Latest news with #AaronStrutt
Daily Mirror
18-07-2025
- Business
- Daily Mirror
Lloyds Bank launches lowest mortgage rate on the market but there's a catch
Lloyds Bank is launching a two-year fix at 3.69 per cent - the lowest rate on the market. But it does come with certain conditions that customers must follow Lloyds Bank is delivering a significant boost to mortgage customers. The high street lender has unveiled a two-year fixed rate at 3.69 per cent, marking the most competitive deal currently available, though the offer comes with certain conditions. Whilst Lloyds has introduced this offer, it has waned that eligibility is restricted to Club Lloyds account holders exclusively. The package includes a £999 arrangement fee and requires a 40 per cent deposit, available solely to existing or prospective Club Lloyds members. Commenting on the mortgage rate battle, Aaron Strutt from Trinity Financial said: "It shows how keen banks and building societies are to attract borrowers. If you can get a sub-four per cent rate I still think you are doing pretty well." He added: "I would not bet against rates being closer to 3.5 per cent over the coming months, but as we have seen so many times before almost anything can happen." Nick Mendes from John Charcol said: "The latest inflation figures were a little wobble, but given the employment figures the economy needs support. An August base rate cut is still priced in overwhelmingly." Lewis Shaw from Shaw Financial Services advised: "If my mortgage deal were due to expire within the next three months, I would take action this week." According to Lloyds' website: "You must have a Club Lloyds current account open before you take out your mortgage. This includes our Silver and Platinum Club accounts. "There is a £5 monthly fee to maintain the Club Lloyds current account, unless you pay in £2,000 or more each month. Offer can be changed or withdrawn at any time. Product conditions may apply." The offer is available to Club Lloyds current account holders who are either first-time buyers or looking to re-mortgage, reports Birmingham Live. It's also open to those moving house, switching to a new deal, or investing in buy-to-let properties. The initial move is to utilise a mortgage calculator to check out the most recent products and rates on offer.
Scottish Sun
09-07-2025
- Business
- Scottish Sun
Boost for first-time buyers as new rules come in to make it easier to get a bigger mortgage
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) FIRST-TIME buyers could find it easier to get a bigger mortgage under new lending rules coming in this week. Mortgage lenders are to give added flexibility to lend more to borrowers, thanks to changes approved by financial watchdogs. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 1 A relaxation of lending rules could make it easier for first-time buyers to get on the housing ladder Credit: PA Currently, the number of new mortgage loans where buyers can borrow 4.5 times their salary or more is capped at 15% of lenders' total mortgages per year. But from this Friday, July 11, only larger mortgage lenders that issue over £150million in residential mortgage loans annually will be subject to the rule. The threshold was previously £100million, meaning people who wish to borrow up to 4.5 times their salary to buy a home will now have a better chance of being able to borrow from smaller lenders. The number of lenders exempt from the cap is expected to rise to around 80 from Friday, up from 70. Mortgage experts have suggested that the new rules could benefit younger and first-time buyers, who tend to have a higher loan-to-income ratio. Aaron Strutt, of broker Trinity Financial, told The Sun there is "no doubt" that the new rules will "take some pressure off smaller lenders". "These income stretch mortgages often make the difference between someone buying a house or a flat, or a property in a nicer area. "It tends to be younger people borrowing over five times their salary to get on the property ladder," he added. "At the moment, borrowers really need to do their homework to get the most generous loan sizes at the most competitively priced rates." The cap, known as the loan-to-income flow limit, has been in place since 2014, with changes to the rules announced by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) this week. 5 things to check before applying for a mortgage It comes after the Bank of England's Financial Policy Committee recommended a change to the rules last November, saying the £100million cap had not kept pace with the UK's economic growth. A joint statement from the FCA and PRA read: 'The updated recommendation addresses the impact of inadvertent regulatory tightening due to growth in the UK economy since the threshold was first implemented. "It increases the value of residential mortgage lending that small lenders can extend before becoming subject to the LTI flow limit, thereby contributing to the regulators' secondary objectives on competition, and therefore competitiveness and growth.' However, some experts warned against the mortgage lending landscape returning to the 'Wild West' seen during the financial crisis. Emma Jones, of said: "Affordability is an ongoing issue for many prospective buyers so it's unsurprising that we have reached this point. "However, we have to be careful that we do not revert to the Wild West that was the mortgage world in the years leading up to the Global Financial Crisis. 