Accord Mortgages has removed the minimum income requirement for first-time buyers to access mortgages up to 5.5 times their income.
The lender said this supports more first-time buyers to achieve homeownership and the change applies across its product range, excluding the £5k Deposit Mortgage.
For a joint application, at least one applicant must be a first-time buyer and Accord Mortgages will lend up to 95% loan to value (LTV). High-loan-to-income (LTI) lending will be available for new-build properties, including flats.
Further, Accord Mortgages has simplified the criteria for its joint borrower sole proprietor (JBSP) mortgage to allow the earnings of family members to be taken into account when assessing the affordability of the buyer. This will be available up to 95% LTV.
The lender has also removed a limit that meant only 25% of the mortgage term could run into the assisting family member’s retirement, which it said would allow more people to help borrowers with affordability.
Jeremy Duncombe, managing director of Accord Mortgages, said: “These changes mark our latest moves to support more borrowers in achieving their homeownership goals.
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“We were among the first lenders to respond to the greater flexibility the regulator gave us to set our own higher loan-to-income lending limits, a change we had long called for.
“At the time, we underlined our commitment to enhancing our support for borrowers in achieving their homeownership aspirations, and we are delivering on that.
“These two changes to our criteria, which offer different ways for borrowers to expand their borrowing potential, show how we’re building on every opportunity to make it possible for more people to access the size of mortgage they need.”
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