Independent mortgage and protection adviser Affinity Mortgages has been added to the panel of brokers at Peculiar, the shared equity loan provider.
The partnership means that Affinity Mortgages, which is based in London and Essex, will now be able to offer clients Peculiar shared equity loans, which provide a unique way of supporting people with limited equity to get onto the housing ladder.
These loans are similar to the government’s Help to Buy scheme, but in addition to supporting first-time buyers are also available on existing properties and to those who are already on the housing ladder.
Peculiar loans are only available through brokers, and provide up to £150,000 or up to 25% of the value of a property which borrowers can then use to obtain a mainstream mortgage at a lower rate of interest than taking out a 95% LTV mortgage. This enables borrowers to lower the overall cost of their mortgage across the two blended rates by up to 40%. Moreover it increases overall loan to income up to 6x on a 5% deposit.
London-based Peculiar has secured funding of £100m, and is presently actively expanding its broker, lender and estate agent relationships. Affinity Mortgages is its latest partnership.
Peculiar chief executive and co-founder Vadim Toader said: “The addition of Affinity Mortgages to Peculiar’s panel of brokers will enable us to expand our reach, and offer a real solution to people with limited deposits struggling to purchase a home of their own. It also provides Affinity with a way to help their clients that wasn’t previously available.
“With interest rates predicted to rise again this year, and property prices continuing to increase, we anticipate that a growing number of prospective purchasers will be finding it harder to get onto the housing ladder, or to move further up it.
“We are looking forward to working with Affinity Mortgages to make homeownership possible for their clients where it may not otherwise be. We help people to buy the properties they really want to live in.
Rebecca Lewis, Director of Operations at Affinity Mortgages said: “We’re really excited to be able to extend Peculiar’s offering to our clients. At Affinity we always ensure no stone is left unturned to find a solution for our clients’ needs, this will only enhance our ability to truly find a solution to every problem.
Eric Miller, mortgage adviser at the firm, added: “Peculiar has given a number of my clients the chance to purchase properties they would not have been able to afford unless they continued to save for a significant period of time. The team are also on hand whenever we need to review a case and respond promptly.
“Their ethos and desire to help people progress on the property ladder goes hand in hand with the values in Affinity’s DNA.”
IN THE PRESS