Mortgage market share battle continues as big lenders pass on savings to home borrowers
Santander, which was among the first mortgage lenders to cut rates after the Bank of England’s base rate move, has just announced a number changes to its mortgage offerings, alongside a strategic shift in its customer service operations, following a number of complaints from customers.
Starting from tomorrow, August 13, the bank will lower selected new business and product transfer rates for both residential and buy-to-let (BTL) deals. The reductions include a decrease in residential purchase and remortgage fixed rates by 0.02% to 0.19% and a cut in BTL fixed rates by 0.05% to 0.15%.
Additionally, new-build fixed rates will drop by between 0.03% and 0.07%.
Santander is also launching 10-year fixed rates for purchases and remortgages, providing more options for long-term financial planning. The bank had already reduced BTL, new-build, and residential fixed rates by up to 0.2% earlier this month.
In a parallel move, Santander is bringing its call centres back to the UK from India, responding to customer dissatisfaction with offshore operations.
The decision follows a wave of complaints from customers frustrated with dealing with overseas call centres. All calls previously managed in Bangalore and Pune will now be handled by newly recruited staff in Glasgow, Leicester, and Liverpool.
The bank has hired 500 additional employees to manage the estimated 1.5 million calls it receives monthly, bringing the total number of staff in its UK call centres to 2,500
This shift is part of Santander's broader initiative to enhance customer service and address feedback more effectively.
NatWest cuts rates by up to 0.42%
NatWest has announced rate cuts across several of its mortgage products, with reductions of up to 0.42% on select new business rates. These changes will impact residential, first-time buyer, shared equity, and BTL products. In the residential category, purchase and remortgage rates will decrease by up to 0.2%, including a drop in the two-year fixed rate at 60% loan-to-value (LTV) from 4.48% to 4.28%.
First-time buyers will also benefit from a rate reduction of up to 0.2%, with one notable two-year fixed-rate purchase deal at 85% LTV decreasing from 4.94% to 4.74%. Shared equity and Help to Buy products will similarly see reductions of up to 0.2%. BTL products will experience the most significant cuts, with rates dropping by 0.42%, including a two-year fixed-rate deal at 60% LTV falling from 5.09% to 4.67%. Additionally, NatWest’s residential and BTL green mortgages will see rate reductions of 0.2% and 0.42%, respectively.
These moves by both banks come amid an increasingly competitive mortgage market, as banks adjust their offerings to attract new business and retain existing customers in a challenging economic environment.
