by Gary Webber
22. February 2010 01:54
High LTV mortgages not just for first-time buyers
Newcastle Building Society today launches mortgages for up-to-90-per-cent LTV borrowers. They're not only intended for first-timers into the housing market, but also for purchasers looking to move on up. What they won't cover is remortgagers looking to increase their borrowing and make up for reduced equity.
The range includes a 2-year tracker mortgage at 4.60% (cheap for such a high LTV, but with a high margin over base rate). There's also a 2-year fixed-rate at 5.95%.
Qualification for these mortgages is measured on income multiples: 3.25 × salary for a single borrower or 3 × joint salary for couples.
It looks like the society has taken pity on struggling would-be first time buyers: "Conditions in the mortgage market have been very difficult for sometime, and they have had a particular impact on the first-time buyer market, where numbers across the UK have fallen year-on-year by around four per cent,” commented their spokesman Steve Urwin.