They made the announcements ahead of the BoE cut – and their predictions were right
Keystone Property Finance and MPowered Mortgages must have had their crystal balls firmly polished ahead of the Bank of England’s decision to cut interest rates by 0.25% on Thursday.
It was immediately prior to that announcement that Keystone cut its entire fixed rate range by up to 25 basis points.
The company decided to move ahead of the decision because improved funding conditions correlated to passing additional savings on to landlords. The specialist buy-to-let lender reduced its new Summer special range by up to 25 basis points, Standard ranges by five basis points, its specialist range by up to 15 basis points, expat ranges by up to 20 basis points and its product transfer range by 25 basis points.
Keystone’s new PT+ range, that lets product transfer customers borrow additional capital, has been reduced by up to 25 basis points.
“While many lenders will be waiting for Monetary Policy Committee’s decision before making a call on whether to reprice, we’re able to pass on significant savings to landlords regardless of the outcome,” said Elise Coole, managing director of Keystone Property Finance at the time.
“SWAP rates – which ultimately determine the cost of fixed rate mortgages – have eased off recently, giving us slack to sharpen our already competitive range.”
That announcement was quickly followed by a similar move from MPowered Mortgages. It made wholesale cuts to its fixed rate mortgages starting from 5:30pm on the same day. Its five-year fixed rates start at 4.14% for 60% LTV with a £999 fee for new purchase customers.
Its CEO, Stuart Cheetham, said the move was designed to give borrowers “good news” ahead of the announcement.
“The rate cuts are substantial, particularly in the five-year space and are designed to offer very competitive rates across all LTVs, not just rate grabbing headlines,” he said.
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