential borrowers, with two- and five-year fixes at 75 to 85 per cent LTV with a £1,499 fee. These have rates starting from 4.54 per cent. 

Clydesdale Bank has launched exclusive residential purchase deals, fixed for two and five years at 75 to 90 per cent LTV. These also have a £1,499 fee and rates start from 4.44 per cent. 

Exclusive large loan products for residential borrowers have also been added, fixed for two or five years at 75 to 90 per cent LTV, with rates beginning at 4.53 per cent. 

Barclays reports £22.7bn in gross mortgage lending in 2023

Barclays reports £22.7bn in gross mortgage lending in 2023

In its latest results, Barclays said that it helped over 103,000 new customers get on or move up the housing ladder during 2023, including 33,000 first-time buyers.

Barclays reported a profit before tax of £2.9bn in 2023, which is an increase from £2.6bn in 2022. This was partially attributed to the higher-interest-rate environment and the “continued investment in our transformation into a next-generation, digitised consumer bank”.

The lender added that its net interest margin (NIM) rose from 2.86 per cent in 2022 to 3.13 per cent in 2023.

The bank added that the average loan to value (LTV) of the mortgage portfolio is 54 per cent, up from 50 per cent LTV in 2022.

The average mortgage LTV of new mortgage lending is 63 per cent, down from 68 per cent in 2022.

Barclays also reported a credit impairment charge of £304m, which is up from £286m in 2022, and it said this was “consistent with low delinquencies in UK cards and high-quality mortgage lending”.

Barclays’ mortgage balances stood at £160.9bn in 2023, a fall from £162.2bn in 2022.

 

Barclays assists 200,000 customers with long rate-switch window

The lender said that, in late 2022, it had made changes to allow customers to rate-switch up to 180 days in advance of their rate ending, helping more than 200,000 customers in 2023 secure a new rate 180 days in advance.

This is ahead of the Mortgage Charter changes introduced in June 2023, the firm said, with its updated system running for eight months at this point.

 

Kensington Mortgages acquisition will ‘enhance product capabilities’

Regarding its Kensington Mortgages acquisition, which it completed last year, the firm said that the acquisition “will broaden our existing mortgage product range, and further enhance our product capabilities”.

It noted that the lender was “serving fast-growing customer groups, including the newly self-employed, contract workers, borrowers with multiple sources of income, and those with a weaker credit history”.

 

Nearly £850m lent on green mortgages

Barclays added in the report that, in 2023, it had lent £845m to Green Home Mortgages customers, a product launched in 2018 for properties with an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating of A or B and expanded to cover buy to let (BTL) in 2022.

Since the inception in 2018, Barclays has lent over £3.5bn to Green Home Mortgages customers.

In 2022, it made 3,719 completions, and overall it has made 15,669 completions since 2018.

Tesco sells banking operations to Barclays

Tesco sells banking operations to Barclays

This follows the news from early last year that the supermarket was considering a sale of its banking arm.

The acquisition and partnership are subject to regulatory approval and expected to complete in the second half of 2024. Once completed, about 2,800 workers in the supermarket’s banking arm, including senior management, will move to Barclays.

The partnership will combine the supermarket’s brand, physical and digital reach with Barclays’ financial services capabilities and expertise in commercial partnerships.

The deal includes Tesco credit cards, loans and savings, but insurance, travel money, gift cards and cash machines will remain with the supermarket.

Under the terms of the agreement, the supermarket will receive annual income for the use of its brand, for growing the customer base through Tesco channels, and as a result of Barclays’ participation in the Clubcard programme.

The deal is worth about £1bn in total, made up of an initial £600m, a further £100m after the settlement of certain regulatory capital amounts, and a previously announced special dividend of £250m paid by Tesco Bank in August 2023.

The supermarket said the majority of this cash will be returned to shareholders in the form of an incremental share buyback.

‘Unlocking greater value’

Ken Murphy, Tesco Group chief executive, said: “Tesco Bank is a strong business that has helped millions of loyal customers to manage their money for more than 25 years. As we look to the future, our aim is to be the best provider of financial services in the UK, with this strategic transaction and partnership with Barclays unlocking greater value for customers and for our business. By working with one of the UK’s leading banks, we can bring customers new and innovative propositions, which will continue to benefit from Tesco Clubcard’s unique insight and digital capabilities.”

