Download the article – Where are you holidaying in 2024?
UK Holiday Lets remain popular creating additional business for brokers
It’s official, the clocks have gone back and winter is on its way. Many of us have started to plan next year’s holiday to give us something to look forward to. Have you booked yours?
Staycation breaks remain popular for us Brits creating new opportunities for mortgage brokers working in the holiday let space. Are you making the most of this opportunity?
There’s nothing like a cold, dark autumn evening to prompt us to research our next summer holiday. According to holiday experts, staycations remain very much in vogue. The popularity of
holidaying in the UK is giving added momentum to the holiday let market and the associated financing opportunities this creates for brokers.
Staycations are great for people who aren’t keen on flying or travelling long distances, who want to discover new areas closer to home, or who want to avoid the high cost of overseas travel. ‘Workations’ are also on trend (working remotely while travelling). Both options are creating demand for places to stay in the UK, and in particular holiday let rentals like Airbnbs.
The domestic holiday accommodation market has seen significant growth over the last 10 years according to recent research.* This niche sector currently claims a market size of £2.54bn, representing a growth of 38% from the £1.8bn reported in 2013. This doesn’t surprise us.
Investors want to cash in and make the most of the demand. At Harpenden we’ve seen significant growth in the amount of holiday let mortgage applications being presented to us giving brokers a great opportunity to grow business.
Sourcing the right holiday let mortgage
Harpenden Building Society is a specialist, holiday let lender with many years’ of experience. As well as competitive mortgage rates we offer some nice additional features too.
We allow owners to use the property for their own purposes for up to 90 days a year, which is particularly popular with our customers.
Unlike many other lenders, we don’t have as many restrictions regarding location. We recognise that city centres and historical destinations are also good holiday let locations so we will lend on properties found in less traditional holiday areas.
We also recognise that those looking to invest in a holiday let property often have a complex financial profile with multiple income streams. Harpenden has the expertise and experience to manage complex cases delivering specialist solutions many other lenders can’t service.
Every policy is underwritten manually by an expert, which enables a flexible approach. We consider many forms of complex income, including pensions, trust income, maintenance and investment as well as standard employed and self-employed income.
Harpenden Building Society Holiday Let mortgages – key features at a glance:
• 90 days personal usage allowance per annum
• Airbnb considered
• We lend in town and city centres as well as coastal areas
• We lend on properties above commercial units
• Minimum income of £30.000 required
• Top slicing
• Up to 3 properties on one title considered
• 75% LTV available on IO and 80% available on repayment
Whether it’s the holiday let category, or lending in another area of specialist lending, the Harpenden team is always pleased to speak with mortgage brokers about their current lending requirements.
Chelsea Pordage, Business Development Manager, Harpenden Building Society
*Barrows and Forrester