The Bank of England is considering ditching the stress test which requires lenders to check if a borrower can afford a mortgage if they have to pay their lender’s standard variable rate plus 3 percentage points. The Bank is consulting on a plan to replace the stress test with looser Financial Conduct Authority rules which are based on expected future interest rate rises and require a minimum stress test of 1 percentage point above a borrower’s mortgage. Research suggests that the present stress test restricts 30,000 borrowers a year to smaller mortgages than they wanted. George Nixon in the Sunday Times says that it might seem an unusual time to change mortgage rules, with bills, costs and interest rates rising, but notes suggestions that the stress test has been too restrictive. James Daley from consumer group Fairer Finance said limiting mortgages based on income multiples was a “crude” way of doing things, arguing that a borrower’s outgoings, commitments and career were as important. “As long as people can afford it — including if interest rates go up significantly — I don’t think we should be too concerned about lending people more,” he said. It is noted that in 2010, 10.6% of mortgages were for four or more times a person’s income, while this year 12.9% were at this income multiple or higher.
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