C.S. Venkatakrishnan, Barclays Group chief executive, said: “Barclays is a leading consumer bank in the UK. This strategic relationship with the UK’s largest retailer will help create new distribution channels for our unsecured lending and deposit businesses. We are able to bring our expertise in partnership cards developed over decades in the US to enhance further the highly successful Tesco Clubcard loyalty scheme.

“This partnership is a further demonstration of the investment we continue to make in our UK consumer business. We are looking forward to working closely with the team at Tesco over the coming months to enable a smooth transition and, subject to completion of the transaction, we look forward to welcoming Tesco Bank colleagues and customers to Barclays.”

Barclays changes rates; Skipton trims pricing – round-up

Barclays changes rates; Skipton trims pricing – round-up

The reductions from Barclays apply to its five-year fixed existing mortgages for purchase, such as a five-year fix at 60 per cent loan to value (LTV) where the rate has gone down from 4.39 per cent to 4.09 per cent. This product has a £899 fee. 

At 75 per cent LTV, the corresponding product has been reduced from 4.53 per cent to 4.23 per cent, while at 85 per cent LTV, the equivalent deal has had a rate reduction from 4.92 per cent to 4.62 per cent. 

Barclays has also reduced the rate of its fee-free five-year fix at 55 per cent LTV, from 4.7 per cent to 4.4 per cent, as well as the option at 85 per cent LTV which has gone down from 5.03 per cent to 4.73 per cent. 

It has also made cuts to a green mortgage, premier deal and its mortgage guarantee product. 

 

Barclays rate increases 

Barclays has raised rates across its one and two-year fixes for existing borrowers who are purchasing or remortgaging by up to 0.3 per cent. 

This includes the two-year fix at 60 per cent LTV with a £899 fee, which is now 4.39 per cent up from 4.09 per cent as well as the equivalent at 75 per cent LTV which has risen by the same amount to 4.6 per cent. 

The bank has also hiked rates across its customer reward range, select premier products, green mortgages and its mortgage guarantee deal. 

 

Skipton BS makes several rate cuts 

Skipton Building Society has reduced rates across 40 of its mortgages, which will be effective from 31 January. 

Rates will be cut by as much as 0.46 per cent, with the biggest reductions being made to its five-year fixed buy-to-let product at 75 per cent LTV. This has a £2,995 fee and the rate has gone down from 4.95 per cent to 4.49 per cent. 

The mutual has also relaunched its two-year fixed base rate tracker mortgage at 90 per cent LTV for new residential borrowers. 

Additionally, it has added a pair of two-year fixes at 90 per cent LTV for existing residential customers only with a fee-free and £495 option, with rates of 5.29 per cent and 5.19 per cent respectively. 

There is also a two and five-year fixed mortgage at 60 per cent LTV for existing buy-to-let borrowers with a £995 fee, with rates of 4.79 per cent and 4.31 per cent respectively. 

Barclays flags 40 more bank branches for closure

Barclays flags 40 more bank branches for closure

As part of the latest round of closures, 20 Barclays branches will disappear from the high streets across England, Wales and Scotland, with the majority taking place in 2024.

It follows on from Barclays’ previous list of 20 branches announced for closure on 12 January 2024.

In total, it means 64 branches are confirmed for closure in 2024, six in 2025, while for seven branches, the closure date listed on LINK, the ATM networks catalogue, is ‘TBC’.

Over the course of 2023, Barclays announced 203 locations were to shutter, while in 2022, the banking giant confirmed it would close 132 branches.

At the end of 2022, it had a branch network of 481, falling to 414 by mid-2023.

As with previous branch closure confirmations, Barclays told us it’s down to the shift towards digital banking – either online or via the app – with fewer people interacting in branch.

Digital customers have increased year-on-year to stand at 10.9 million, with nearly four billion app logins a year and over 90% of transactions completed digitally.

 

Barclays: ‘Adapting for customers’

A Barclays spokesperson, said: “As visits to branches continue to fall, we need to adapt to provide the best service for all our customers. Where there is no longer enough demand to support a branch, we maintain an in-person presence though our Barclays Local network, live in over 300 locations, based in libraries, town halls, mobile vans and our banking pods.

“We also support access to cash with our cashback without purchase service, 24-hour deposit-taking ATMs and by working alongside the Post Office and Cash Access UK.”

Barclays cuts resi and BTL rates

Barclays cuts resi and BTL rates

The mortgage rate changes will come into force from tomorrow.

Within its residential purchase-only range, Barclays has made cuts of up to 0.41 per cent. This includes its mortgage guarantee fee-free five-year fixed rate, which has fallen from 6.27 per cent to 5.86 per cent.

