Overview

• Regulators have given banks and building societies permission to lend up to six times borrowers’ incomes under a new industry-wide cap that replaces individual lender limits.
• Nationwide cut its salary threshold for six-times-income mortgage eligibility to £30,000 for singles and £50,000 for joint applicants, aiming to help 10,000 extra first-time buyers a year.
• Yorkshire Building Society lowered its minimum earnings requirement from £75,000 to £50,000 for mortgages up to five times income.
• Mortgages at 100% loan-to-value have made a comeback and regulators are weighing interest-only options and the use of rent payment records for affordability checks.
• Analysts and first-time buyers warn that easier credit may push up home prices and contend that boosting affordable housing supply is the more effective solution.