The Intermediary – January 2026 - Flipbook - Page 27
S TAT E O F T H E N AT I O N
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I work mainly with high-net-worth individuals,
see many clients moving away from buy-to-lets
most of whom are self-employed. A lender won’t
being held in personal names to setting up
always see things the same way as an accountant,
special purchase vehicles, whether it be to hold
and they are still very rigid in how they assess
one or two buy-to-lets to dozens of buy-to-lets.
income.
Looking ahead the remortgage market is a
I have asset-rich clients who are earning
huge opportunity over the next 12 months. There
income from investments, but a lot of lenders
are going to be lots of people coming off very low
still don’t accept investment income. I’d like to
rates from five years ago who need expert advice
see lenders be more open this year to this type of
to find the best deals and help soften the rate
lending.
shock of higher interest rates.
I’m also seeing more borrowers over 60, but
I’m having to dig deep to find lenders for them. I
had a first-time buyer recently at 72, who wanted
a 90% mortgage.
When they came to me, I was like, holy moly,
what am I going to do with this? But do you know
Phil Saville
Sales and marketing director,
iMAB,
Hertfordshire
what? I got their mortgage.
Since the 2022 mini-
There are a lot more options now for later
Budget, borrowers have
life lending. It’s easy to default to equity release.
become more educated
But the right thing is to find a lender that will
about mortgages. Rate
provide the right solution for the client.
movements are widely
Looking ahead, I think interest rates have
reported, meaning
settled. I’ve had clients tell me they’re holding off
customers often approach
because they’re waiting for rates to keep falling
us with a clearer
back to where they were, so I’ve had to manage
their expectations.
understanding of
affordability. While a more educated customer is
definitely a good thing, it’s a double-edged sword.
Grant Holmes
Falling rates mean advisers are regularly
Managing director,
revisiting and amending cases, which creates
Bentley Holmes,
a compliance burden and a massive challenge
for advisers to find that additional time. The
Surrey
good news is that lenders have responded by
Most of our business is
improving product switching, making it easier
mortgage, however, in the
for frequent rate changes.
last 12 months we have
There was some speculation about possible
been working to increase
changes to Stamp Duty in the Autumn Budget,
our protection
but this didn’t happen.
penetration. We see this
As a result, we need to find other ways to
as both an opportunity
support more first-time buyers onto the ladder,
and a responsibility to
to keep the market moving.
look after our clients.
The market continues to be challenging. There
were a large number of buyers waiting for the
Budget before making any decisions. With the
Fortunately, lenders are increasingly stepping
up through innovation, which was a standout
positive in 2025.
The big lenders had a light bulb moment,
Bank of England rate reduction in December
introducing reduced stress tests, improved
and the start of a New Year, this will hopefully
affordability models, and targeted schemes for
see lenders reduce rates and encourage buyers
first-time buyers.
to start committing to new purchases. At the
These changes are helping us place business,
top end of the market, we have seen quite a
whereby a year or two ago, we may have had to
few clients move overseas but not sell their UK
say no.
homes and so there is not the usual chain of
properties forming.
First-time buyers have remained fairly active,
Looking ahead, world events remain a key risk.
With economies more interconnected, one little
thing happens, and there’s a huge domino effect,
largely driven by the cost of renting, so despite
particularly given ongoing geopolitical tensions.
mortgage rates still feeling high, they are often
However, with record mortgage volumes and a
better off than paying rent.
We are also active in the buy-to-let space and
significant remortgage wave due in 2026, falling
rates and lender creativity, I’m optimistic.
p
January 2026 | The Intermediary
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