'More loans at higher loan-to-income levels will be welcomed by borrowers but it should not come at the cost of putting people at risk.' Which lenders are offering help to first-time buyers? David Hollingworth of L&C Mortgages points out that while the new rules will only benefit smaller lenders, some major banks and building societies are offering more help to first-time buyers. "Many of the bigger lenders have also looked at how they can better support first-time buyers by lending more in the right circumstances," he said. Nationwide, for example, offers Helping Hand mortgages to support those who don't think they can borrow enough to afford their first home. The scheme allows eligible first-time buyers to borrow up to six times their income with either a five or 10-year fixed rate mortgage. Halifax offers a similar scheme with its First Time Buyer Boost, which allows first-time buyers to borrow 5.5 times their salary. How to get the best deal on a mortgage There are different factors that go into getting the best mortgage rate. Chris Sykes, technical director at broker Private Finance explains what you need to know. Bigger deposit The larger the deposit you have the lower the rates you'll have access to. The different deposit tiers offered by lenders are generally 0-1% deposit, 5%, 10%, 15%, then generally it skips to 25% and finally cash or equity of 40% or more. There are some exceptions in between but these are usually the bands. Lenders then set different rates for each of these tiers, rather than having one rate for a 12% deposit and another for 14%, for example. With a deposit above 40% there is usually no price fluctuation, which means you'd get the same rate with a 50% deposit to a 40% deposit. Keep your credit score healthy A better credit score doesn't necessarily mean more competitive deals, but a negative credit could mean worse deals. For example, there may be some people with not a lot of credit as they've never had a credit card, or loan, will get the exact some deal as someone who has more credit history and a better credit score. However, a bad credit history or score starts to limit your lenders and means you may need to move off high street to a more specialist lender which tends to offer higher rates. If you have poor credit, look for easy ways to improve it. Look six months before your fix ends It's best to look at deals six months before a current rate ends. This might be to just have a chat with a broker and get things moving. It might be that you can get a deal lined up and locked in that protects against movements in interest rates - for example if rates were to go up over the following six months. And you can also then improve the rate within that six months if rates were to go down. How to find a good broker A good mortgage broker is invaluable for navigating the options available to you. The best way to find a good adviser is through personal recommendations, everyone has a friend or family member who will have recently bought or refinanced – ask them who they used and if they were happy with the service. You can also lookup reviews of that person online to find other customer experiences too. is one place where people can offer their reviews. Sort your paperwork IF you are looking to buy or remortgage, contact a broker nice and early, as they can then guide you through what the expectations are from lenders. This gives you plenty of time to make sure your accounts are up to date if you're self-employed and you can see if it is worth filing tax returns early. Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@ Plus, you can join our Sun Money Chats and Tips Facebook group to share your tips and stories
The Sun
09-07-2025
- Business
- The Sun
Boost for first-time buyers as new rules come in to make it easier to get a bigger mortgage
FIRST-TIME buyers could find it easier to get a bigger mortgage under new lending rules coming in this week. Mortgage lenders are to give added flexibility to lend more to borrowers, thanks to changes approved by financial watchdogs. Currently, the number of new mortgage loans where buyers can borrow 4.5 times their salary or more is capped at 15% of lenders' total mortgages per year. But from this Friday, July 11, only larger mortgage lenders that issue over £150million in residential mortgage loans annually will be subject to the rule. The threshold was previously £100million, meaning people who wish to borrow up to 4.5 times their salary to buy a home will now have a better chance of being able to borrow from smaller lenders. The number of lenders exempt from the cap is expected to rise to around 80 from Friday, up from 70. Mortgage experts have suggested that the new rules could benefit younger and first-time buyers, who tend to have a higher loan-to-income ratio. Aaron Strutt, of broker Trinity Financial, told The Sun there is "no doubt" that the new rules will "take some pressure off smaller lenders". "These