Cladding

Earlier this year we shared news that some major lenders have released their updated approach to cladding following an industry statement originally released in 2022. This means that those who have been locked within a mortgage or unable to shop around for more competitive options could now search for a new deal.

As one of the largest independent mortgage introducers in the UK, we benefit from a number of exclusive rates not available to the general public. This allows us to explore all the options available to our clients, rather than just the major lenders.

Below we are delighted to share examples of how our knowledge and expertise has recently helped two of our clients who were significantly impacted by the cladding crisis.

– Case study 1 –
Mr and Mrs R. are existing clients of our Mortgage & Protection Adviser Michelle Shilliam who is located at our Chelmsford Branch. They had put their flat on the market over 18 months ago and had a sale running on it which subsequently fell through due to the buyers’ surveyors finding cladding which was deemed unacceptable.
They reached out to Michelle recently about another issue, but Michelle noticed that the couple lived in a block of flats located in a popular area of Chelmsford which she knew had all the relevant paperwork for the cladding to be removed at no cost to them. Michelle mentioned they could now be eligible for a mortgage as some lenders have changed their policies on cladding. They are now in positive position and have decided to put their property back on the market and are now viewing new properties.
We are delighted for Mr and Mrs R as some lenders policies have enabled them to start searching for their new property nearly two years later!

– Case study 2 –
Six months ago, one of our Mortgage & Protection advisers, Bhupindar Singh, had a client who had been offered a right to buy on their flat. When the client had their flat valued, it was unfortunately valued at zero due to the cladding restrictions that were in place.
Now that some lenders have changed their policies, Bhupindar now got back in touch to arrange a mortgage for his clients’ flat. They have now received a formal mortgage offer, which would have been impossible six months ago and understandably our clients are extremely pleased!

Lenders

Back in July 2022, an industry statement was released, focusing on and outlining the function of the new Building Safety Act 2022. The act was introduced to encourage the market regarding cladding and other safety aspects. This statement was then followed by guidance from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), outlining the valuation approach for residential property with cladding.

Now having entered the new year, three major lenders are starting to release their updated approaches to cladding, and we have taken the liberty of outlining a few examples below.

_{*Please note, these changes related to main residential homes, and does not necessarily represent lending policies for second homes or buy-to-let properties.}