The lender’s Springboard five-year fixed rate with no fee at 100 per cent LTV has decreased from 6.29 per cent to 5.99 per cent and at 95 per cent LTV its rate has gone down from 6.24 per cent to 5.95 per cent.

In its remortgage-only range, an example of its rate cuts includes its Great Escape two-year fixed rate with no fee at 60 per cent LTV, which has gone down from 4.81 per cent to 4.51 per cent.

On the purchase and remortgage side, an example of its reduction includes its two-year fixed rate at 60 per cent LTV, which has decreased from 4.8 per cent to 4.34 per cent. It has a £1,999 fee.

Within its buy-to-let range, cuts of around 0.5 per cent have been made to its purchase-only rates. Its two-year fixed rate with £1,295 fee at 75 per cent LTV has gone down from 6.18 per cent to 5.68 per cent.

Buy-to-let remortgage rates have also fallen by around 0.5 per cent. The lender’s two-year fixed remortgage no-fee deal at 60 per cent LTV has decreased from 6.3 per cent to 5.8 per cent.

Buy-to-let purchase and remortgage have also decreased by the same amount. Its two-year fixed rate at 60 per cent LTV with £2,495 fee has reduced from 6.3 per cent to 5.8 per cent.

Cummings to an end: Barclays in Barnard Castle one of 20 branches to close

Cummings to an end: Barclays in Barnard Castle one of 20 branches to close

Barclays made regular appearances on LINK, the ATM network’s list of branch closures in 2023, with the latest 20 kicking off the catalogue for 2024.

They include 16 in England, including in the Barnard Castle district to which former special adviser Dominic Cummings made his ill-advised visit during the pandemic, and four in Wales.

In total in 2023, Barclays announced 203 locations were to shutter, while in 2022, the banking giant confirmed it would close 132 branches.

At the end of 2022, it had a branch network of 481, falling to 414 by mid-2023.

As with previous branch closure confirmations, Barclays noted that the move was down to the shift towards digital banking – either online or via the app – with fewer people interacting in branch.

Digital customers have increased year-on-year to stand at 10.9 million, with nearly four billion app logins a year and over 90 per cent of transactions completed digitally.

A Barclays spokesperson, said: “As visits to branches continue to fall, we need to adapt to provide the best service for all our customers. Where there is no longer enough demand to support a branch, we maintain an in-person presence though our Barclays Local network, live in over 300 locations, based in libraries, town halls, mobile vans and our banking pods. We also support access to cash with our cashback without purchase service, 24-hour deposit-taking ATMs and by working alongside the Post Office and Cash Access UK.”

Alternative ways to continue banking with Barclays

As well as Barclays Local, customers can visit Banking Hubs which provide basic banking services including counter services run by the major banks and the Post Office. There are also dedicated rooms where customers can see community bankers from their own bank for more complicated matters that require specialist knowledge or privacy.

According to LINK there are 31 banking hubs open, including in Acton, Brixham, Cambuslang, Carmoustie, Cottingham, Rochford and Troon.

Barclays reduces rates by up to 50bps

Barclays reduces rates by up to 50bps

This headline rate applies to the bank’s premier two-year fixed product with a £899 fee, available at 60 per cent loan to value (LTV). This was lowered from 4.6 per cent. 

There is a two-year fix at 60 per cent LTV with a £899 fee reduced from 4.62 per cent to 4.17 per cent, as well as a two-year fix at 75 per cent LTV with an £899 product fee, down from 4.7 per cent to 4.2 per cent. 

Other notable changes include a fee-free two-year fixed deal at 60 per cent LTV, which has been cut from 4.76 per cent to 4.36 per cent and the corresponding option at 75 per cent LTV, reduced from 4.86 per cent to 4.38 per cent. 

Barclays has also lowered rates across its green, springboard and mortgage guarantee ranges. 

This includes a fee-free green home product, fixed for two years at 75 per cent LTV, which now has a rate of 4.28 per cent down from 4.76 per cent. For the equivalent product at 90 per cent LTV, there has been a 0.5 per cent reduction in the rate to 5.03 per cent. 

For borrowers using the mortgage guarantee scheme, Barclays has reduced the two-year fix at 95 per cent LTV from 5.8 per cent to 5.5 per cent, while the five-year fix has been cut from 6.67 per cent to 6.27 per cent. 

The changes apply from 10 January.