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It usually takes between two and six weeks to get a mortgage offer. However, this does depend on the lender and the complexity of your application. 

After you’ve got your mortgage offer, it can take another one to three months before you complete. Again, this can vary depending on how many other properties are in the chain or if there are any unexpected complications in the legal process. 

To prove your income on your mortgage application, you’ll need:

• 3 – 6 months’ payslips, and sometimes your P60 for PAYE employees
• Your most recent SA302 tax calculation and tax year overview, or two years’ trading accounts if you’re self-employed
• 3 – 6 months’ bank statements

Some lenders may require other documentation, but this is a standard guide. Your dedicated MFB broker will know what additional documentation different lenders require.

Each lender will have different fees, but as a guide, be prepared to pay for the following:

• Lender arrangement fee – a fee most lenders charge for arranging your mortgage. You’ll either need to pay this upon completion, or you can add it to the loan (which means you’ll pay interest on it). Arrangement fees are usually a fixed amount for homebuyer mortgages but can also be a percentage of the loan. 
• Legal fees –conveyancers charge varying amounts for completing the legal work required for mortgages. If you don’t have a solicitor, ask your dedicated MFB broker for a recommendation.
• Stamp Duty – if you’re purchasing a property, you’ll need to pay Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) on purchases (or transfers of equity) over £250,000 or £425,000 for first-time buyers. Use our SDLT calculator to find out how much you’ll need to pay.

Simply put, a remortgage is when you refinance your current mortgage to a new mortgage, typically with a new lender.

Usually, you complete a remortgage when your existing fixed-rate mortgage deal has ended. This is because, at the end of a fixed term, you’ll start paying your lender’s standard variable rate (SVR), which is nearly always more expensive than the interest rate you were paying or can secure with a new deal.

Other reasons you may want to remortgage are if your financial circumstances change or if you want to borrow more to pay for home improvements. 

You can remortgage with your existing lender (a product transfer) or with a new lender, depending on which offers you the best deal. Our experienced team of residential mortgage brokers can compare all the rates available to you and secure you the most suitable one.

A less-than-perfect credit score doesn’t mean you can’t get a mortgage. However, it will depend on the severity of your credit issues, the types of defaults you’ve had and how recently you had them.

Lenders have varying tolerances towards bad credit, and some lenders have specific mortgage product ranges to help people with credit issues.

While having bad credit might not prevent you from getting a mortgage, it will likely make your mortgage interest rate more expensive as lenders view you as a higher risk and impact your affordability assessment.

An ERC refers to the fee you’d need to pay your lender if you repay your mortgage agreement early during the initial period, or you exceed the agreed overpayment limits during this period.

For example, if you took a 3-year fixed mortgage, your lender may charge you a 3% fee of the amount outstanding if you repay the loan in the first year of the 3-year fixed-rate period, 2% until the end of year 2 and 1% until the end of year 3 from drawdown.

When you apply for a mortgage your mortgage agreement will require you to have a buildings insurance policy as a minimum. However, it’s highly recommended that you take out a comprehensive home insurance policy to cover both the property and the contents. Our team can help you find a suitable home insurance policy.

Conveyancing is the term often used to refer to the legal work completed by a conveyancer or solicitor when purchasing or selling property. It’s an essential part of the mortgage process. If you don’t already have a solicitor, we can help you find one. Ask your MFB broker for assistance. 

If you want to rent out the property you live in, you’ll either need:

• Consent to let from your existing home mortgage lender
• A buy to let mortgage

You must seek permission from your existing mortgage lender before renting out your property, as you will likely breach your mortgage agreement if you don’t. This means the lender can recall the full loan early, putting you in a very stressful situation. Remember, if tenants can find your property up for rent, so can your lender.

If you can, it can be highly beneficial to overpay your mortgage. By overpaying your mortgage even a little bit, you can reduce the total term of your mortgage and, therefore, the total amount of interest repaid.

You need to check whether your mortgage agreement allows for overpayments. Most home mortgages allow a 10% yearly overpayment, but not all. Our mortgage experts will ensure you know the options available to you, and your mortgage offer document will confirm this. 

If you know you want the option to overpay on a new mortgage, let your expert MFB broker know, and they will include this criteria when sourcing the best rates for you.