Mortgage News, Insights & Advice
All the latest UK mortgage news, insights and advice from the world of mortgage lending and Oportfolio
Santander for Intermediaries: How It Helps Our Clients
When it comes to securing the best possible mortgage for our clients, having access to exclusive products, flexible lending criteria, and dedicated broker support can make all the difference. That’s where Santander for Intermediaries comes in, one of the UK’s leading...
Luxury Property Rentals With a Curious Edge – An Interview With Curious Retreats
In just a few short years, Curious Retreats has become one of Suffolk’s most distinctive names in the luxury holiday rental space, combining the charm of handpicked properties with a genuine passion for hospitality. Founded by Tim Ripman and Tim Cook, the company has...
Barclays Boosts Mortgage Affordability With New Income Rules
Barclays has made a significant change to its mortgage affordability criteria, expanding the amount of bonus, overtime, and commission income that can be used in lending assessments. Under the new approach, Barclays will now include variable income up to four times a...
New Coventry and Santander Mortgage Rates
In a period that is quickly becoming known as the 2023 lender bidding wars, mortgage lenders are competing with each other on a daily basis to try and secure mortgage business, after a slump at the end of 2022. Lenders are competing with each other by dropping...
Need A Green Home Mortgage? Barclays Have Your Back.
The people of 2023 are a considerate bunch. I don't mean to sound insincere with that statement if it sounds that way! Global warming, climate change, energy efficiency and the like is a very hot topic in 2023 and people are becoming more and more conscious about...
Is It Possible For A Single Person To Buy Anymore?
New data released by mortgage lender Halifax claims to show that a massive 63% of first time buyer mortgages taken out in 2022/23 are in joint names rather than a sole purchase. That means that just 37% of first time buyers are taken out by a single person on their...
Oportfolio’s Top Mortgage Tips. Forget Martin Lewis.
This blog comes from Oportfolio Mortgage's Senior Mortgage and Protection Advisor Jade Pinkerton. I had an appointment yesterday with some clients and it was an interesting conversation to say the least. We discussed many things, but one thing in particular was quite...
5 Million UK Adults Can’t Afford Bills
In an email sent out to brokers this morning, insurance advisor LV= have announced that their research has revealed that 5 million UK adults can't afford bills and other day-to-day expenses. In LV='s newly released report, they revealed several statistics that really...
Could Mortgage Rates Fall Substantially In 2023?
2023 is already shaping up to be a very interesting, and hopefully positive year for mortgages and the property market. Well, let's face it, anything is better than the disaster of the end of 2022. We all know that mortgage rates increased significantly in September...
Santander Credit Card Mortgage Criteria
Although a generally generous mortgage lender and a big name player in the UK mortgage market, Santander has come under criticism in the past for their attitude towards credit commitments when assessing mortgage affordability. However, Santander have recently...
Should I Have A Tax Return?
When looking at getting a mortgage as a self-employed person, it can be difficult to get your head round exactly what you need to provide and what the mortgage lenders will need to see. For things like product transfers, chances are that the lender is unlikely to ask...
Mortgage Lenders Are Hungry For Business
Official figures released by the Bank of England this month shows that UK inflation has dropped for the second month in a row in December 2022. Figures show that inflation was at 10.7% in November and had dropped to 10.5% in December. Not a huge drop but much better...
What Is a Property Surveyor & What Do They Do?
One of the most important elements of the property purchase or property finance journey, but perhaps the most overlooked. Property surveying is an essential part of the home finance narrative arch, but unfortunately a lot of people are completely in the dark about...
Average UK House Price Increased In January 2023
The entire property news industry and admittedly ourselves too, reported at the end of 2022 that the average UK house price would more than likely tank in 2023 as an increased cost of living and a subsequent reduction in the amount of people interested in purchasing...
“Inflation Will Come Down Sharply” – Chief Economist
In a promotional video released today by multi-national wealth management group Investec, Chief economist Philip Shaw has claimed that he predicts that inflation in the UK will likely come down very sharply as the overall outlook of the developed world economy starts...
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