Atom bank has reduced the minimum loan size for its commercial mortgage range to meet growing demand from brokers and continue in its mission to support the UK’s small businesses. The move means SMEs can now borrow from £200,000, widening access to funding for smaller commercial deals. The reduction comes after Atom found that the majority of brokers reported that upwards of a quarter of enquiries came from those looking for smaller loans, while most brokers also suggested there is a lack of options within these loan brackets. The update comes after the bank lowered rates across its range by up to 0.62%.

Gatehouse Bank has cut rental rates across selected two-year fixed buy-to-let (BTL) products for UK expats and international residential. The changes apply on two-year fixed term products at 80% finance-to-value (FTV) and on 75% FTV products seeking finance for HMOs and MUFBs. The bank accepts applications from individuals as well as UK-registered SPV limited companies. UK expats and international residents acquiring a home or investment property in England and Wales are now able to apply for a UK payment account with Algbra as part of home finance process with Gatehouse Bank. From today, rental rates on two-year BTL products start from 4.15% for UK expats and 4.16% for international residents.

Vida Homeloans has announced a further wave of improvements to its BTL proposition by introducing two policy enhancements designed to give brokers greater optionality and support portfolio building landlords. Vida will allow intercompany loans as a source of deposit for BTL SPV applications, where the applicant is an equal or majority shareholder in the trading company providing the funds. In addition, the lender has increased its aggregate exposure limit from £4m to £7.5m, providing substantially more headroom for portfolios looking to scale up. The latest changes follow a series of recent updates to Vida’s foreign national criteria, reinforcing the lender’s commitment to improving access and flexibility for underserved segments of the market.

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