The last two years have been a revolution for the UK mortgage market with a reduction in the number of lenders and consequently a big reduction in the number of mortgage products. Couple to this the tougher rules lenders now employ, in part due to the regulators insistence but also their own new found caution, and borrowing money in the UK is now far harder than for many years. For those who bought in the UK some years ago and subsequently moved abroad the options are fewer still if looking for a new or improved deal.

In the fall out from the credit crunch some lenders have disappeared, some bought out by larger predators and others are only maintaining their strength due to the massive injections of tax payer’s money to support them. Most of those lenders left in the UK market have narrowed their focus and moved away from what is perceived to be less risky forms of lending. The UK ‘buy to let’ market for instance is a pale shadow of its former self with far less competition and the sub prime or impaired credit market is almost non existent. Lenders all want good clean cases, bread and butter business they don’t have to fret over and most are sticking to lending to UK residents buying UK property.

So what about the ex-pats who have a UK property or wish to buy into it? There are hundreds of thousands of people who have a house or flat in the UK which has been let out since they left the country to live and work abroad. It may also be that the same property or another has been earmarked as their main UK residence for when they do return. If that’s you, what options do you have? Well there are very few lenders available so it’s not a pretty picture but it’s not necessarily bleak either. Some major high street Banks are looking more closely at the ex-pat community. There is a fair chance your property was purchase some years ago and perhaps has built up a good level of equity. It may be that you moved abroad some years ago and have not ‘raided’ the equity from the property to spend on consumer items, unlike some of your UK resident counterparts, and it may also be that if you moved outside of the UK to work and are still employed despite the global financial difficulties of the past two years, that makes you a good credit risk.

This all goes to say that if you live and work outside of the UK but need a mortgage back in the UK then options are there and often at more favourable terms than you’d think. For the right applicant with a healthy deposit a variable borrowing rate of just 2.49% above Bank of England base rate is achievable which is comparable to many deals for those applicants resident in the UK. If you need to borrow, do your research, take advice from a suitable intermediary and maybe the right deal is out there for you.

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© Mike Jones