High-end mortgages a growing area

High-end mortgages are a low volume business, according to Investec, but the sector is growing.

The specialist banking group claims that more banks are now offering larger mortgages than they did previously, particularly in the area of multi-currency mortgages.

This is an advanced feature that many clients seeking larger mortgages favour.

Buyers in this market often find it difficult to find the types of product they want, with many requiring services which are individually tailored to their needs.

Investec provides mortgages of £500,000 or more, for which an income in excess of £150,000 a year is required.

Andrew Arnott, a spokesman for the company, said: "A lot of products on the market aren't available if the loan size is over, say, half a million pounds. It's more specialist players that deal with these sorts of mortgages.

"It's a market we specialise in because as a private bank that's where all our expertise lies in servicing the needs of those particular clients.

"Our mortgages are specifically [tailored] for the kinds of clients we understand and the kinds of properties they buy."