25% minimum deposit on ex-council flat in London

Mashhh

Hello all,

My mortgage broker has just come out with something curious. He said that, across the lending industry, the minimum deposit for ex-council flats is 25%. I am sure that I have heard of people buying ex-council flats in London with 10 or 15% deposits. He has been really sharp on everything so far, so his comments are giving me pause for thought.

The property in question is a 1-bed, ex-council in a 4-storey brick building in central London. The slight specificity is that it was originally built as a private residence (in the 1890s) but the council picked it up after the War. Approx. 40% council tenants. Flat roof.

Is the broker correct? Perhaps he is only talking about mortgages provided by building societies or something?

I have done a search of posts in the past year regarding minimum deposits and could not see any threads on this particular question. If that was an oversight - apologies!

Thanks in advance!
Matthew

Contemptuous

No, that's not correct for every lender.

Mashhh

Thank you, that's helpful. So how widespread would you say this policy is? Is it the norm, with some lenders making an exception and allowing a lesser deposit, or is it rather that most lenders will accept a lesser deposit while most are more stringent and require 25%?