Commenting on the announcement, David Whittaker, managing director of Keystone said:
“There is an enormous opportunity to help landlords north of the border where demand for rental properties remains strong, especially in the main cities and that’s where we’ll be focusing our efforts.”
As an intermediary only lender Keystone is keen to increase the options available to brokers sourcing finance for landlords purchasing and remortgaging Scottish investment properties. It will shortly join the panel of the Intrinsic network which has many of its partners operating in Scotland.
Funding for Keystone is provided exclusively by Aldermore Bank which recently extended its own residential mortgage lending criteria to include Scottish properties.
Rob Lankey, managing director of commercial mortgages at Aldermore said of the announcement:
“Lending in Scotland has proved a great move for Aldermore Mortgages and we felt that offering the same reach to Keystone would widen the borrowing options to investors who have often struggled to secure finance in the region. Keystone is well prepared for the increase in business and has already established solid relationships with a panel of solicitors and surveyors who understand the Scottish property market.”
Keystone is considered a specialist in the buy to let arena and fills a gap between the mainstream and the more commercial lenders. The change in lending policy will be of particular help to landlords specialising in complex property types such as HMOs, multi-units, new builds and recently refurbished properties. It will also help ex-pat investors and those looking for finance in a limited company capacity.
