Lloyds Bank stop mortgage holders converting to interest only deals
It has been revealed that Lloyds Bank has stopped a number of mortgage customers from converting their deals to interest only. The introduction of new regulations has seen those with low equity in their properties banned from converting to interest only payments which would reduce their short-term outlay yet increase the long-term amount to repay.
When you consider that Lloyds Bank was the recipient of a £37 billion funding loan only days ago, after promising to assist mortgage holders where possible, this apparent change in policy seems very much at odds to what the government has been telling taxpayers. Those who have followed the situation carefully will also be aware that Lloyds Bank does not believe there will be any material change in the way they run their operations even after the government funding package.
At some stage in the very near future Gordon Brown will be asked to explain how literally billions of pounds of taxpayers money was used to bailout UK banks with the promise of improved assistance for UK mortgage holders. The fact that this much heralded assistance has not appeared is not only an embarrassment for the government but a major problem for UK mortgage holders as other banks look likely to follow suit.
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