Alliance and Leicester has announced a new tracker mortgage with a headline rate of less than 6 percent.
The new Alliance and Leicester mortgage is a two year base rate tracker with a 5.98 percent headline rate and a maximum loan to value of 75 percent. There is an arrangement fee of just under GBP1,000 and borrowers can take up to a maximum of GBP1 million.
The typical two year fixed rate mortgage rate has just gone over 7 percent so this sub 6 percent figure is certain to attract keen interest. It offers a real alternative for customers and shows them that the Alliance and Leicester are really doing what they can for customers.
HBOS, owner of the Halifax amongst others, is to streamline its operation with the cutting of around 420 jobs and the deletion of one of its mortgage businesses.
The Halifax brand is well known for mortgages, being one of the biggest providers of home loans in the UK. This status means it will not see any changes to its operation, the cuts instead coming from other parts of the HBOS group. It appears that part of the problem was a duplication of efforts in relation to mortgage business, the streamlining aiming to reduce this and give each brand its area of expertise.
The job cuts by HBOS, which as already stated will not impact on the Halifax, will see most employees redeployed to other parts of the group, meaning that in real terms job losses should only be slight.
The Abbey National has today announced mortgage rate cuts on several of its home loan products, specifically the fixed rate and flexible mortgages.
All of the Abbey National flexible offset mortgages have had a rate cut of 0.2 percent, as have the five year fixed rate offers, while three year tracker mortgages have received a reduction of 0.1 percent. They have also stated that more reductions will follow, these being on the two year and three year fixed rate mortgages, where rates could come down by a quarter of 1 percent.
A spokesman for the Abbey National stated that they wanted to do the best they could for the customer, delivering the best possible deal whenever possible. It is also hoped that the cutting of rates across the market will stimulate activity in the housing market.
