Mortgages

Mortgages (Regulated by the FSA)

My goodness what a change we’ve seen in the mortgage market since the 2007/08 credit crunch? Far fewer lenders, very much stricter credit scoring, affordability checking, tiered interest rates, larger deposits, bye-bye Self-Certified mortgages and so few Buy-To-Let lenders.

The question I’m asked these days is not whether Fixed or Tracker or Capped etc. is best but, “Please can you help me get a mortgage?”

Way back when, residential lending criteria was a simple matter of income multiples, e.g. 3 times the higher income plus 1 times the lower income, then, credit scoring became the decision maker so much so that that the comedy show Little Britain coined the phrase “The computer says No” in one of it’s sketches. Credit scoring placed the emphasis on applicants’ credit history and the size of deposit and ultimately this led to the much debated 6 times salary mortgages. Buy-To-Let mortgages haven’t escaped either with very few lenders left in the market and much tighter BTL lending criteria.

The key factor nowadays is knowing how each lender is likely to assess your application because “good” applicants are today being declined for no other reason than lenders have limited funds to lend so are they’re being overtly selective to whom they lend to. Our advice is to beware of price comparison websites and banks as every mortgage application you make leaves a credit search “footprint” on your credit record, which remains for twelve months, and the number and frequency of search “footprints” on your credit record will impact on a lender’s assessment of your mortgage application.

POLITE WARNING – Our advice is to think carefully before making a direct mortgage application because if you’re unsuccessful it could hinder an alternative application. We believe that before making a direct mortgage application you should speak to a professional mortgage adviser who will be able to offer you professional advice.

Dealing with Estate Agents

When putting in an Offer on a property it is common practice for an Estate Agent to want to verify that you are proceedable and you may be asked if you have your mortgage in place, or have a mortgage certificate, or you may be asked to speak to the resident Mortgage Adviser. But why would you want to reveal to the resident Mortgage Adviser that you could pay a higher price for the property given that the Agent acts for the seller? Or if your financial circumstances are a little complicated the resident Mortgage Adviser may have doubts about your ability to proceed and the Agent may therefore advise his seller not to accept your Offer or perhaps to continue marketing the property until you receive your Mortgage Offer.

We invite our clients to refer the seller’s Estate Agent to us for us to confirm that you are able to obtain the mortgage that you require to support your offer but we don’t divulge any information that may suggest to the seller’s Estate Agent that you could pay a higher price for the property.

• Fees

Our standard fee for our Mortgage service is £250 which is payable when you apply for a mortgage. We will also receive commission from the lender.

• How to contact us

If you would like to speak to us about a mortgage or remortgage, or to arrange an appointment, please call us on LoCall number 08456 120 375 or 01761 411 775 or email us your contact details with a preferred contact time by clicking here.

We look forward to hearing from you.