West One increases maximum LTIs and enhances remortgage AVMs

West One has announced two criteria enhancements for residential mortgage customers. 

Standard LTIs on its core products have been increased from 5x income to 5.5x income for purchases and remortgages across all product credit tiers. 

The uplift to 5.5x LTI has also been applied to Right to Buy purchases, but not shared ownership products or the higher LTI limits available on 'Extra' products.

West One has also made improvements to its automated valuation model (AVM) criteria for residential remortgage customers. The changes are applicable to all core products from the premier, platinum and prime plus plans.

The maximum loan size eligible for an AVM has increased from £300,000 to £500,000, and the maximum LTV has risen from 70% to 75%. West One's underwriting team will run the AVM during the early stages of the application process and will advise brokers directly on whether a case can proceed without a physical valuation.

Marie Grundy, managing director of mortgages at West One, commented: “Our aim is to make the remortgage process as smooth and efficient as possible for both brokers and their clients. The improvements to our AVM criteria will complement our innovative free fast track legal remortgage process which also includes the acceptance of electronically signed mortgage deeds, meaning more customers can benefit from a faster, lighter-touch process.”