The Intermediary – February 2025 - Flipbook - Page 20
RESIDENTIAL
Opinion
Action now will
pave the way for
future generations
A
s I write this month’s
column, the sun is
shining through the
window, and for
the first time this
year, I spoed some
spring flowers on my morning walk
– signalling that brighter days are just
around the corner.
As such, I am feeling optimistic,
a sentiment which is echoed in my
work as I observe the impact our
recent decision-making is having on
aspirational homeowners.
If January is anything to go by, it is
set to be a busy year in the mortgage
market. And while recent years have
taught me to expect the unexpected,
it’s fair to say that things are
starting to look up for aspiring firsttime buyers.
Toxic times behind
Over recent years, a toxic combination
of historically high house prices,
the increasing cost of living, limited
housing stock and higher interest
rates has made it difficult for
borrowers.
To help aspirational homeowners
overcome these obstacles, we recently
announced the launch of Income
Plus – a range of new mortgages
aimed at first-time buyers with a
minimum household income of
£40,000 enabling them to borrow up
to 5.5-times their earnings.
Together with improvements
in how we assess affordability, we
estimate these mortgages will increase
the maximum we can offer a firsttime buyer by £66,000 compared to
our standard mortgages – a figure
that we are extremely proud
of, and a tangible
example of
the
MARTESE CARTON
is director of mortgage
distribution at Leeds
Building Society
benefit that changes made by lenders
can have on individual borrowers.
Affordability ahead
We’ve made adjustments to our
affordability model to give a more
realistic view of what borrowers
can afford to repay every month,
in order to give first-time buyers a
beer chance of geing a foot onto the
property ladder.
Puing homeownership within
reach of more people, generation aer
generation, is what drives us.
We feel strongly that everyone
deserves a place to call home, which
is why we’ve tackled one of the main
barriers facing would-be homeowners
whose earnings are being outstripped
by house prices and making saving a
large deposit even harder.
We continue to push the
Government to increase the supply of
homes for first-time buyers. We hope
Income Plus being available up to 95%
loan-to-value (LTV) on new-build
houses will give further confidence to
developers that lenders are supporting
aspiring homeowners to overcome
affordability challenges.
Act with purpose
If we are to come anywhere close
to meeting the Government’s
ambitious housing supply targets,
lenders stepping up to the plate and
supporting first-time buyers will
be essential.
The purposeful action we take
now will pave the way for future
homeowners, and we hope that more
lenders will come up with solutions
to support more first-time buyers
and further bolster the future of the
housing market. ●
