With lockdown measures starting to ease, the government has turned its attention to getting the economy moving. The housing market has always been at the heart of our economy and the whole industry is gearing itself up for a return to business as usual for the second half of the year.

Most mortgage providers took the decision to cut mortgage borrowing down to around 75-85% of property values a couple of months back. This was mainly due to the fact that most “high loan to value” lending needing a surveyor to carry out a physical valuation, which became impossible due to social distancing restrictions.

HSBC (somehow) managed to keep their 90% lending going throughout and this week Accord mortgages, Virgin Money and the Clydesdale bank all announced the welcome return of their 90% products.

Other lenders are expected to follow suit over the coming weeks and one or two have indicted that 95% mortgages will be available by the end of June.

Part of the wait is simply logistics. The banks had to send their staff home to work, which meant call centres and processing centres fell behind. Some of the delays will be due to the massive backlog of cases which they are having to deal with first.

If you are looking to buy this year, the deals on offer are fantastic with interest rates at an all time low! However, lenders have all looked at their criteria, particularly at borrowers’ incomes in light of changes due to furloughing. We would therefore recommend that anyone looking to buy checks out their mortgage affordability with a Mortgage Adviser before viewing property.

For more information contact us or speak to a mortgage adviser on 01628 507477.