Masthaven Bank

Masthaven was founded in 2004 and was originally a private lender before it became the first new bank to be granted a banking licence in 2016. The company prides itself on offering great customer service and making good use of technology. They are Prudential Regulation Authority regulated and authorised, and they are also regulated by the FCA (Financial Conduct Authority).

The bank can lend both traditional (first-charge) mortgages and second-charge mortgages that allow you to borrow based upon how much equity you have in your property and can be used to finance home improvements or other big projects. They also offer buy-to-let mortgages and bridging loans.

• You can borrow anywhere from £10,000 to £150,000
• The amount you can borrow is up to 70% of the value of your property minus your outstanding mortgage. So, if your home was worth £150,000 and you owed £50,000 on your first-charge mortgage, you would be able to boron £70,000
• You can choose your repayment term to be between 3 and 35 years
• They offer both variable and fixed-rate mortgages which allow you to know what your payments will be and set a budget
• They offer an interest-only option for buy-to-let customers where the remainder of the loan can be settled when you sell the property
• They are open to applications from the self-employed, contractors, or if you have a short working history as they will look at your ability to afford repayments. The same holds for people with a poor credit rating.

Remember that, as with all secured loans, your home may be at risk if you don't keep up with repayments.

Many people take out second-charge mortgages to carry out home improvements to fund large purchases such as a new car but you can also use the money for holidays, weddings, or other reasons. Second-charge mortgages are an alternative to re-mortgaging, where you would use the loan to pay off your existing mortgage and fund other things. You can borrow the money over a shorter term, so while your existing mortgage may have 20 years still to run, your second charge mortgage could be repaid in five.

Masthaven also offers standard or first-charge mortgages so you can buy your first home or buy-to-let mortgages that allow you to purchase a house for the purpose of building a rental income that will pay the mortgage and provide you with a second income.

Bridging loans are used when you are moving, and you need to pay for your new home before the sale has been completed on your old one. You can borrow money on the basis that it will be paid off quickly when your house sale is complete.

You cannot apply to Masthaven directly, instead, you will need to go through a mortgage broker such as Free Price Compare who will approach Masthaven for you. One of the advantages of going through a 'whole of market' broker is that we work with a wide variety of lenders which opens up the range of products you can consider, based upon your individual needs and circumstances. For Masthaven, you will need to meet the following criteria:

• Age over 21 (or 25 for the self-employed)
• Be a homeowner
• Have lived in the UK for at least 3 years, and be a resident for legal purposes
• Earn at least £12,500.

• Be over 18, and under 85 when the mortgage ends
• Own your own home
• Living in England, Scotland, or Wales
• Your rental income needs to be higher than your repayment (at least 125%)

Offering loans to the self-employed and contractors is a significant part of what Masthaven do. Many lenders prefer not to lend to people who work this way as there is a perceived risk or there may be issues with variable income. Masthaven will take the approach of wanting to be sure that you can meet the repayments but provided that you have proof of that (income statements, accounts, etc.) you will be considered.

Masthaven have mixed reviews on Trustpilot, scoring just 2.5/5 with 36% of people rating them good or excellent. The main issues that customers talk about are communication issues such as long delays in getting documentation returned. However, on Feefo they have an impressive 4.5/5 with reviews that talk about a quick turnaround. It's hard to explain why the two sites have such different reviews of the company. 52% of reviews on Trustpilot are one star, whereas 72% are five stars on Feefo. Lender experiences are highly individual and it always pays to speak with a given lender in forming your own opinion.