03-04-2008
More banks exit mortgage lending sector
News by Adfero for Simply Business - independent providers of public liability insurance, business finance, landlord insurance, buy-to-let mortgages & commercial mortgages.
Following the decision by First Direct to no longer offer mortgages to non-customers, more banks have announced their decision to retreat from the home loan sector.
In the face of rumours that Halifax will shortly opt to withdraw its own mortgage offers, the UK's Co-operative Bank has announced its decision to remove all of its existing two-year mortgage deals.
In a recent statement, John Barker, the head of mortgages at the Co-operative Bank confirmed that its range of mortgages is "essentially 100 per cent funded by customer deposits".
"All borrowers are being forced to navigate a mortgage minefield where good deals are closer to extinction by the day," said Jonathan Cornell, a representative from brokerage firm Hamptons Mortgages, in a report by the Guardian.
It was also confirmed that US bank Lehman Brothers is to effectively close its UK operations which specialise in the sub-prime mortgage market.