Barclays extends buy to let lending in the UK

Thursday, 03 November 2011

Barclays, through its mortgage arm Woolwich, is extending its range of buy to let mortgages to 75% loan to value (LTV) from today (Thursday 03 November), including a competitive five year fixed at 4.99%.

It says that the 75% LTV range also includes a two year fixed rate at 4.39% and a lifetime tracker at base + 3.49%. The new deals come with a £1,999 application fee. At 60% loan to value, the two year fixed rate of 3.88% will be maintained.

‘The demand from buy to let investors has picked up in recent months as many people in the UK opt to rent for longer. We've also seen increased appetite from investors looking to remortgage,’ said Andy Gray, head of mortgages for Barclays.

‘As one of the UK's largest lenders we recognise the importance of supporting this market further. The five year fixed deal we are offering at 75% LTV is highly competitive and will give investors the stability they need over the longer term,’ he added.

The minimum loan available at 75% LTV is £50,000 and the maximum is £1 million. Borrowers will be assessed for the mortgage in line with Barclays standard lending policy and using its rental calculation. This requires the annual rent to cover 125% of the annual mortgage interest, for tracker mortgages it is calculated at 4.99%.

For existing Woolwich buy to let borrowers and new borrowers looking to purchase further properties at or below 60% LTV Barclays policy remains the same but for new applications submitted over 60% LTV there will be a property cap of four properties.