First Base Rate Cut For 4 Years!

The Bank of England has cut the base rate from 5.25% to 5%, which we believe will now greatly boost consumer confidence. It’s quite rare that the UK cut rates before the US, so it did come as a slight surprise and indeed it was the first reduction we have seen since 2020.

In welcome news for borrowers, fixed-rate mortgages have been coming down in recent weeks and we are now expecting a strong finish to the year, with more properties coming onto the market day by day.

Nationwide launched a sub 4% 5-year fixed rate recently, this is something we have not seen for some time, although it is for purchasers only (not remortgage) and it comes with a high fee. We should see more Lenders follow suit over the coming weeks and months to ensure they don’t lose market share.

In terms of remortgages, would you believe we are coming up to two years since the disastrous Truss/Kwarteng mini-budget, so anyone who did a 2 year fixed rate of 6% plus at the back-end of 2022 will be breathing a sigh of relief that there may now be light at the end of the tunnel for them.

Any interest rate reductions ahead of us are likely to be modest ones, but that’s not the point – there is a “feelgood factor” at play and we are now fully expecting to see the release of the pent-up demand that has been building up all year.

Things are hotting up!

When pricing mortgage products, the lenders look years into the future, therefore we’re not expecting rates to change specifically relating to this announcement.

There are some great 5-year fixed-rate deals at the moment with rates falling below 4% for the first time in a while. For a personalised quotation, our mortgage team will be happy to help.

🤔 Mortgage Deal Ending Soon?

If your mortgage deal is ending before 31st January 2025, now is the ideal time to get in touch so that we can explore your remortgage options.

We’ll compare what deals your current lender is offering alongside what is available elsewhere to recommend the best solution. It’s a free, no-obligation review.

Also, your remortgage period presents a good opportunity for you to make changes, popular amendments include:

• Adding or removing a name.
• Releasing equity for one reason or another.
• Increasing or decreasing your mortgage term.
• Reviewing your insurance policies for suitability.
• Anything else.

💭 Age 50+ Mortgage Options

We’re receiving a lot of enquiries from customers over the age of 50 looking to explore their mortgage options for one reason or another.

We are proud to be a ‘one-stop-shop’ for all types of age 50+ mortgages.  Here are the main areas we can help you with:

• Remortgage deals.
• Purchase a new home.
• Repay a current mortgage that is ending soon.
• Release equity either as a lump sum or in smaller chunks.
• It’s complicated?

3 main mortgage types are available to those in their 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s and above. These are:

1. Regular mortgage products – either repayment or interest only, which nowadays can run to age 90+.
2. Retirement interest-only mortgages, which do not have an end date.
3. Lifetime mortgages, often called equity release – do not have an end date and you have a lot of choices in how you make payments

The great news is that we can explore all 3 options for you and recommend the best one for your situation. Please feel free to click the button below to explore your options.

🌉 Bridging Loans (Fast Short-Term Finance)

We are now offering Bridging Loans in-house as a short-term lending solution to our customers.

Bridging loans are a very flexible product and can be used to help both residential customers and investors. Typically, funds can be received within a couple of weeks, so they are a great product if time is critical.

Here are some of the reasons why a bridging loan could help:

• Property purchase, buying at auction, or capital raising options.
• Property refurbishment and development finance.
• Commercial and mixed-use properties.
• Broken property chain solutions.
• Financing currently non-mortgageable properties.
• Paying an inheritance tax bill.
• Complicated situations.

Please get in touch today if you would like to talk about your situation.

💻 Independent Financial Advice

Quite often people will have various pension pots scattered around the place without any clear idea about how much income they can expect in retirement or which funds their money is invested in.

Our trusted referral partner, UK Financial Planning Ltd can help by gathering all the relevant information from the various providers and offering advice on how to plan your financial future.

They can also help those people interested in investing some of their savings and owners of small businesses looking to reduce their tax liabilities.

If you would like a no-obligation initial chat with a financial advisor, simply click on the link below to arrange a convenient time and they will be happy to help.

💁🏻‍♂️ We Can Help With

• Age 50+ Mortgage Options.
• Age 60+ Mortgage Solutions including Lifetime Mortgages.
• Bad Credit Deals.
• Bridging Loans.
• Commercial and semi-commercial.
• Secured Loans & Releasing Equity.
• Self-Employed Mortgages.
• All Purchase & Remortgage Deals.
• Life & Critical Illness Insurances.
• Pension Advice via a Referral Partner.

🎥 Post-Election Market Update

In case you missed it, following on from Labour’s landslide victory in the election last month, Malcolm discussed what this means for the mortgage and housing markets and the changes Labour could make.

If you have any questions, feel free to get in touch and we’d be happy to answer them for you.

Malcolm Davidson discusses how a Labour government could affect your mortgage.