"We've even just been told of the first 6%+ clean credit mortgage rate, which is the highest rate for a mainstream lender I've seen in over seven years."
Halifax Intermediaries is withdrawing selected products with new products starting 28th September. Affected products include new build, shared equity/shared ownership, self-build, large loans including equivalent green home and remortgage products. All products with a product fee will be withdrawn close of business on Tuesday 27th September.
Virgin has temporarily withdrawn all products for new customers "following a number of changes in the market". In a statement it said the decision "helps us to focus our resources on existing customers and applications already submitted".
Virgin's product transfer range for existing customers will remain available and the lender plans to relaunch products for new customers towards the end of the week.
The Nottingham for Intermediaries announced it is repricing a range of residential, buy-to-let, holiday let, RIO and self build products and is also withdrawing 14 additional products.
Kensington is also offering a new range of products and a note on Keystone's website says that "our products are currently not available but will be returning very soon".
Lewis Shaw, founder and mortgage expert at Shaw Financial Services: "And so it begins. Mortgage lenders are already sending rate changes out, hiking fixed deals, despite the flurry of moves last week. We've even just been told of the first 6%+ clean credit mortgage rate, which is the highest rate for a mainstream lender I've seen in over seven years. Is this the sign they know something we don't? The writing is on the wall. Markets have shown what they think of Kami-Kwasi's fiscal event. UK 5-year bond yields are above those of Italy and Greece, and the cost of insuring the UK against a default is rising. This will make HM Treasury hot under the collar. The Bank of England will be forced to step in with another base rate hike to try and calm spooked markets. That will feed into higher mortgage rates and, as always, it'll be the taxpayer left carrying the can. In the history of poor economic policies, last week's fiscal event will fly into the Top 10."
Anil Mistry, director and mortgage broker at RNR Mortgage Solutions: "This is not a surprise move from the Halifax. Other lenders will almost certainly follow suit and wait to see what move the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee takes prior to bringing back a full range of products. Right now, the interest rate arena is on red alert and all eyes are on the Bank of England."
Scott Taylor-Barr, financial adviser at Carl Summers Financial Services: "The Chancellor stood at the ballot box on Friday and delivered a mini-Budget for growth. He certainly managed that: since then, we've had growth in interest rates, growth in public borrowing, growth in uncertainty for Sterling and growth in concern for the UK economy. I'm not 100% sure that was the growth he had in mind and the immediate reaction from financial markets has not been kind. Halifax is one of a number of lenders to have repriced their deals following Friday's announcements and the growing talk of an emergency rate rise from the Bank of England. We're now looking at the vast majority of mortgages in their range being 4%+, which is an incredible rise when you consider the rates we could access not so long ago."
Imran Hussain, director at Harmony Financial Services: "Smash, bang and wallop, but sadly this is just the start. Many lenders will follow suit given that another rate rise, potentially this week, is looking imminent. Products will get chopped and changed quicker than we can all keep up. The mortgage market was already hectic and now it's going haywire. Swap rates for two-year products are now above 5%. Compared to where we were a year or so ago, that's frankly insane."
Imogen Sporle, head of regulated and term finance at Finanze: "In the world of mortgage brokers this is very unsurprising, we see rate changes every week now and have done for the last 6 months. This one is a real shocker amoung them though as almost all of the rates are 4%+. The other lenders if they haven’t already will certainly follow suit and increase their rates too off the back of the announcement on Thursday. Its upsetting to see especially those rates increasing on the affordable housing range as its that bracket of the population that are already struggling who are going to be among the worst hit by these inflated rates."
Jamie Lennox, director at Dimora Mortgages: "The future is certainly looking bleak when the biggest lender in the UK pulls a big selection of their products on offer. The uncertainty around the risk of an emergency rate rise is likely to see other lenders withdrawing products or increasing rates dramatically until they know the extent of how this all pans out. The UK economy is on red alert and lenders and borrowers alike are having to keep a keen eye on what is a rapidly changing rate environment."
