Mansfield Building Society has extended the range of property types on its owner-occupied residential and buy-to-let product range to include flats of up to 10 storeys.    

Previously, the mutual’s maximum allowance was four storeys. It adds that its new policy includes flats over commercial units and city centre flats, which will be underwritten on the same terms.  

It says mortgages for flats are available up to a maximum of 90% loan to value for residential and 75% LTV on BTL properties, with new build flats — less than 12 months old — available at a lower LTV of 85% for residential and 70% LTV for BTL.    

Mansfield Building Society intermediary sales manager Tom Denman-Molloy says: “Increasing the number of storeys for flats extends our appeal, particularly in cities, where high-rise blocks are an essential part of the property mix.”   

The UK’s flat sale market has been severely curtailed for several years following the 2017 Grenfell Tower fire, which killed 72 people, leading to a fire safety crisis over dangerous cladding.         

Uncertainty over the safety of tall blocks, and who is liable for repairs, made it difficult for borrowers to secure a loan to buy, sell, or remortgage flats impacted by cladding.    

The move comes after the publication of updated guidance on tower block safety from Rics and the Building Safety Act 2022, covering funding to remove or improve cladding on these properties.       

Barclays Bank, HSBC, Nationwide Building Society, NatWest, Santander, the Building Societies Association and UK Finance are among the firms that signed up to the government’s scheme to lend those with homes in tall blocks in December 2022.    

Over three-quarters of mortgage lending within England is now covered by the commitment, according to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.