Self-certification mortgages, dubbed 'liar loans', have finally disappeared from the mortgage market as the last major mortgage lender has withdrawn. Platform mortgages, who are part of the Co-operative Bank, will pull out of the self-certification mortgages market at the end of the week following an FSA review of UK mortgages .

 

Self-cert mortgages are one way for self-employed people to get on the property ladder without providing payslip proof of income . Under new FSA mortgage rules, lenders will be required to verify the income of their mortgage applicants, leading to an effective ban on self-cert mortgage loans .

 

The managing director of Platform, David Tweedy, reportedly commented: The FSA's review has shown that continuing to offer self-certification mortgages in their current format is unfeasible. After careful deliberation of the review, Platform has now taken the decision to withdraw from the self-certification market. We understand the FSA's concerns around income verification and fully support its aims to improve transparency in the industry. However, we continue to believe that the industry must recognise that self-employed people can have different circumstances and may not always be able to provide the normal proof of income documentation required.