BARCLAYS
Important Barclays Service Improvement
We are fully committed to improving your experience of doing business with us.
Earlier this year we announced the expansion of our LiveChat Intermediary Mortgage Experts’ team within our Liverpool, Sunderland and Glasgow sites and in June we introduced the option of referring brokers directly to Underwriters for new and complex cases that cannot be resolved through our mortgage team alone.
Next up – Amending an existing application – pre contract mortgage changes (PCVs)
We are now pleased to share with you a further development with both our LiveChat and telephone support teams now able to make amendments to submitted applications.
We will still need you to upload a Mortgage Application Change Form but if this needs to be actioned urgently, please connect with us and we’ll make the changes there and then.
We are able to complete most changes, including amending commitments, employment type and income, purchase price and loan amount/ deposit, product selection, and more.
Changes to personal details will need to be reviewed by our KYC team, but we can help move this on if it is urgent.
Please remember a change can only be performed if a Mortgage Application Change Form is on file and fully completed. We may also need supporting documents in order to complete the PCV.
Where to go for help.
You can access our LiveChat service from the Intermediary hub. Please use this for: –
- Case updates – including signing off basic income documents
- Urgent PCV changes
- Assistance in submitting a new application and using our online systems
- New business, product, and policy enquiries – where a call back from an underwriter can be arranged if the enquiry is complex.
You can call our support team on 0345 073 3330*. Please use this for: –
- Urgent PCV changes
- Assistance in submitting a new application and using our online systems
- New business, product and policy enquiries – where we can transfer you to an underwriter if the enquiry is complex.
Looking ahead
We hope you are feeling a positive impact because of the changes introduced this year.
Your feedback would indicate this as you rated our Live Chat service 4.7 stars out of 5 last month. Please continue to leave us your feedback to enhance our service further.
We are determined to bring you on this journey of improvement with us and are committed to keeping you informed every step of the way.
Thank you for your continued support.
Hodge
We’ve enhanced our pensions drawdown criteria to maximise affordability
Everywhere we look we see averages rising. The price of fuel, household bills, monthly mortgage repayments. Even the cost of a cucumber is up a cool 50% within just 12 months.
Another stark rise is the number of people expected to still be paying off a mortgage well into retirement age. At the tail end of 2022 unbiased reported one in eight retirees were still paying off their mortgage. Six months later the Financial Times reported this as one in six.
To further support the growing number of later life customers we’ve reviewed our lending criteria for our 50+ and RIO mortgages and enhanced our criteria for pension drawdown.
Zephyr Homeloans
Let’s talk about partnership incorporation
The Zephyr team has launched a new video to add to this year’s ‘Let’s Talk’ series: Let’s Talk About Partnership Incorporation. The video provides useful information on how landlords can move their properties from individual names to a limited company, without the liability of stamp duty and CGT. It’s only just over 2 minutes long, so why not watch it now? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3tno3kS-IDM&t=2s
Crystal Specialist Finance
Cash buyers are picking up property bargains
Recent research has revealed a surge in cash buyers, buying property. Up 56% year on year.
This is being driven by sellers specifically wanting a cash buyer to speed up the process in a falling property market, to secure the best price, but to also avoid chains and the prospect of the sale falling through.
If you have clients that are looking to pick up a bargain as property prices dip, bridging finance could be the ideal solution. It can be arranged in a matter of days and effectively makes your client a cash buyer, enabling them to negotiate as one.
Bridging could also be the right solution for a range of clients – from homebuyers to professional investors. Here are 3 scenarios where bridging could be the answer for your clients.
Home movers who can pick up a property bargain but haven’t yet sold their home.
Here bridging can used to secure their new home, effectively making them cash buyers and allowing the time to sell their current home for the right price. Once the sale goes through, then they can exit the bridge.
Professional investors at auction.
Bridging is ideal for buying at auction because high street lenders don’t support this market, and neither will they lend on uninhabitable property. Once the property is renovated, the finance can be switched to a longer term deal and the bridge exited.
Homeowners that need to raise finance.
Did you know that second charge bridging can be used in a wide range of scenarios? If clients need to raise capital to perhaps renovate their home before sale and maybe clear debts at the same time – then a second charge bridge can be used without disturbing a low rate, fixed term deal already in place. Once the property is sold, again the bridge can be exited.
Bridging finance is becoming an increasingly popular option to get deals completed quickly and is cost effective – with rates from just 0.68% p.m. with a 2% product fee.
So, to get your deals completed in days, why not send us the details right now using our digital HUB? It will only take you a few minutes and you can book a call with one of our underwriters at the same time. In fact, you could be speaking to one of our mortgage experts within the hour!
Vida Homeloans
Criteria wrap-up: Income & Affordability
We’ve made a whole bunch of criteria enhancements so far this year to help you help more customers. Here’s a wrap-up of the enhancements we’ve made around income and affordability for residential applications.
