Abbey increases rates and slashes maximum loan for offset
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Abbey for Intermediaries is increasing rates on a number of its fixed and tracker mortgage products from tomorrow by between 0.10% and 0.50%.
It has also almost halved the maximum loan amount on its flexible offset product from £1m down to £550,000.
In addition, the lender is withdrawing selected no-fee two-year, three-year and five-year fixed rate products at 60%, 75% and 85% LTV and selected two-year tracker remortgage products at 85% LTV.
A spokeswoman for Abbey for Intermediaries says: “Like all lenders, we constantly review our range in line with market conditions and competitor movements. We are committed to supporting the housing market and continue to offer a wide range of competitive products to meet borrowers’ needs.”
Ketan Yadav, specialised lending director at Avenue & Co Private Finance, says the reduction in Abbey’s offset loan size is highly significant and will impact on its business levels.
He says: “Abbey will lose a lot of business from professional high earners who have loans in excess of £550,000 and often offset bonuses and income from property developments against their mortgage.
“By way of comparison, many medium-sized building societies will lend up to at least £750,000 on an offset basis.”
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