Fleet Mortgages has revamped its entire product range with new options across its three core sectors – standard, limited company and HMO.

In total, Fleet now offers 13 products and has reduced rates on 12 of those.

The standard range includes rate reductions of up to 45 basis points with products offered including:

• Two-year fixed rate (75% LTV) reduced by 10 basis points to 2.89% – the product has a maximum loan of £200k.
• Five-year fixed rate (75% LTV) reduced by 6 basis points to 3.69%.
• Five-year fixed, pay-rate (75% LTV) also reduced by 10 basis points to 3.89% – this product has an interest coverage ratio (ICR) of 135% at the initial rate.
• Lifetime LIBOR tracker (75% LTV) reduced by 45 basis points to 3.4%.
• A standard two-year fix (75% LTV) which remains at 3.39%.

Fleet’s limited company range has also seen rate reductions of between 10 to 45 basis points and the lender is now not offering 65% LTV products. The rest of the new range includes:

• Two-year fixed rate (75% LTV) cut by 20 basis points to 3.39%.
• Five-year fixed rate (75% LTV) cut by 10 basis points to 3.79%.
• Five year fixed, pay rate (75% LTV) cut by 10 basis points to 3.89% – this product has an ICR of 125% at the initial rate.
• Lifetime LIBOR tracker (75% LTV) reduced by 45 basis points to 3.4%.

In addition, Fleet has also reduced prices across its HMO product range by between 10 and 35 basis points, including:

• Two-year fixed rate (65% LTV) cut by 10 basis points to 3.49%.
• Two-year fixed rate (75% LTV) cut by 10 basis points to 3.59%.
• Five-year fixed rate (75% LTV) cut by 20 basis points to 3.89%.
• Lifetime LIBOR tracker (75% LTV) reduced by 35 basis points to 3.6% – this product has an ICR of 125% at 5%.

Fees on the standard range remain at 1%; fees on the limited company range are 1.25%, except for the pay rate product which is 1.5%; and fees on the HMO range remain at 1.5%. All two-year fix end dates have been extended to 30^th September 2020, with the five-year fixes at 30^th September 2023.

For all standard and limited company products – except those offered at pay rate – Fleet Mortgages operates an ICR of 125% at 5%, regardless of tax rate. The lender also operates with a number of specific commitments to advisers and their portfolio landlord clients, which are:

• No additional or extra paperwork to complete – a standard application form and Property Asset & Liability Statement is all that is required.
• Landlords can have unlimited properties in their background portfolio, with no requirement to key in details of all individual properties in the portfolio.
• No delays for the client due to additional processing and no stress testing on the background portfolio.
• A focus on quicker processing times meaning no increases in costs to client and advisers always have access to experienced portfolio underwriters.

Bob Young (pictured), CEO of Fleet Mortgages, said: “Fleet Mortgages is very pleased to be launching these new products today across our three core areas which see significant rate reductions. We believe this highlights our commitment to the buy-to-let sector and our ongoing appetite to lend to quality borrowers in this space.

“We continue to operate at the very highest standards of responsible lending practices and our ongoing strapline of ‘only lending to those that can afford it’ remains as true today as it was when we set up the business nearly four years ago.

“Our average stressed ICR for mortgage applications last month was 151% while our debt-service-cover-ratio – a simple measure that works out how many times rent covers mortgage payments at the actual pay rate – was 219% for all mortgage applications received; indeed this figure has been in excess of 200% for the last number of years. Interestingly, the latest UK Finance figures for May this year, show that 5% of all buy-to-let mortgages had an ICR of less than 120%, significantly below Fleet’s levels.

“Advisers and their clients can therefore rest assured that they will be dealing with a focused and highly experienced lender that works to the highest standards and is committed to writing quality business that is competitively priced and affordable to the borrower. We continue to grow our operation with a range of in-the-field and telephone BDMS available to advisers, plus access to dedicated and experienced underwriters. We are also soon to roll out a series of ‘breakfast meetings’ to help brokers understand limited company lending, the pitfalls and the opportunities.

“Coupled with this advisory support and our 24-hour turnaround on all post received, plus five days on average for our application/valuation service, which is certainly above the norm, we believe Fleet is leading the way in this sector and we will continue to put advisers at the heart of our business and deliver what they require.”