FR: You recently exhibited at Financial Services Expo London for the first time - why did you decide to exhibit this year?
Kensington was purchased by new owners earlier this year and with new ownership we have a new appetite to lend. As a result, we have lots of exciting developments that we want to communicate with brokers and the Financial Services Expo provided a great opportunity to have those conversations.
Our message to brokers is simple - if you have a difficult case to place, give Kensington a call first. We have been making complex cases straight forward for 20 years, criteria to suit real life situations, and one of the most experienced teams in the business.
FR: A number of lenders have made criteria changes recently, including Kensington; tell us about the changes you've made and why.
We have made lots of great changes to our criteria in recent months. Here are three of those.
For sole company directors we are now able to consider the net profit of their business in addition to salary as part of our affordability calculation for the self-employed.
For applicants who earn more than £75,000 a year, we can look at interest only up to 75% LTV as long as there is a plausible and realistic repayment strategy in place.
And, on Buy to Let, we have changed our rental calculation to 125% of 5.50% and we no longer require a minimum income for existing landlords.
As I mentioned, these are just three of the changes and there is lots of other lending policy that is designed for real life situations. Take a look at our website, where we will list all of our criteria and will soon launch a really handy search tool so that it is even easier for brokers to understand how Kensington could help their clients.
FR: Do you think the tax changes for buy to let will be the bombshell that has been predicted, or do you think investors will simply become more savvy to get round the new rules?
It is certainly likely to cause a change in behaviour for many landlords and will put more emphasis on the value of professional tax advice alongside mortgage advice.
This will provide impetus for mortgage intermediaries to form new partnerships with accountants, or to strengthen existing ones, and could actually provide an opportunity for intermediaries if they are able to leverage these partnerships to generate new business.
FR: Is there anything new on the horizon for Kensington in the next 12 months?
Absolutely. We have an appetite to lend and a lots of plans to support this. We think that all of these plans will offer new opportunities for intermediaries to write more business more easily. So watch this space.
FR: If you weren't in financial services, what would you be doing?
I'm really not sure. I am starting the process of getting my RFU rugby coaching badges, and I have a distant aspiration of becoming a zoo keeper. So maybe one day I will teach zoo animals to play rugby.
