Arranging a mortgage
Arranging a Mortgage using a Mortgage Broker
I've not dealt with a Mortgage Broker before, what is involved?
We are financial advisers. We will try to help you achieve your goal.
Your objective might be to remortgage your home or to buy a holiday home. We can help identify what finance is required and match this need with a suitable lender.
We will highlight the issues that need special consideration.
We manage the process on-line using a client portal. This enables us to exchange documents and information securely.
What kind of issues might need special consideration?
For example, say you are buying a property in joint names. Partner A is putting in a 20% deposit, but Partner B can only put in a 10% deposit. The standard mortgage will be a Joint Tenancy, this mortgage assumes equal ownership. But you might consider a mortgage that allowed an unequal proportion of ownership. This is achieved by a Tenancy in Common. Not all mortgage lenders will accept a mortgage with Tenancy in Common
So how might this conundrum be resolved?
Well, if the mortgage is shared equally then the mortgaged element will be 70% (or 35% each) if we then add the relative deposits we would have a potential split of 55% for Partner A and 45% for Partner B. This % split might apply to any capital gains on the sale of property after a return of deposits
We would recommend that a Deed of Trust is considered to put any agreement into a legally binding framework. A Deed of trust should be arranged by a Solicitor and is normally kept by the Solicitor as long as is necessary.
I know what I want, can't I arrange my own mortgage?
You can arrange your own mortgage.
But you will appreciate that Mortgage lenders are not obliged to lend to you and if there is some aspect that they are not happy with you may find that your mortgage application is declined. This will be frustrating for you and if the process is not resolved quickly you may risk losing your property.
The issues may seem to be obvious, but sometimes it is helpful to have someone else on your side, to highlight the important factors so that you can make the best decision
What is the procedure?
Broadly we will follow the procedure shown in the chart below...
How long will it take to get a mortgage offer
The processing time depends on a number of factors. How busy the lender is, how busy the Surveyor is etc
Some mortgage lenders are now incorporating desktop surveys which speeds things up greatly
Further innovation has led to income being verified automatically
Potentially it is now possible to get a Mortgage Offer same day
However we cant guarantee this with any lender!
You should probably allow about 3 weeks from application to mortgage offer
You will then need to allow additional time for the legal process to complete
How long will it take to buy a property
You will probably need a mortgage, so that will take about 3 weeks from application to mortgage offer.
A Solicitor or Conveyancer will need to be appointed. The Solicitor will check that your interests are protected and the legal transfer of ownership is done properly.
The time taken to complete the conveyancing varies widely. The process may be held back by the vendors. There may be unusual delays in completing the various legal searches.
But as a guide, it is likely to take at least 2 months from Mortgage application to being handed the keys.
If you want to complete on a purchase quickly then you would instruct the Solicitor at an early stage and make it clear that you are in a hurry
Caution - not all Solicitors are the same. Property conveyancing involves a lot of checks and an inexperienced Solicitor can take a lot longer to complete these checks than can an experienced Solicitor.
We can recommend specialist Solicitors that will handle this process efficiently and at a competitive price