The reductions were announced ahead of the Bank of England’s decision to cut interest rates by 0.25%
Keystone Property Finance and MPowered Mortgages have cut rates ahead of the Bank of England’s decision to cut interest rates by 0.25% on Thursday.
It was immediately prior to that announcement that Keystone cut its entire fixed rate range by up to 25 bps.
The company decided to move ahead of the decision because improved funding conditions correlated to passing additional savings on to landlords. The specialist BTL lender reduced its new Summer special range by up to 25 bps, Standard ranges by five bps, its specialist range by up to 15 bps, expat ranges by up to 20 bps and its product transfer range by 25 bps.
Keystone’s new PT+ range, that lets product transfer customers borrow additional capital, has been lowered by up to 25 bps.
While many lenders will be waiting for Monetary Policy Committee’s (MPC) decision before making a call on whether to reprice, we’re able to pass on significant savings to landlords regardless of the outcome, said Elise Coole, MD of Keystone Property Finance at the time.
SWAP rates – which ultimately determine the cost of fixed rate mortgages – have eased off recently, giving us slack to sharpen our already competitive range, Coole added.
That announcement was quickly followed by a similar move from MPowered Mortgages. It made wholesale reductions to its fixed rate mortgages starting from 5:30 pm on the same day. Its five-year fixed rates start at 4.14% for 60% loan to value with a £999 fee for new purchase customers.
Its CEO, Stuart Cheetham, said the move was designed to give borrowers “good news” ahead of the announcement.
The rate cuts are substantial, particularly in the five-year space and are designed to offer very competitive rates across all LTVs, not just rate grabbing headlines, he added.