Specialist Lending Solutions

1 week ago | mortgagesolutions.co.uk | Anna Sagar

Newcastle Building Society has lowered shared ownership rates by up to 0.55% to help more borrowers get onto the property ladder. Newcastle Building Society will offer a two-year fixed rate priced at 4.75%. This comes with a £999 fee, 10% overpayments and early repayment charges of 2% in the first year then 1% in the following term. The deals are available to those with a maximum household income of up to £80,000, which rises to £90,000 in London.

1 week ago | mortgagesolutions.co.uk | Anna Sagar

The average two-year fixed rate at 60% loan to value (LTV) for those with a 40% deposit is cheaper than the average five-year fixed rate. The average two-year fixed rate at 60% LTV is 4.18%, while the average five-year fixed rate at the same LTV tier is 4.19%. These are weekly drops of 0.07% and 0.03% respectively, with the two-year fixed rate down 0.49% and the five-year fixed rate lower by 0.1% annually.

1 week ago | mortgagesolutions.co.uk | Anna Sagar

Specialist lender West One Loans has lowered first charge residential and buy-to-let (BTL) deals and added select cashback deals. West One Loans’ two-year fixed residential rates have been lowered by up to 0.3%, with pricing beginning from 5.69%. The firm’s five-year fixed rate below 85% loan to value (LTV) will be cut by around 0.15%, with rates starting from 5.74%. West One Loans has introduced a £1,000 cashback remortgage offering five-year fixed rates with a minimum loan size of £75,000.

1 week ago | mortgagesolutions.co.uk | Anna Sagar

The expat buy-to-let (BTL) market is growing in popularity, with first-time landlords and limited company structures proving popular, but there are still challenges in the market. Luther Yeates, head of mortgages at Bristol-based broker firm UK Expat Mortgage, said it was seeing an increase in expat BTL investment. He explained: “More Brits are moving abroad for higher salary opportunities and want to make their extra income work for them back home – in a property market they’re familiar with.

1 week ago | mortgagesolutions.co.uk | Samantha Partington

First-time buyers are forecast to remain the largest demographic purchasing properties this year, yet this is the group facing the biggest barriers to getting a mortgage. Although they face the same set of challenges to homeownership that have been prevalent in the market for a number of years – high house prices mean high deposits, but high rents make it difficult to save – the 2025 cohort of first-time buyers are also an increasingly diverse bunch.