Co-op launches green tracker

Product details are as follows:

  • Two-year tracker product currently at 5.29 per cent variable (Bank of England Base Rate - 0.46 per cent) £999 application fee
  • Free legal and valuation fees for remortgages
  • Flexibility to make overpayments and underpayments
  • Maximum 95 per cent LTV
  • No Higher Lending Charge
The new two-year tracker mortgage guarantees to track the Bank of England Base Rate, currently 5.75 per cent, minus 0.46 per cent for the initial period of the loan.

John Barker, head of mortgages at Co-operative Financial Services, said: “Customers taking out this new mortgage will not only benefit from a very competitive rate, but will also have the reassurance that the rate will remain under the Base Rate for the initial period of the loan”.

As part of the Co-operative Bank’s range of green mortgages, customers taking out this mortgage can benefit from a number of positive environmental features including receiving a free home energy report with their property valuation, which assesses the energy efficiency of the property and identifies ways in which it can be improved.

In addition, for the duration of the mortgage, the Co-operative Bankwill make an annual donation to Climate Care to help tackle global warming. Houses are one of the largest sources of carbon dioxide emissions in the UK and, by using the Bank’s annual donation, Climate Care will be able to offset around one quarter of an average home’s carbon dioxide emissions each year for the lifetime of the mortgage.

Julia Harris, mortgage expert at eMoneyfacts.co.uk, commented: "This is an extremely competitive product. In a time when we are predicting an increase in demand for variable rates, with base rate almost certain to remain on hold or most likely fall in the forthcoming months, I suspect this product will be a popular choice. Offering a very low rate compared with its peers, but still maintaining a reasonable fee, this deal really comes up trumps.”