Paul Huxter - Head of Intermediary Sales and Distribution
West One has established itself as a solution-driver in the specialist mortgage lending space. Our residential and buy-to-let products are built to give borrowers options that they can't find on the high street. This means a greater focus on affordability, non-standard borrower profiles, and lending to customers with minor credit blips. In essence, we bridge the gap between what borrowers need and what traditional lenders are prepared to offer.
For residential borrowers, we understand that today's property market requires flexible thinking. West One's residential mortgage products are built for affordability, with LTVs up to 97.5%, LTIs up to 5 times income as standard, up to 6.5 times in our extra range, and unlimited caps in our LTI extra range. These higher income multiples can make the difference between clients securing their dream home and being priced out of the market entirely. Furthermore, we allow mortgage terms with a maximum age of up to 85 at the end of the mortgage term. Our residential mortgage terms go up to 40 years, providing breathing room for monthly payments that traditional 25-year terms simply can't match.
Our lending criteria reflect the reality of the modern workforce. We also support and empower those who have multiple income streams, who are self-employed, foreign nationals (with Skilled Worker, Ancestry or Health and Care Worker visas), or who are purchasing shared ownership or right-to-buy properties. For self-employed persons/contract workers, we are able to accept applicants with as little as 12 month's trading history.
Perfect credit is increasingly rare in today's economic climate, which is why we take a more flexible approach. We don't use credit scoring but approach credit risk with flexible thresholds for minor adverse credit. We usually are able to ignore all satisfied and unsatisfied defaults and CCJs under £500 for residential mortgages and under £250 for buy-to-let mortgages. This pragmatic stance means that past financial difficulties don't automatically disqualify you from securing a mortgage—though credit history will affect rates on offer.
The buy-to-let market has evolved dramatically, with professional landlords managing increasingly sophisticated portfolios. West One's buy-to-let mortgages are built for complex cases and for professional landlords. We offer loan sizes up to £2m and portfolios up to £12m. We accept licensed HMOs (up to 6 beds) and MUBs (up to 10 units). We can accept LTVs up to 80% on our core product range. For environmentally conscious investors, we also offer Green Mortgage products for properties with EPC ratings A-C.
Flexibility extends beyond just property types—we recognise that landlords have diverse business structures and investment strategies. West One's buy-to-let products have no minimum income requirements (with the exception of first-time buyers) and allow purchases and remortgages by individuals and companies, including for debt consolidation and capital raising purposes. We accept Day 1 remortgages from limited companies based on open market value, perfect for investors looking to quickly refinance and release equity for their next opportunity.
Speed matters in today's fast-moving property market. As we have an in-house legal team dealing with remortgage applications, we are able to offer a fast-track remortgage service on both our residential and buy-to-let mortgage products. This means fewer delays, more certainty, and the ability to move quickly when the right opportunity presents itself.
At West One, we believe that everyone deserves access to appropriate mortgage finance, regardless of how complex their circumstances might appear. Our approach is simple: where others see obstacles, we see opportunities to help.