More Mortgage Choice From first direct

More choice on mortgages from first direct, accommodating those looking for a leading interest rate, a higher LTV or those who’d rather not have an upfront fee.

first direct has changed the structure of its mortgage offering to make it easier for customers to decide which mortgage is best for them.

There are three categories ‘Standard’, ‘Fee Free’ and ‘Limited Edition’.

• ‘Standard’ offers one standard booking/arrangement fee with rates available at 65% and 75% LTV.
• ‘Fee Free’ range don’t have any arrangement fee, booking fee or standard valuation fee, but as a result have a slightly higher interest rate.
• ‘Limited Edition’ range, won’t be available all the time and will be created to address what customers are looking for at the time whether it be a leading rate or higher LTV.

Richard Tolchard, Senior Mortgage Product Manager at first direct commented: “It’s clear that customers can sometimes find choosing a mortgage difficult.  We’ve organised our range to give customers the flexibility to choose between rate, fee and LTV depending on their personal circumstances.

“The ‘Limited Edition’ mortgages allow us the freedom to judge market conditions and offer, for example, market leading rates to those with a lower deposit, whilst the ‘Fee Free’ versions cater for those who want to avoid up-front fees.”

MoneyHighStreet says: ” It’s good to see first direct offer options to meet different mortgage needs and to respond to different market conditions. That said with the rise in mortgage fees seen over the last couple of years it’s even more important not to get taken in by the headline rates and to take time to fully assess the overall cost of each mortgage.

With the Bank of England going to raise the base rate at some point, it’s inevitable that mortgage rates will riase. Consideration of a fixed rate may therefore be well worthwhile.”