Santander mortgage customer ratings
The table below shows how Santander performed in our latest mortgage satisfaction survey, from application process to value for money.
| Customer rating for: | Star rating |
|---|---|
| Customer service | |
| Application process | |
| Value for money | |
| Keeping you well informed | |
| Clarity of statements | |
| Transparency of charges | |
| Query and complaint handling | |
| Ability to overpay or underpay mortgage | |
| Online access | |
Star ratings based on a June 2018 Which? survey of 3,560 members of the general public, in which 392 people told us they had their mortgage with Santander.
What kinds of mortgages does Santander offer?
When we checked in July 2018, there were 85 mortgages available from Santander. Most were fixed-rate deals lasting two, three or five years.
Tracker mortgages were available for either two years or the entire mortgage term.
Santander also offers buy-to-let and Help to Buy equity loan mortgages through mortgage brokers.
Does Santander offer the best mortgage deals?
Which? analysis has found that Santander offers fewer cheap mortgages than the average lender.
In order to work this out, our experts analysed thousands of mortgages over a four-week period in June and July 2018. They compiled a total of 108 ‘top-10 cheapest deal’ tables based on a variety of borrowing scenarios, and counted how many times each lender featured in a table.
The average number of times a lender made it into a table was 14, but Santander only featured nine times. (Data source: Moneyfacts.)
Interest rates on Santander mortgages
When we checked in July 2018, most mortgages from Santander were fixed-rate deals, meaning your interest rate is guaranteed to stay the same for a set number of years.
While Santander didn't offer the cheapest rates in our analysis, the average interest rate on a two-year fixed-rate deal from Santander was 2.1%, which is lower than the industry average of 2.81%.
If you take out a mortgage with Santander now (or have done so since 23 January 2018), you’ll be eligible for the ‘Follow-on Rate’ (FOR) when your introductory rate ends.
The FOR is a variable rate that tracks the Bank of England base rate. This means that when the base rate changes, so will the FoR. This differs from a standard variable rate (SVR), which isn’t directly linked to the base rate.
When we asked Santander mortgage customers in June 2018 about the interest rate they were paying, two in five told us they were currently paying between 1% and 1.99%.
How much could I borrow from Santander?
Below we’ve outlined how much you could borrow from Santander in relation to the percentage of the property’s value.
| Maximum loan size | Maximum LTV |
|---|---|
| £570,000 | 95% |
| £570,000 | 90% |
| £1,000,000 | 85% |
| More than £1,000,000 | 75% |
Your income can also determine how much you can borrow, as shown in the table below.
| Combined income for all mortgage applicants | |
|---|---|
| Less than £45,000 | 4.45 times your income |
| Between £45,000 and £99,999 | 5 times your income |
| £100,000 or more | 5.5 times your income (or 5 times if you’re borrowing more than 75% of the property value) |
Can I make overpayments?
With a fixed-rate mortgage from Santander you can overpay up to 10% of your mortgage each year without paying an early repayment charge (ERC).
If you have a tracker mortgage from Santander, you can make unlimited overpayments without paying an ERC.
How can I contact Santander?
New customers can call 0800 068 6064, while for existing mortgage customers it's 0800 917 5630.
The website is santander.co.uk.
Santander mortgage eligibility
If you’re buying a home and want to apply for a mortgage from Santander, you’ll need a deposit of at least 5% of the property’s value.
If you’ve ever been bankrupt or had a property repossessed by a mortgage lender, you won’t be able to borrow from Santander.
First-time buyers
To be considered a first-time buyer by Santander, you can’t have owned a property before.
If you’re applying for a mortgage specifically for first-time buyers with another person, they’ll also need to meet this criteria. Not all lenders have this rule, so it's worth talking to a mortgage broker who will be able to advise on the best lender for your situation.
Leasehold properties
If you’re applying for a mortgage for a leasehold property, there must be at least 55 years left on the lease at the start of the mortgage, and at least 30 years left when the mortgage ends.
Buy-to-let mortgages
If you’re applying for a buy-to-let mortgage from Santander, you must have an income of at least £25,000. This can’t include income from rent on buy-to-let properties. If you’re applying with another person, at least one of you must meet this income criteria.
Does Santander offer any customer incentives?
If you’re a Santander mortgage customer and pay your mortgage from its ‘123’ current account, you can receive 1% cashback every month on £1,000 of your mortgage payment.
You could also benefit from exclusive rates on Santander mortgages if you’re a Santander ‘Select’ customer or have a Help to Buy Isa with Santander. But it’s worth remembering that there could still be more competitive rates available from other lenders.
