First Direct...great rate but...

cpdc1030

Hi All,

I am currently on a NatWest fixed mortgage at 3.49% which is expiring at the end of March this year.

I applied for and was approved for a First Direct 5 year fixed rate mortgage at 3.89%, however I haven't yet submitted the paperwork for the valuation (so I can still back out but lose the booking fee). This product is no longer available to new customers, as fixed rates are going up.

My conundrum is that although the 5 year at 3.89% is a fantastic deal, I am concerned about First Direct's sometimes restrictive policies. For example - I have seen some comments that they never allow Consent to Let for people who enquire as new customers, and others who have said they received permission without any problem. This concerns me as in 5 years there is a good chance I might want to move to a different property (or country) and let out the existing property for some time.

Property value is about 180k and LTV is 65%.

Any suggestions or thoughts? Has anyone dealt with First Direct and consent to let?

Cheers

Thrugelmir

cpdc1030 wrote: »

Any suggestions or thoughts? Has anyone dealt with First Direct and consent to let?

The terms of Consent to Let are totally at the discretion of the lender at the time of application. Who knows what terms and conditions will be applied in 5 years time.

Burridge60

That's not what you are telling the lender I am sure if you had been "open" they would have equally had some short comings and maybe they might have posted at MSE with a query about this matter.

Do you want your cake and eat it? Or are you looking to make sure your pockets are lined in advance of your claim in a few years when you want to work abroad !

The TRUTH cuts both ways.

There is a phone between you and the lender to sort this out.

cpdc1030

Burridge60 wrote: »

That's not what you are telling the lender I am sure if you had been "open" they would have equally had some short comings and maybe they might have posted at MSE with a query about this matter.

Do you want your cake and eat it? Or are you looking to make sure your pockets are lined in advance of your claim in a few years when you want to work abroad !

The TRUTH cuts both ways.

There is a phone between you and the lender to sort this out.

You have not read my post correctly, and are trying to prove relevance by preaching. Let me simplify:

1) When ringing in to First Direct anonymously as a new customer, they have told me and others I know (and on forums) that they do not ever provide consent to let.
2) Forum feedback on this subject seems to indicate that their position is not quite so firm in reality.

Telling First Direct that I may or may not want to buy a larger property or move overseas within the five year period of the mortgage would serve no useful purpose to anyone. Should I also tell them that I might die within five years? Quit my job? Have a mid life crisis and buy a Porsche? All are possible.

I am simply looking for feedback from people who have been in a similar situation.

Meeper

Don't be foolish.

Basically you want to take the best deal you can find but not be restricted by the criteria and elements of the deal. If there is a chance that you might want to let out the property in two years, take a two-year deal. If you might want to rent it out in three years, take a three year deal.

In taking the FD 5-year fixed rate you are stating that you are going to have that mortgage on a residential basis for 5 years, and if you do not persist on the residential basis you will have to pay the repayment charge and re-finance to a Rental mortgage at the point that you rent it out if they do not give consent at that time. You can't expect to be able to benefit from the lowest residential rates and think you are enttled to then do what you like later, to hell with the lenders terms and conditions.

Burridge60

cpdc1030 wrote: »

Telling First Direct that I may or may not want to buy a larger property or move overseas within the five year period of the mortgage would serve no useful purpose to anyone. Should I also tell them that I might die within five years? Quit my job? Have a mid life crisis and buy a Porsche? All are possible.

I cannot speak with experience of First Direct. All I can add is that lenders wont be tied to future lending decisions in advance. So whatever they do now cannot be taken as precedent for the future.

Many lenders are becoming increasingly reluctant to give consent to let. MSE has a number of current threads where the OP has been told to have a BTL product by their lender.

If they say to you they don't do it i would accept that position as they are clearly trying to dissuade business where permission to let might be a long term factor.

If they have previously allowed a long standing customer permission to let then it must be the individual circumstances that have been influential in agreeing this.

InMyDreams

cpdc1030 wrote: »

1) When ringing in to First Direct anonymously as a new customer, they have told me and others I know (and on forums) that they do not ever provide consent to let.
2) Forum feedback on this subject seems to indicate that their position is not quite so firm in reality.

What answers are you hoping to get and what action would you take as a result?

By all means, if you read about some stranger on a forum who's circumstances you don't know about (and even if you did, you couldn't verify) who has managed to persuade a mortgage company to be lenient on some of its terms and conditions, then go ahead, borrow money from them and hope that they may be lenient with you too should the need arise.

Personally, I would only be happy with making a decision based on what I had in black and white from the mortgage provider. The cost of enjoying FD's market leading rates is accepting their restrictive terms. For some this means it's an excellent deal, for others it could make it the worst.