New Offset Mortgage Deal Launched by First Direct

According to the news article published on the official web site of First Direct on November 30th, the lender announced launch of a new competitive offset tracker mortgage deal at a pay rate of 2.08% above the base rate, or 2.58%.Being one of the most attractive tracker deals on the UK market at the moment, the mortgage offer allows for 65% LTV and has a fee of £999. Other features that many potential UK borrowers might find competitive include: flexibility in overpayments (both, lump sums and regular payments are accepted by First Direct), no early repayment charges, low closure fee, no fees associated with porting the mortgage to a new property, enhanced availability (to both, existing and new customers of First Direct), financial benefits to First Direct’s savers (such as tax exemptions on savings), etc.The deal is not available for buy to let and right to buy properties, and the minimum size of loan cannot be below £30,000. In addition, the new tracker features a valuation fee, which depends on the value of the property.rnInterestingly, the new deal was announced by First Direct shortly after the Bank of England’s statement, according to which the amount of unsecured debt repaid by UK borrowers in October 2009 reached £600 million. As most of the Britons are concerned with the growing rate of unemployment and possible consequences of the economic downturn, debt repayment topped the priority lists of many people, who use their savings to reduce loans.This might be the reason why such mortgage offers as the newly launched First Direct’s deal are perfect for people who wish to offset their savings against mortgages. According to Jimmy Kelly, First Direct’s head of mortgages, the lender designed the new tracker in order help borrowers “use their money in the most cost effective way.” He also added that the offer allows bank’s customers for more flexibility as they can keep their money in separate accounts.