Buy-to-let mortgage lenders are still finding room to compete even with the Renters’ Rights Act deadline looming, with Paragon Bank reviving an 80% loan-to-value option and several specialist lenders widening choice for landlords seeking remortgage or tracker deals.
Paragon, Landbay and Fleet widen product range
Paragon has introduced six limited-edition five-year fixed products up to 70% LTV, with pricing from 5.67% for single self-contained properties rated EPC A to C. More notably, it has also brought back an 80% LTV five-year fix with no fee, starting at 6.60% for stronger EPC-rated stock.
For larger cases, Paragon says loans above £1m start at 5.79%, while pricing for HMOs and multi-unit blocks begins from 5.92% and 6.04% respectively. That matters because the higher-value and more complex end of the market is where many portfolio landlords now need flexibility rather than headline rates alone.
Landbay has added small HMO remortgage products at 70% LTV, while Fleet Mortgages has launched two-year tracker products across standard, limited company and HMO or MUFB ranges. In practical terms, the changes give landlords more ways to balance fee levels, borrowing levels and refinance timing rather than forcing everyone into the same type of fix.
Jason Wilde, head of mortgage sales at Paragon Bank, said the mix of loans up to £4m and the return of an 80% LTV option would appeal to landlords targeting higher-value properties.
This follows Residential Landlord’s recent report on Chorley’s latest buy-to-let range and Santander’s spring rate cuts, both of which pointed to a market where lenders are still chasing good landlord business rather than retreating from it.
Landlords can compare the latest product details on Paragon’s buy-to-let mortgage page.
Implications for landlords weighing borrowing and timing
For landlords, wider product choice is useful, but it does not remove the bigger problem. Borrowing remains expensive by the standards many investors grew used to before 2022, and higher borrowing still comes with thinner margins if rents, voids or compliance costs move the wrong way.
The return of 80% LTV is significant because it opens the door to more highly geared purchases and refinances at a point when some landlords are trying to preserve cash. Yet that can cut both ways. Higher borrowing may help active investors move quickly, but it also leaves less room for error if the operating environment becomes harder after May.
For more cautious landlords, the more useful development may be the spread of specialist options for HMOs, limited companies and remortgages. That is where product design is starting to look more practical than simple headline rate competition.
Opinion
Lender appetite is clearly still there, which is better news than many landlords expected. But fresh mortgage choice is not the same as a green light to pile on risk. In this market, the landlords who win are more likely to be the ones who borrow with a margin of safety, not the ones chasing maximum borrowing because a product has reappeared.
