Darlington Building Society has completed a £530,000 interest-only remortgage involving three applicants after several mainstream lenders declined the case.
The pound-for-pound remortgage was secured against a property valued at £1 million at 53% loan-to-value, with its eventual sale accepted as the repayment vehicle.
The case was introduced by Surajan Karki, mortgage and protection adviser at S&P Financial, and involved several underwriting considerations across the three applicants.
The first applicant worked in a management role and had been with their employer for one year. The second was a nurse whose affordability assessment included a range of allowances and deductions.
The third applicant worked as a chief pharmacy officer in the United Arab Emirates and was paid in UAE dirhams. The society assessed the foreign currency income without applying UK tax assumptions.
The applicant also owned a self-funding buy-to-let property.
Darlington said it considered the application on its overall merits, including the interest-only repayment strategy, overseas income, affordability and the applicants’ wider financial circumstances. The remortgage was completed within what the lender described as a short timeframe.
Chris Blewitt (pictured), head of mortgage distribution at Darlington Building Society, said: “This application had several moving parts and required a lender that could fully understand both the loan circumstances and the individual applicants.
“The broker needed support across multiple areas: the interest-only element, which we were comfortable with; the additional nursing income required for affordability; income paid in UAE dirhams without applying UK tax assumptions; and a background buy-to-let mortgage, where a common-sense view was needed because the property was self-funding.
“Overall, this was a case we were able to support because of our understanding of these circumstances, built on years of experience and expertise in helping borrowers with complex needs.”
Karki added: “Darlington Building Society was outstanding in supporting our complex mortgage case when several mainstream lenders were unable to assist. From the initial enquiry through to the BDM and TBDM teams, everyone was professional, responsive and a pleasure to deal with.
“Special thanks to James Travers, digital business development manager, Sophie Meredith-Smith, senior underwriter lead, and Chris Blewitt, whose dedication and expertise helped us get the case over the line and complete the remortgage within a very short timeframe.
“I would highly recommend Darlington Building Society to anyone with a complex or non-standard case.
“Their willingness to look beyond the ordinary and provide practical solutions truly sets them apart.”
