latest mortgage lender to join the rate cutting tide, as the company launched a two-year fixed-rate deal priced at 0.83 per cent. The deal was made available via mortgage broker starting Monday (9 August), for customers who intended to take out a home loan of up to 60 per cent of the property value.
According to Peak Mortgages and Protection’s managing director Rhys Schofield, where the country’s biggest mortgage lenders go, others surely follow. However, he warned that apart from the ultra-low rates, there are several other factors that must be taken into consideration when determining the most suitable deal for a potential borrower. “These headline grabbers often come with significant setup fees and Halifax are about the only high street lender still charging for a basic valuation, which means that for many people the cheapest deal overall often lies elsewhere,” he said.
This battle among lenders to attract borrowers comes amid a cooling housing market in the UK, following a price boom over the past year, mainly on the back of the stamp duty holiday introduced by chancellor Rishi Sunak on properties purchased in England and Northern Ireland. In July last year, the government of UK raised the level at which tax on property purchases to be paid from £125,000 to £500,000. In July this year, this figure was brought down to £250,000 and is set to revert to £125,000 in October.
