Self-Certificated Mortgage
Who would have thought we would see the return of the self cerificated mortgage? They were banned by the regulator in 2014, well it appears a loophole has been found whereby a lender operating out of the Czech Republic can offer such mortgages.
The regulator has already condemned the tactics of this new business, and warned UK consumers that they have no protection under the Financial Ombudsman Service if they deal with firms that are not under its authority.
Borrowers need to be aware of the small print, there are potential risks when dealing with a lender based outside the UK, many in the media and mortgage industry blamed the last credit crunch on the indiscriminate lending by self certificated mortgage lenders.
Self-cert.co.uk is based in the Czech Republic and operates under the regulator there who is the Czech National Bank, it therefore avoids having to comply with UK regulations but can use the Electronic Commerce Directive to provide a lending service to UK consumers.
The massive level of interest around the launch of this new lender clearly shows that there is significant demand for their product, especially from self-employed borrowers who are excluded from the mortgage market in the UK because of difficulties proving their income.
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