Originally posted on Financial Reporter.
It’s just over a year since we last spoke to Anna Lewis, who had recently joined Castle Trust Bank as director of proposition and strategy. Since then, Anna has been promoted to the role of commercial director, and the bank has made a number of changes to its proposition. So, we caught up with Anna to see what’s happened over the last 12 months.
FR: It seems a lot has changed in the last year. First, tell us about your new role?
I’m a few months into it now, but as commercial director, I lead the bank’s commercial strategy, building on our mortgage and bridging lending proposition. I also have responsibility for leading the team of regional account and business development managers.
Castle Trust Bank is an incredibly dynamic lender, able to innovate and develop its offering to meet the changing needs of property investors. Change is one characteristic that has defined the market in the last year, and we like to think that we have remained one step ahead of changes.
FR: Can you give an example of how Castle Trust Bank has remained ahead of market changes?
As part of our commitment to providing brokers with certainty in an uncertain environment, we introduced a booking fee which enables brokers to lock into the rate they are quoted at the outset, with a booking fee option, allowing greater control in selecting the best solution for their clients. We were the first lender to do this and led the market with this sensible initiative, which provided greater confidence for brokers and their clients and was subsequently followed by a number of other lenders.
Throughout the year, within a volatile funding environment, we have been able to provide brokers and their clients with certainty of funding, given our status as a bank, which means we are able to lend our own funds rather than rely on third parties.
Another element of our proposition that has enabled brokers to provide a solution for more of their clients was the introduction of net LTV calculations, meaning that fees and interest can be added to the loan above the maximum LTVs on our light refurbishment and heavy refurbishment bridging loans. This has helped investors to increase their leverage in an environment where leverage isn’t easy to achieve.
FR: What other changes have there been in the last year?
We launched our specialist bridging proposition, which is supported by dedicated sales, underwriting and processing teams.
The range has a number of attractive features, including net LTV calculations on our refurbishment products and the option for clients to choose the term that best suits their needs, up to the maximum term of each product.
One of the highlights is that our light refurbishment product is available for works that fall under permitted development, works that require building regulation sign-off, residential to HMO conversions up to six tenants, replacement windows, decoration, light central heating and electrical work, internal reconfiguration, full rewiring, and installation of new bathrooms and kitchens.
Our heavy refurbishment product can be used where planning permission is necessary, although not on ground-up developments.
Finally, our standard bridge product can be used for chain breaks, quick purchases, auction purchases and development exits.
FR: What was the reasoning behind launching a dedicated bridging proposition?
Bridging lending should provide a simple solution to complex problems, with fast decisions and quick processing. We recognised that we could only deliver this by providing it with its own sales, underwriting and processing teams.
In doing this we have been to maintain consistently excellent service levels, responding to all enquiries within 4 working hours.
Our commitment to service is ongoing and we are investing in a new mortgage and underwriting platform to benefit brokers and their clients.