The European Commission finalised its mortgage directive this week, saying it aims to prevent reckless lending and enhance protection for consumers.
Kevin White, head of financial planning for deVere UK, said: “We are championing these sensible, tighter mortgage rules as they will, we believe, offer greater protection for consumers by preventing a return to irresponsible lending.
“Borrowers need to be assured that the poor practices of the past which resulted in personal hardship for many and which helped fuel the economic crisis are not repeated.
“However regulatory bodies must also be vigilant that the weight of these new regulations is not used to restrict lending to responsible borrowers who do pass the standard creditworthiness assessment.
“The rules need to be applied with common sense and in the spirit in which they are intended and shouldn’t represent an additional obstacle for those attempting to get onto the property ladder or the self-employed who sometimes find it difficult to provide audited evidence of their earnings.”
The new EU agreement must now be approved by the European parliament in a vote scheduled to take place on 11th June.
