Habito introduces its first range of mortgages

Online mortgage broker Habito has announced the launch of its new mortgage origination platform.

The range – which hosts a suite of Habito-branded mortgages for individual landlords – features a comprehensive selection of high loan-to-value (LTV), competitive rates and long-term fixed deals for the buy-to-let (BTL) market.

The company has also developed unique proprietary technology to provide a fast mortgage process. Decisions in principle (DIPs) have been replaced with Habito Instant Decision, which involves deeper checks at the outset – guaranteeing greater certainty and speed.

Following heavy restrictions and severe charges in the industry over the past three years, Habito’s new range of BTL mortgages has been designed with the customer at the forefront, offering more clarity, speed, ease and innovation in a category that has been subject to delays, uncertainty and a lack of empathy.

The range includes a wide number of seven-year fixed deals and 10-year fixed deals, aiming to provide greater choice for longer-term investors.

The broad range of 10-year fixed deals starts with a rate of 3.51%, while seven-year deals start from 3.31%. An introductory offer of 2.5% cashback is available for the first 15 customers.

“Habito exists to connect customers with the best possible mortgage products,” Daniel Hegarty, founder and chief executive officer of Habito, commented. “For the past three years, we’ve invested heavily in our best-in-class brokerage to dramatically improve and evolve the process of getting a mortgage. Now we’re rolling up our sleeves to tackle the mortgages themselves.”

“By applying our tech-first, people-centric principles, we’ve created a suite of mortgage products that speaks to one of the most under-served groups of borrowers: landlords.”

He said that the main purpose of the range is to ‘free people from the hell of getting a mortgage’ – from long waits and inflexible eligibility criteria, to application decision uncertainty.

“We’re proud to bring to market a range of products that have been built with landlords in mind: long-term fixed rates, competitive pricing, low deposits and sympathetic to self-employed and older customers,” he added.

Other product benefits and eligibility criteria include:

• No minimum income for first-time landlords up to 75% LTV
• No additional restrictions for ex-local authority properties
• No discrimination against landlords with tenants who claim benefits
• Open to all, including first-time, self-employed, retired and older landlords
• Only accessible via the Habito Brokerage
• Applicants will only need to show three months of income (2 years’ proof of income is needed for self-employed customers)