Skipton Building Society will on Monday reduce rates across several of its mortgage products, including its flagship no-deposit mortgage aimed at renters, as new data underscores the mounting obstacles facing aspiring homeowners.
The lender’s Track Record Mortgage – the UK’s first 100% mortgage for renters with a strong payment history – will fall to its lowest rate since launching in May 2023.
The standard five-year fixed deal with no cashback will drop from 5.49% to 5.09%, while the version with £1,000 cashback will fall from 5.59% to 5.24%.
The move comes as the affordability crisis continues to weigh on first-time buyers. New figures from the Building Societies Association (BSA) show that 43% of renters believe they should already own a home but have been unable to take the first step onto the property ladder.
Among renters aged 25–44, that figure climbs to 59%, and one-third of renters in the same age group fear they will never own a home.
The picture is no more encouraging when viewed through Skipton’s own Home Affordability Index. The group reports that 90% of people cannot afford a typical first-time buyer home in their local area, while nearly 80% lack the savings required for a deposit.
Almost 40% of renters are spending more than 45% of their income on essential housing costs.
“many aspiring homeowners
are continuing to be held
back by the challenge of
saving for a deposit”
Jen Lloyd, head of mortgage products and proposition at Skipton, said the data showed how renters continue to be locked out of the housing market despite their commitment and track record.
“Research on renters from the BSA and through Skipton Group’s own Home Affordability Index highlights just how many aspiring homeowners are continuing to be held back by the challenge of saving for a deposit,” she said.
“This needs to change, too many renters who expected to own a home by now are still unable to take that first step onto the ladder. This is not because of a lack of commitment, but because saving for a deposit remains one of the biggest hurdles.
“Skipton’s Track Record Mortgage was designed specifically to help tackle this challenge, by enabling renters with a strong history of rent payments to step onto the property ladder without needing a deposit.”
MORE ACCESSIBLE
The lender said it had received over £296 million in applications for the product since launch, and that the latest rate cut would make the offering “even more accessible”.
In addition to the reductions on Track Record, Skipton is also cutting rates across its Delayed Start range – a product that offers borrowers a three-month break before mortgage repayments begin. The two-year fixed rate at 90% loan-to-value (LTV) with no fee or cashback falls to 4.84%, down from 4.89%.
At 95% LTV, the equivalent rate drops to 4.99%, while the 95% LTV new build version decreases to 5.09%.
Several other mainstream purchase and remortgage rates are also being trimmed. A two-year fixed purchase deal at 95% LTV with no fee or cashback will reduce to 4.89% (from 4.95%), while a two-year fixed purchase product at 60% LTV with a £1,495 fee will fall from 4.03% to 3.95%. The equivalent remortgage product will drop to 3.99% from 4.06%.