Summary of Changes
Income
- Zero hours and piecework contractors accepted with 12 months income evidence
- 75% allowance towards income from tips (TRONC)
- CIS Income Evidence can now be through SA302 and payslips
- Evidence of income up to 18 months old (rather than 12 months) may be acceptable
Affordability
- Up to 6 x Loan to Income (LTI) on all residential products (affordability assessed)
- Child Benefit, Guardians Allowance and Child Tax Credits considered up to 100%
- Greater support network allowed for Joint Borrower, Sole Proprietor
Let’s get life moving for you and your customers.
Take a look at all the latest changes using the button below.
LendInvest
Refurbishment finance and Buy-to-Let landlords: what it has to offer
Buy-to-Let in the ‘new normal’, as we keep calling it will be about offering high quality homes to meet the record levels of rental demand, while also meeting the increasing regulatory requirements being set down by the government.
This comes in many forms, the Renters Reform Bill is placing an emphasis on long-term lets, and supporting tenants to make their rental properties their home.
EPC changes are increasing the environmental standards for all rental properties – and in an environment where energy prices have risen sharply, it is more important than ever for homes to be efficient for landlords to save themselves or their tenants money on running their properties.
See our refurbishment and Buy-to-Let products on our intermediaries page.
Kent Reliance for Intermediaries
Updates to Kent Reliance for Intermediaries’ valuation fee scale and ICR criteria
Important update
Kent Reliance for Intermediaries want to let you know that we’re making some updates to our valuation fee scale and ICR criteria effective from Saturday 12 August.
- Valuation fee scales – Updated fees will be available on our website from Saturday 12 August
- Rental cover – ICR increasing from 160% to 175% for personal ownership buy to let applications across:
- HMO/multi-let/student lets with seven or more rooms
- Freehold block/titles of land with seven to ten residential units or multiple houses
To allow us to make this change, our broker portal will be unavailable throughout Saturday 12 August.
If you have any questions, please speak to your business development manager, or contact our broker liaison team on 01634 888276 or using Live Chat and we’ll be happy to help.
Paymentshield
SCHOOLS OUT, LEARNING’S IN
Although school might be out for the kids, that doesn’t mean the learning has to stop!
Paymentshield’s GI Academy is filled with educational modules to support your knowledge and further support your GI conversations with clients. With almost 10 hours of CPD accredited learning, there’s plenty to keep you busy over the summer.
GI Academy summer school starts today
With expertly crafted modules to choose from, why not set aside some time and do one module per week and boost your GI knowledge.
Each module is normally broken down into three chapters covering different elements of the module topic, after completing our product based modules, you can check your understanding in our tests area at the end.
The available modules include:
- An introduction to GI – shining a light on how important discussing GI with every client is
- Paymentshield Proposition – modules focussing on Home Insurance, Landlord’s Insurance as well as how to get the most out of Adviser Hub
- Sales Techniques – this module covers techniques used by successful advisers to help win client business
- Sales Processes – learn about relevant processes, opportunities, tools and resources
Further support
Outside of the core learning modules, you can also access Paymentshield’s learning library filled with a selection of eBooks and whitepapers ranging from “GI specialists’ pearls of wisdom” to competing with the internet to win business. Alongside the library, the dedicated events area allows you to watch back Paymentshield’s latest webinars, including “The value of your advice” and “Paymentshield’s new quote journey”.
Both the library and events section will allow for additional CPD hours, which count towards your annual 15-hour requirement.
Bank of Ireland UK Intermediaries
Bank of Ireland for Intermediaries working with us hub is now available
Working with Bank of Ireland for Intermediaries is now even easier. Check out their new working with us hub, where you can find the support you need all in one place!
Their new hub is packed with information to help, wherever you are in your application journey.
It will guide you to the right place for help with:
- Pre-application/new application queries
- Online applications and submitting business
- Cases in progress and case updates
- Services for existing customers.
Take a look at their new working with us hub today.
The Nottingham for Intermediaries
WE NOW ACCEPT THE SALE OF MORTGAGE PROPERTY AS A REPAYMENT VEHICLE FOR INTEREST-ONLY MORTGAGES!
The ongoing cost of living crisis continues to bite hard and with thousands of fixed term deals coming to an end this year, many households are facing the prospect of unaffordable monthly mortgage repayments.
As a mutual, we want to do everything we can to help borrowers and we believe our latest criteria change will give your customers a great option to make their monthly mortgage payments more manageable.
What’s new?
Borrowers with at least £200k equity in their property (£300k in London and the South East) can now take out an interest-only mortgage and pay back the sum at the end of their mortgage term using proceeds from the sale of the property.
This means they’ll no longer require a separate repayment vehicle, such as a pension plan lump sum, stocks and shares ISA or the sale of an investment property or second home.
Borrowers also have the flexibility to use a combination of repayment and interest-only methods.
Key details
- SOMP as primary repayment method: Up to 60% LTV
- Part repayment and part interest only: Interest-only element up to 80% LTV and can use more than one repayment method but SOMP part has maximum of 60% LTV
- Interest-only, using additional repayment vehicle: Up to 80% LTV on interest-only using one of our other stated repayment vehicles or SOMP up to 60% LTV, PLUS one of our stated repayment options
- No minimum income requirement
Visit our website to find out more.
