It’s Not Just A Mortgage, It’s An M & S Mortgage…
Retail giant will be providing finance for home buyers by 2018
Marks and Spencer has long been known as one of the best places to pick up a romantic meal and a decent bottle of red, but there’s a surprising addition to their offering coming next year.
The retail giant has just announced that its first ever mortgages will be available from early 2018, giving further competition to other supermarket chains like Sainsbury’s and Tesco. “Supermarkets have been offering mortgages for years now, but there’s something about M & S that always feels like a more luxurious brand” says Newington Green estate agent, M&M Property. “For buyers who are looking for an alternative to the average high street bank but also want to feel that they’re buying from a well-established, reputable brand, this could be the ideal solution.”
We don’t yet know what kind of rates they’ll be offering, but representatives from M & S say that their mortgages will be available to first-time buyers as well as existing property owners. Competitive rates have been promised, and we’ll know more about how those will work by this coming January.
LDG central London estate agent says, “This is a great opportunity for M & S to show they’re still a healthy rival for other retailers, and there could well be plenty of opportunities for first timers to take advantage of an introductory deal.”
As a firm favourite on the high street for well over a hundred years, the company will also be able to benefit from thousands of loyal customers looking for a mortgage provider they feel they can trust.
The mortgages are a joint venture with HSBC, so not completely exclusive to Marks and Spencer. But whilst HSBC will own the mortgage element itself, M & S Bank is a legal entity in its own right. It already offers credit cards, loans, insurance products and savings accounts, but this move to mortgage will mean the company will now be able to call itself a fully fledged bank to rival other big names.
The actual launch date is as yet unannounced, but experts expect it will be some time around spring 2018 that funds will become available to buyers. The mortgages will be available direct from M & S Bank or via brokers, and shoppers will be able to pick up application forms and leaflets in store.
“With it becoming so difficult for first time buyers to get a foot on the property ladder it’s always welcome news that more mortgage opportunities are being created” says Lawsons & Daughters. “Let’s hope the rates are competitive enough to help those in need get a good deal during these times of economic uncertainty.”
Further details to follow soon.
