THE Island’s biggest mortgage lender has closed business to new customers.
Jersey Home Loans, which is part of the Kent Reliance Building Society, told brokers last week that they would only accept applications from existing customers for the foreseeable future.
The change is likely to slow down the housing market and increase demand for properties to rent, say specialists.
The news comes only a month after Jersey Home Loans said that they would only offer mortgages to people who could afford a 25% deposit.
Prior to last month the building society were offering to lend 90% of the total cost of a property and had been relatively ‘flexible’ about the amount loaned in relation to the earnings of house purchasers.
Rob Procter, deputy chief executive of Kent Reliance (pictured), said that the decision to close to new business had been taken partly because the building society was not allowed to raise funds in Jersey through its savings products.
The States of Jersey only allows the world’s top 500 banks to accept deposits from savers.
