Vernon Building Society has reduced variable mortgage rates by up to 0.16% across 11 discounted products, sharpening its specialist proposition for brokers handling more complex cases.

The reductions apply to variable mortgages available in England and Wales and follow a recent overhaul of the Society’s mortgage range, designed to make it easier for intermediaries to navigate options for borrowers with unusual or non-standard circumstances.

The Vernon said the changes reflect expectations that Bank of England base rate cuts may be on the horizon, increasing the appeal of discount products among clients seeking to benefit from potential future rate falls.

All discounted mortgages in the range allow overpayments of up to 25% per year without early repayment charges.

The Society said this level of flexibility is particularly relevant for borrowers anticipating lump sums, such as bonuses, inheritance or proceeds from asset sales.

The rate cuts span a broad mix of specialist lending categories, including joint borrower sole proprietor, professional, complex prime, standard and specialist buy-to-let, expat buy-to-let and holiday buy-to-let.

The Vernon said the breadth of changes underlines its focus on supporting brokers with cases that fall outside mainstream lending criteria.

Among the individual changes, the Complex Prime two-year discount mortgage at 80% LTV has been reduced from 4.65% to 4.49%. The Discount buy-to-let two-year mortgage at 75% LTV has fallen from 5.19% to 5.04%. The Residential two-year Discount Large Loan product has also been reduced from 4.65% to 4.49%.

Brendan Crowshaw, head of mortgage and savings distribution at Vernon Building Society, said: “Following our recent refresh of our mortgage proposition, we wanted to ensure our discount range remained compelling for intermediaries working with more complex borrowers.

“By reducing variable rates across key products such as Complex Prime, Professional and specialist buy-to-let, we’re giving brokers sharper tools to help clients whose needs aren’t met by standard high-street offerings.

“With a potential downward movement in base rate on the horizon, we expect more clients to explore discount products.

“Combined with our 25% overpayment allowance and individually underwritten cases, these changes mean brokers can match specialist borrowers to flexible, competitively priced options that still come with our common-sense approach to underwriting.”