Ulster Bank cuts mortgage rates

ULSTER Bank has launched a major drive to increase mortgage lending in Northern Ireland through reduced mortgage rates and a cut and standardisation in arrangement fees.

The bank – which claims to be now lending more to mortgage borrowers each month than at any time since 2007 and lending more at reduced rates – said it was also increasing its loan-to-value (LTV) ratio and introducing a range of new fixed rates starting at 2.99%.

The announcement came just days after the bank’s latest sponsored survey signalled that house prices in the North may have hit the bottom and that sales were on the up.