income stretch mortgages often make the difference between someone buying a house or a flat, or a property in a nicer area. "It tends to be younger people borrowing over five times their salary to get on the property ladder," he added. "At the moment, borrowers really need to do their homework to get the most generous loan sizes at the most competitively priced rates." The cap, known as the loan-to-income flow limit, has been in place since 2014, with changes to the rules announced by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) this week. 5 things to check before applying for a mortgage It comes after the Bank of England 's Financial Policy Committee recommended a change to the rules last November, saying the £100million cap had not kept pace with the UK's economic growth. A joint statement from the FCA and PRA read: 'The updated recommendation addresses the impact of inadvertent regulatory tightening due to growth in the UK economy since the threshold was first implemented. "It increases the value of residential mortgage lending that small lenders can extend before becoming subject to the LTI flow limit, thereby contributing to the regulators' secondary objectives on competition, and therefore competitiveness and growth.' However, some experts warned against the mortgage lending landscape returning to the 'Wild West' seen during the financial crisis. Emma Jones, of said: "Affordability is an ongoing issue for many prospective buyers so it's unsurprising that we have reached this point. "However, we have to be careful that we do not revert to the Wild West that was the mortgage world in the years leading up to the Global Financial Crisis. 'More loans at higher loan-to-income levels will be welcomed by borrowers but it should not come at the cost of putting people at risk.' Which lenders are offering help to first-time buyers? David Hollingworth of L&C Mortgages points out that while the new rules will only benefit smaller lenders, some major banks and building societies are offering more help to first-time buyers. "Many of the bigger lenders have also looked at how they can better support first-time buyers by lending more in the right circumstances," he said. Nationwide, for example, offers Helping Hand mortgages to support those who don't think they can borrow enough to afford their first home. The scheme allows eligible first-time buyers to borrow up to six times their income with either a five or 10-year fixed rate mortgage. Halifax offers a similar scheme with its First Time Buyer Boost, which allows first-time buyers to borrow 5.5 times their salary. How to get the best deal on a mortgage There are different factors that go into getting the best mortgage rate. Chris Sykes, technical director at broker Private Finance explains what you need to know. Bigger deposit The larger the deposit you have the lower the rates you'll have access to. The different deposit tiers offered by lenders are generally 0-1% deposit, 5%, 10%, 15%, then generally it skips to 25% and finally cash or equity of 40% or more. There are some exceptions in between but these are usually the bands. Lenders then set different rates for each of these tiers, rather than having one rate for a 12% deposit and another for 14%, for example. With a deposit above 40% there is usually no price fluctuation, which means you'd get the same rate with a 50% deposit to a 40% deposit. Keep your credit score healthy A better credit score doesn't necessarily mean more competitive deals, but a negative credit could mean worse deals. For example, there may be some people with not a lot of credit as they've never had a credit card, or loan, will get the exact some deal as someone who has more credit history and a better credit score. However, a bad credit history or score starts to limit your lenders and means you may need to move off high street to a more specialist lender which tends to offer higher rates. If you have poor credit, look for easy ways to improve it. Look six months before your fix ends It's best to look at deals six months before a current rate ends. This might be to just have a chat with a broker and get things moving. It might be that you can get a deal lined up and locked in that protects against movements in interest rates - for example if rates were to go up over the following six months. And you can also then improve the rate within that six months if rates were to go down. How to find a good broker A good mortgage broker is invaluable for navigating the options available to you. The best way to find a good adviser is through personal recommendations, everyone has a friend or family member who will have recently bought or refinanced – ask them who they used and if they were happy with the service. You can also lookup reviews of that person online to find other customer experiences too. is one place where people can offer their reviews. Sort your paperwork IF you are looking to buy or remortgage, contact a broker nice and early, as they can then guide you through what the expectations are from lenders. This gives you plenty of time to make sure your accounts are up to date if you're self-employed and you can see if it is worth filing tax returns early.
