Investec, the specialist bank and asset manager, has launched a new range of mortgage products aimed specifically to professionals such as accountants, architects, dentists and lawyers. Investec Professional Mortgages are only available through professional mortgage intermediaries and rates start from 3.19%.
The new range of mortgages are primarily for directors and partners of professional practices as well as senior executives, managers or business heads with significant influence over the strategic direction of their firm. They are part of a wider range of specialist mortgages offered by Investec, including £Million Plus+ Mortgages, for individuals looking to borrow more than £1 million.
Investec Professional Mortgages are launched at a time when even professionals on well above average incomes can sometimes struggle to quickly secure a loan from existing high street lenders because their income does not fit a standard model. Indeed, a recent report1 by Oxford Economics estimates that first-time buyers in London will need to put down an average deposit of over £100,000 by 2020 due to rising house prices.
Alex Hammond, Investec Specialist Bank, said:
“This new range of mortgages is for qualified professionals and business professionals who require the certainty of a lender that is able to consider their individual circumstances and all aspects of their income when making a lending decision. Increasingly, those who would normally be regarded as well paid are struggling to secure the loans necessary to purchase property because of the uncommon nature of their income.
“We have created this new range of mortgages to meet the specific requirements of professionals, who are often individuals with limited time to arrange a mortgage. We look for good reasons to lend to the right customers and ensure that professionals receive the level of service they expect.”
Andrew Hagger, Independent Personal Finance expert from Moneycomms.co.uk , commented:
“There’s no shortage of mortgage lenders already out there, but business professionals need a specialist lender that can quickly understand and deal with their often sophisticated financial requirements.”
“Investec has built its professional mortgage offering to provide the underwriting flexibility and rapid response capability that its clients require, even when it comes to dealing with more complex investment purchases.”
And Ben Thompson, Managing Director of Legal & General Mortgage Club, said:
“Since the onset of the credit crunch and the subsequent deep and long recession, we have seen a number of lenders disappear from the UK mortgage market – where there was an oversupply of lending, there is now the polar opposite. Much has been covered about the positive impact of the Funding for Lending Scheme and NewBuy, as well as the various iterations of guarantor mortgages and so on.
“All of these have proved beneficial to the market. However fundamentally what we need right now is a more competitive market overall, where a more reasonable or appropriate attitude to lending risk is adopted.
“Investec Professional Mortgages brings a more tailored and considered approach to lending, and the launch brings some very welcome new competition to this market, giving more choice for a certain type of borrower. Lots of customers will be able to buy, move, invest and save money because of Investec’s launch, and that is very welcome progress indeed.”
Investec Professional Mortgages will be available through mortgage intermediaries as part of a controlled launch through selected distribution partners. They include fixed rates from 3.19%, Residential and Buy to Let mortgages that allow professionals to borrow up to 80% of the purchase price or valuation of the property as well as First Time Buyer Professional mortgages allowing loans of up to 85% of the value.
The minimum income requirement is £50,000 for qualified professionals and £75,000 for business professional and borrowers will be able to make overpayments when capable.