5 Year Fixed Rate — 5.99 per cent
* Max loan to value — 97 per cent
* Refunded Valuation
* Free Conveyancing
* 1 per cent cashback (maximum £5,000)
* £199 Arrangement Fee
The 1% cashback feature will effectively help FTBs to negate the impact of stamp duty (based on an average FTB house price of £112,541). Recent research published by Halifax found that the average first time buyer now pays more than £1,000 in stamp duty, equivalent to around 6% of their deposit or two weeks of their annual income.
Craig Donaldson, head of mortgage products at Halifax said:
"First time buyers are finding it increasingly hard to get onto the property ladder and need specific help to make their first move. It was disappointing that the Chancellor did not take steps in the recent Budget to link stamp duty to house price inflation. This simple move would have benefited FTBs enormously taking the current £60,000 stamp duty threshold to £143,000 and reducing the cost for the average person buying their first home by over £1,000."
The Halifax First Time Buyer Mortgage Range offers a menu of 'extras' designed to cut the cost of buying a home. First Time Buyers can choose from a low variable or fixed rate, with any one, two or all three extras from the following: £250 cashback, refund of the cost of Halifax Valuation Report and / or Conveyancing Fees paid.
All new Halifax mortgages offer interest calculated on a daily basis, overpayments, underpayments and payment holidays. Subject to Halifax mortgage terms and conditions, mortgages are available up to 97 per cent loan to value for First Time Buyers, which means that the minimum deposit is just 3 per cent.
