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The UK Mortgage Lenders Price War Rages On Resulting in a Number of Casualties.
There has been a price war going on between UK mortgage lenders resulting in a number of casualties who have either been forced to quit the mortgage marketplace completely or revise their strategy and look to identify new markets.
There is a UK Mortgage lenders price war, but what is caused this? Well the prime cause behind this mortgage market malaise is the introduction of tighter legislation aimed at reducing risk when it comes to mortgages. Banks are now required by law to ring fence domestic retail banking and keep it totally separate from international and investment banking. This has affected many of the larger banks with an International and diverse operation and which tend to enjoy large customer deposits. However they can no longer use these deposits in the same way they could before the legislation came into force. As such this ring fencing has seriously impacted on margins as a large number of the UK’s largest banks have suffered a decline on their year on year net margins – the difference between what they pay for deposits and what they earn from lending. This is serious stuff for the banks and has caused them to look elsewhere to not only comply with the tougher regulation requirements but to find ways to preserve their margins.
All this could be excellent news for UK Expat Mortgage seekers looking for residential or Buy to Let mortgages in the UK “With so much competition, many lenders are looking elsewhere to maintain their required lending levels so they can retain or improve margins” says Stuart Marshall of Liquid Expat Mortgages. “This is great news for UK Expats! As the competition increases so the number of deals available to Expat Mortgage customers continue to rise. Any Expats who want to buy their forever home back in the UK or are looking to invest in property for pension reasons, to house a family member who might be studying at a UK university or college, can now choose from a wider availability of products than ever before.”
Stuart Marshall’s observations seem to be confirmed by a number of factors. Previously unavailable low deposit mortgages have started to show a steady increase over the last twelve months or so. “Smaller deposits have definitely come back into play. At the same time the number of opportunities for Expats to access mortgage products has grown as lenders are now creating products specifically aimed at the Expat Mortgage market. Lenders have realised that Expats are highly dependable and usually have the deposit and wherewithal to service mortgages thus allowing the banks to enjoy a better net margin than they currently enjoy in the congested UK retail market place.”
The current mix of smaller deposits required by some lenders coupled with the higher loan to value stance of other lenders (and therefore preferential repayment rates) makes for a very broad palette of choice for customers looking to obtain Expat Mortgages. “In the 12 years we have been providing expat mortgages to customers worldwide, we have noticed the increase in lenders coming to the Expat Mortgage table. From a handful of specialist lenders just over six years ago Liquid Expat Mortgages now has over 46 lenders for Expats to choose from…and this number is consistently increasing.”
It seems to be the case that whilst the banks are involved in a fight over net margins, many specialist lenders have decided to look elsewhere to preserve their margins. What’s more it looks like Expats living and working all over the world have become a key target for banks, specialist lenders and niche finance providers. Great news for Expats as there has never been better or greater availability of expat mortgages. “With such a strong , varied product base for Expat Mortgages and with the fluctuation of sterling it’s a great time all round to buy property in the UK.”
To see how Liquid Expat Mortgages can help you secure your Expat UK Mortgage just call us 24/7 on +44 (0)161 871 1216 or visit www.liquidexpatmortgages.com to see how we might be able to help.
For information on the article please contact:
Sergio Pani – Ulysses Communications & Promotions
+44 (0)161 633 5009 (Option 1)
