The cost of the majority of fixed rate buy-to-let mortgages appear to be on the rise, according to research from online mortgage broker, Property Master.
Property Master warned last month this was likely following the decision by the Bank of England to revise upwards its forecasts for growth in the UK economy. This has been widely seen as the Bank positioning itself for more increases in base rate than the financial markets had previously been forecasting.
Property Master’s June 2019 Mortgage Tracker shows the monthly cost of five-year fixed rate buy-to-let mortgage offers for 50% of the value of a property was up by £7 in June compared to the previous month of May.
Five-year fixed rates for 65% of the value of a property increased month on month by £5. Five-year fixed rates buy-to-let mortgage offers for 75% of the value of a property was the only one of six categories tracked to fall in monthly cost but then only by £1.
The three categories of two-year fixed rate buy-to-let mortgages tracked all increased with the largest rise being £6 per month.
The Property Master Mortgage Tracker follows a range of buy-to-let mortgages for an interest only loan of £150,000. Deals from 18 of some of the biggest lenders in the buy-to-let market including Barclays, BM Solutions, RBS, The Mortgage Works, Godiva and Precise were tracked. Figures for this month’s Mortgage Tracker were calculated on deals available on June 1, 2019.
Angus Stewart, Property Master’s chief executive, said: “It looks very much as if the Bank fired the gun on interest rate rises in its Inflationary Report last month. We have seen in our most recent Mortgage Tracker increases in the monthly cost of five out of the six categories of fixed rate buy-to-let mortgages we track. Of course, a great deal of uncertainty persists as Brexit is still not resolved and now the search is on for a new Prime Minister.
“There is some comfort for landlords facing increased rates in that competition amongst mortgage lenders for business has been fierce in recent years and that has fuelled the growth in the number of buy-to-let mortgage offerings to a ten-year high. There are an estimated more than 2,100 products to choose from but with lending criteria varying considerably between the operators landlords cannot assume that all of these possibilities are open to them.”
News of Property Master’s Mortgage Tracker picking up increases in the cost of buy-to-let fixed rate mortgages comes in the week the new Tenant Fees Act comes into force.
“Increases in mortgage costs are particularly unwelcome in the current climate of rising regulatory costs,” said Stewart.
“This new Act which bans landlords and letting agencies from charging fees to tenants for things such as referencing, inventories and contracts, and limits deposits to five weeks’ rent continues still further the squeeze on landlord finances.”