West One launches residential and buy-to-let ranges in Northern Ireland

West One has announced the expansion of its residential and buy-to-let mortgage products into Northern Ireland.

West One says launch into a new territory is designed to provide greater access to specialist mortgage products for non-standard borrowers "in a jurisdiction that has been historically underserved by specialist mortgages".

Residential mortgages are available up to 90% LTV with LTIs of up to 5.5 times income as standard. Maximum loan sizes in Northern Ireland are capped at £1.5m. LTI Boost products with no loan-to-income cap are also available for households earning over £50,000 and where affordability is evidenced.

The lender's residential products cater for a variety of credit profiles – allowing various instances of credit blips. For Northern Ireland, core product rates start from 6.34% for two-year fixed terms, 6.23% for five-year fixed terms, while the lowest fixed rates available are on two-year fixes in the LTI Boost range (with uncapped LTI), starting from 5.64%. 

Variable rate mortgages are available from 5.60% (BBR + 1.85%) on a two-year discounted tracker product with ERCs only applicable in the first year.

Buy-to-let mortgages will be available up to 75% LTV with a maximum loan size of £2m. West One’s bespoke buy-to-let offering, largely built for the needs of the portfolio landlord, will also be available on a referral basis for larger loan sizes, portfolios up to £15m, and higher complexity cases.

Marie Grundy, managing director of mortgages at West One, said: “Northern Ireland presents an amazing growth opportunity for West One, allowing us to serve more brokers and borrowers with a range of specialist mortgage products that could help underserved clients obtain a mortgage deal. Our entry into the market also puts us among a very small group of specialist lenders offering mortgage products across the whole of the UK.”

Paul Huxter, West One’s head of intermediary sales and distribution, added: “The buy-to-let market in Northern Ireland is unique in the sense that undersupply of rental properties dominates the discussion. Yet many would-be landlords who don’t qualify for a high street mortgage have very limited options and face tough barriers to entry as a result. From minor credit issues and consumer buy-to-let cases to portfolio growth, limited company lending and non-standard property types, we have the specialist expertise to consider cases that high street lenders won’t accommodate.”