About Barclays
The UK's fifth largest lender, Barclays is a household name when it comes to mortgage providers and has been operating for more than 300 years.
Founded by John Freame and Thomas Gould in London way back in 1690, Barclays took on its current name in 1736 when Freame's son-in-law, James Barclay, joined the business. Since then, the bank has become a major player on the global financial stage and now serves over 48 million customers and clients worldwide.
Barclays offers a range of personal and business finance products. Their UK mortgage range includes products tailored to the following demographics:
Their product line features a range of fixed-rate mortgages with 2, 5 and 10-year introductory rates periods as well as tracker/offset tracker mortgages with 2-year and 5-year lock-in options. The bank offers exclusive products for existing customers who are switching to a new deal, applying to borrow more or moving home.
How do Barclays calculate mortgage affordability?
Barclays caps its mortgage lending at either 5 times annual salary or 5.5 times annual salary. To borrow based in the higher income multiple, at least one of the applicants needs an annual income of £75,000 or the two highest earning applicants need to be making at least £100,000 combined.
The banking firm has mortgage affordability calculators on its website that you can use to get an estimate of your maximum borrowing, but a mortgage broker can give you a clearer picture of this by providing bespoke calculations and explaining how your maximum borrowing might vary from one lender to another.
What mortgage interest rates do Barclays offer?
At the time of writing (April 2024), Barclays' mortgage rates start at 4.16% while their current standard variable rate (SVR) is 8.74%.
You can compare the latest rates and deals from Barclays with more than 90 other lenders from across the market for free below:
Compare Barclays mortgage rates with 90+ lenders for FREE today!
How much will you pay in fees?
Barclays product fees at the time of writing range between zero and £1,749 and vary depending on the type of mortgage you are applying for.
Residential mortgage lending criteria
The lending criteria for a Barclays mortgage for residential purposes is as follows:
- Term length: Mortgage terms of between 5 years and 40 years are available
- LTV: Barclays' original LTV cap was 90%, but 95% LTV deals are now available through the Mortgage Guarantee Scheme
- Income: Will accept 100% of a gross basic salary for those in full-time employment, plus supplemental income (caps may apply depending on its source). Self-employed borrowers will need to provide two years' accounts and declarable income will be based on average earnings
- Age: Barclays has no upper age cap on their mortgages but will subject borrowers to extra underwriter scrutiny if they will be aged over 70 during the mortgage term
- Credit history: Barclays will accept borrowers with certain types of adverse credit on their files, usually with conditions attached (see below for more information)
Do Barclays offer bad credit mortgages?
Yes, under the right circumstances, Barclays will offer mortgages for borrowers with certain types of bad credit, often with caveats attached. Serious credit issues such as bankruptcies and IVAs need to have been satisfied for at least six years before they will consider mortgage approval, but less severe problems like defaults might be accepted in factored in when credit scoring is taking place. Barclays will be keen to know the circumstances surrounding any adverse on your credit files, including how long the issue has been on your credit reports.
Buy-to-let mortgage criteria
The criteria to get a buy-to-let mortgage with Barclays is summarised below:
- Age: Applicants must be aged 21 or over to apply for a joint buy-to-let mortgage. Other applicants can be 18 or over
- Income: Minimum income of £25,000 is needed to borrow up to £1 million or £75,000 to borrow over £1 million (£100,000 combined gross annual income acceptable if it is a joint application)
- Landlord experience: Not necessary. Applicants can apply be considered for buy-to-let mortgage even if they don't have a residential mortgage
- Portfolio limits: Portfolio landlords can hold up to six properties with Barclays and 10 across other lenders, including them
- Maximum borrowing: Landlords can borrow up to £2 million for a single property, £3 million across a portfolio or £4.5 million across a portfolio that spans other lenders
Barclays offer exclusive rates and deals for landlords who switch an existing buy-to-let mortgage to them, and those who are purchasing a 'green' or eco-friendly rental property.
You can compare Barclays' buy-to-let mortgage deals with products from across the market for free through Teito. We have expert mortgage brokers on hand to help you get the best deal - get started here.
Other mortgage options
As well as offering standard residential and investment mortgages, Barclays offers a range of other mortgage options, including specialist products and schemes. They include:
- Family Springboard mortgages: Allow borrowers who have financial support from a friend or family member to purchase a home with no deposit. The friend/family member is required to place 10% of the property's value into a special savings account with Barclays to serve as security.
- Green mortgages: Barclays offer exclusvies rates and incentives for borrowers who are buying an energy-efficient home, either to live in our rent out
- International mortgages: There are options for customers seeking to buy a UK property from various countries around the world
- Offset mortgages: These products allow Barclays customers to link a savings account to their mortgage to reduce their monthly payment or finish paying off their mortgage early
- Interest-only mortgages: Available as an alternative to capital repayment mortgages. Borrowers only need to repay the interest on their mortgage each month and settled the debt at the end of the term. A repayment vehicle needs to be evidence in advance and Barclays does not accept the sale of the property for this
- Commercial mortgages: Barclays commercial mortgages include options for borrowers who are buying property, raising investment finance, developing property, refurbishing owner-occupied business premises, or buying motor vehicles, machinery and other equipment
Does Barclays mortgage services have good reviews?
Barclays currently holds a user score of 1.4/5 stars on review platform TrustPilot, while an assessment by Which? gave its mortgage division a score of 65% overall, ranking them 12th out of 22 other UK mortgage lenders. NerdWallet, meanwhile, praised the lender for offering a wider product range and more flexibility on term lengths than some of its competitors, but claimed that they fall short in other areas, such as the lack of an online-only application process.
Pros and cons
The table below highlights some of the advantages and disadvantages of Barclays mortgages to help you decide whether they are the right lender for you:
Advantages | Disadvantages |
A wide range of products are available, including niche types of lending such as commercial and green mortgages | Limited options for borrowers with more severe bad credit |
Lenders based on higher income multiples than some high street lenders | Self-employed applicants with less than 2 years’ accounts unlikely to be approved |
Flexible with term lengths (options between 5 and 40 years available) | Borrowers due to start a new job or with a pending payrise agreed may find it difficult to borrow based on their new salary |
Flexible mortgages for older borrowers available | Strict requirements for interest-only repayment vehicles |
How to compare mortgage rates and deals from Barclays
The most important thing to take on board here is that you need to compare Barclays' mortgage range with that of other lenders across the market. Limiting yourself to just one lender could mean missing out on more suitable deals elsewhere.
You can compare Barclays mortgages against their competitors for free through Teito, and we have whole-of-market mortgage brokers on hand to help. Get started here to compare deals and take advantage of a free, no-obligation chat with a mortgage advisor today.
FAQs
Barclays is a popular choice for first-time buyers because they offer several types of mortgages that cater to the needs of this group. Their most common 95% LTV mortgage uses the Government's Mortgage Guarantee Scheme, meaning it has a low 5% deposit requirement.
