How hard is it to get an 80% mortgage?   While the prospect of saving a 20% deposit may seem daunting as you itch to take possession of a brand new home, the reality of the UK property market is that 80% mortgages are the product of choice for most lenders, over and above a [...]

Applying for a 95% Mortgage   According to The Guardian Newspaper, there were just six 95% mortgage products available in June 2009, making it almost impossible for the cost-conscious first time buyer to grab a rung on the property ladder. While the UK housing market may still be less than stellar, there are signs that [...]

Deposit Restrictions Easing  As of the beginning of February the percentage of new mortgage deals that require a 25% or greater deposit has dropped below 50% for the first time in 2 years to 46%.  This seems to be a sign that lenders are easing back on their loan restrictions, even though they have warned [...]

The New Mortgage Drought The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has responded to the consultation implemented by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) on interest only mortgages.  The FSA are proposing that lenders will be required to annually check the repayment methods borrowers have in place. The CML suggest that the costs associated with this compliance [...]

Skipton Joins the 95% Mortgage Market The Skipton Building Society has launched a 95% mortgage aimed at first time buyers.  This LTV is high and there are only a couple of 95% mortgage deals out there, so this may be a welcome product even if it is expensive. This is a direct from the society [...]

Mortgage Lending Figures From CML The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has reported that activity in the mortgage market has risen by £11.5 billion in March 2010 which is up 3% on the previous year and up by almost a quarter compared to February.  However on a quarterly basis this quarter was down 24% compared [...]

Nationwide Mortgage Rates Going Lower As of today nearly 30 of the  Nationwide mortgage products consisting of fixed rate and tracker deals have had their rates cut.  The highest reduction has been 0.59% to their 2 year no fee fixed rate mortgage which is available to remortgage customers up to 70 LTV. First time buyers [...]

Post Office mortgages leading the way It looks like the great British Post Office is leading the way with some of the most competitive mortgage products on the market when they recently introduced rate cuts.  Coming from a well respected institution the Post Office mortgages offer not only a great deal for both first time buyers and [...]

More 95% Mortgages From Local Lenders Following on from the previous post looking for regional 95% mortgages here are some more examples. First off is the Ipswich Building Society who are offering a 95% LTV mortgage to existing mortgage holders, or those who have a savings account with them for 6 or more months – Ipswich [...]

Hunting For a Regional 95% Mortgage On the hunt around for the elusive 95% mortgage i’ve uncovered some interesting regional deals.  As with 100% mortgages it is a good idea to try local first and see what the regional building society has to offer, as these lenders seem to be the most inovative at the [...]