Today’s mortgage shock ‘could be death knell for buy to let’

A mortgage expert is warning that today’s mortgage news from prominent lender NatWest could have permanently serious consequences for buy to let.

An announcement by the bank late yesterday read: “Effective 13th June we’re making changes to our end dates and rate changes to our new and existing customer product ranges.”

Amongst the changes were buy to let rate increases of up to 157bps.

Lewis Shaw, owner and mortgage broker at Riverside Mortgages, comments: “I’m no longer sure what level of reality I'm meant to be operating on. This could sound the death knell for buy to let, at least with NatWest. Something has clearly spooked the money markets around 2pm [yesterday] and the two-year gilt yield has shot above its peak following the mini-Budget in September. This is extremely worrying and I don't know where it ends.”

His concerns were echoed by rival mortgage experts.

Riz Malik, director of R3 Mortgages, says: “The considerable rise in mortgage rates on buy to let properties underlines the flux in the market at present and introduces yet more hardship and pain for numerous landlords. With each passing day, the financial calculations seem to make less sense. This a significant blow for the entire UK buy to let market.”

The managing director of EHF Mortgages - Justin May - states: “NatWest is increasing the rates on their schemes, such as the Buy to Let deals, Green Mortgages and Help to Buy. Some increases are as much as 1.38 per cent on specific deals, with a more palatable (but unwelcome) 0.2 per cent increase across their standard products for remortgages and purchases. When will it end?”

And Luke Thompson of PAB Wealth Management sees it this way: “Given these latest rates, it seems pretty obvious that NatWest don't want to be in the buy to let mortgage arena at this point in time. My assumption is that they want to see where swap rates will go in the coming weeks and once they have a bit more of an idea on that front they may start to price buy to let products more competitively again.” 

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