A&L most consistently competitive mortgage lender

Alliance & Leicester (A&L) replaced HSBC as the UK’s most consistently competitive mortgage lender during the final quarter of 2009.

According to research by mortgage search software firm, Evaluate Technologies, A&L surged ahead despite having failed to register any of its home loans in best buy tables during the previous quarter.

The lender, which is to be rebranded Santander later this year, managed 23 appearances, with first direct following on with 19, and Woolwich with 15.

HSBC slipped to fourth place with only 14 appearances, compared with 23 during the previous three months.

Royal Bank of Scotland and subsidiary NatWest failed to put in a “best buy” appearance, as did Halifax and Cheltenham & Gloucester.

Because the competition is assessed according to the number of times a lender appears in Evaluate’s best buy lists, it also flags up keenness to lend and the firm’s national accounts director, Julie Speed, comments: “The changes taking place at the top of the best-buy tables indicate a good degree of competition in the mortgage market which is going to be key to supporting the property market in 2010.”

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