Number of 95 per cent mortgages set to soar
The number of 95 per cent mortgages on the UK market is set to soar this week, as one of the country's biggest building societies unveils 36 different offers.
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According to the Daily Mail, the Yorkshire Building Society is launching a series of low-deposit offers that will mean buyers will need a deposit of just £8,500 for a property worth £170,000, the UK average.
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The Society had scrapped its 95 per cent deals back in April 2008, and until today, has insisted on a minimum 10 per cent deposit. But the reintroduction of lower deposit deals is expected to encourage more banks and building societies to follow suit, with HSBC, Santander and Barclays already planning to launch similar offers within the next few weeks.
When the credit crunch began in August 2007, there were 986 five per cent deposit mortgages on offer, reports financial information firm Moneyfacts - a figure which dropped to just 42 last month.
However, since the Government launched its Help to Buy scheme, which allows buyers to save a five per cent deposit while the Government provides the lender a further 15 per cent, the number of deals rose to 64.
And with Yorkshire Building Society - which has not signed up for the scheme - launching their deals, there are now 100 offers on the market.
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While YBS chief executive Chris Pilling insisted that it was essential loans were made in a "responsible and prudent way", critics fear such mortgages will land buyers in trouble.
Duncan Stott, from campaign group Priced Out, told the Mail: "Small deposits mean huge amounts of debt need to be taken out to afford the UK's sky-high house prices.
"This is the last thing that Britain needs. The danger is that this will cause even more debt to flow into the housing market, pushing house prices up even further."
What do you think? Does the return of the 95 per cent mortgage spell trouble? Leave your comments below...
