INDEPENDENT MORTGAGE ADVISERS
Frequently Asked Questions
Below are a selection of our the questions we often get asked...
Fees
Possible fees are; broker fees, booking fees, survey fees, legal fees, stamp duty.
Some mortgage brokers may charge a fee. At BGA mortgages we do not charge a fee and are paid a commission from the lender should you place the business through us.
At BGA Mortgages we do not charge a fee. We are paid a commission from the lender should you place the business through us.
No, there are many products without booking fees which may be available to you.
Mortgages
A mortgage is a loan used to buy a property. You will usually need to put down a cash deposit with the balance of the property value being paid for using a mortgage from a bank or building society.
A mortgage adviser has expert knowledge of the housing market and can use this to identify the best mortgage lenders and deals to suit your needs.
This is very much personal choice but you should be asking if your broker is ‘whole of market’ and whether they charge any fee for their services.
At BGA Mortgages we are more than happy to talk through your personal mortgage options at your convenience. We will not charge any fee for this.
Re-mortgage
A re-mortgage is the process of switching your current mortgage loan to a new deal either with your existing provider or a new one.
A mortgage adviser has expert knowledge of the housing market and can use this to identify the best mortgage lenders and deals to suit you when you need to re-mortgage.
This can vary but first check, if using a mortgage broker, if they charge a fee. A re-mortgage may have fees for the product, survey and legal costs but often there are many incentives offering these for free. Check with us, at BGA Mortgages, who can research the market for you.
To stop your fixed rate potentially rolling onto a variable rate it is best to start to look at a re-mortgage 3-4 months before the fixed rate comes to an end.
Self employed
A mortgage for a self-employed person, sole trader or Limited Company Director is achievable based on your self-employed income. At BGA Mortgages we can run through the criteria with you to see if you are eligible and how much you can potentially borrow
Some lenders will allow borrowing based on 1 year of trading. You will need to show your taxable income through your completed and submitted tax return.
Credit
The only way to check for certain is by pulling up a recent copy of your credit report. You can use third party credit reference agencies for this (please note the links will navigate away from this website to the relevant third party website) such as Experian, Equifax, Credit Karma etc to do this. This will show you your personal credit score.
Some lenders specialise in this field so please talk to us at BGA Mortgages and we can talk through your personal situation and try to find a solution for you.
Ensure you are on the electoral roll, ensure you do not miss any credit repayments, keep your finances separate from a partner/housemate with a bad credit score, do not make too many applications for credit, apply for a credit re-build credit card, financially de-link yourself from an ex-partner, check your credit score at least annually, watch out for identity fraud.
BTL
BTL mortgages are assessed on different criteria than residential mortgages. Typically, you will need a 25% deposit and the rental income will need to be sufficient to cover the stressed mortgage payment.
There are some lenders available who do not require you to have an income in order to purchase a BTL property.
There are some lenders who will allow you to purchase a Buy To Let property without being a residential homeowner.
Timescales
This can vary but typically this is around 8 weeks from start to completion. A re-mortgage may take a little less.
Affordability
This will depend on your employed or self-employed earnings. Other factors taken into account are any other payments for loans or HP agreements, number of financial dependants, age and other mandatory costs such as child care/child maintenance payments etc.
Many lenders consider benefit income and child maintenance payments as income. Please contact us here at BGA Mortgages for further information.
Usually a cash deposit is needed. The exact amount varies according to each lender. Please contact us at BGA mortgages for more information.
Moving Home
Many mortgages have an option to port the loan across to a new property. This avoids any early repayment charges if the loan is still in a fixed rate. At BGA Mortgages we can calculate whether it is best to stay with the existing loan or move to a new deal.
Associated Costs
If you are purchasing or re-mortgaging a property, the lender will need a survey. The lender will usually only need a Basic Survey but you can upgrade to a Homebuyers Report or a full Structural Survey if required. Some lenders offer the basic survey for free and we can advise you on this.
If you are purchasing, re-mortgaging or selling a solicitor/conveyancer is always required. For buying and selling they will charge a fee for their services. We can recommend a solicitor if you wish. If you are re-mortgaging often the legal cost is free.
Most freehold properties will need buildings insurance as a mandatory requirement. Other insurances recommended to consider are contents insurance, life insurance, critical illness insurance and income protection insurance. At BGA Mortgages we are happy to talk you through all of these options.
Stamp Duty
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Paperwork
All parties will need to provide name and address identification for money laundering purposes. If employed you will need to provide your last 3 months payslips and last 3 months bank statements. If self-employed you will need to show your last 3 years accounts with the last 3 years tax calculation tax overviews, plus the last 3 months personal and business bank statements. If you have only 1 year of self-employed trading then 1 years paperwork will suffice. The lender may ask for some ad-hoc information such as P60 or bonus payslips in addition.
First Time Buyers
Lenders may sometimes offer special rates for First Time Buyers or cashback. The Government offer the Help to Buy Equity Loan and Help to Buy Shared Ownership Scheme to both First Time Buyers and existing homeowners to buy a property.
There may be certain additional incentives at given times eg a change in stamp duty rates for First Time Buyers. Please contact us here at BGA Mortgages for all the current up to date information.
Term
This depends on lender to lender but typically the maximum age is to age 70 with the term of the mortgage being anything between 5 and 40 years.
Many lenders do allow you to change the term of the mortgage once it has started but often the mortgage would need to be underwritten again and the mortgage would still need to be affordable on the new term.
Transfer of equity
Many lenders do allow you to add or remove borrowers once the mortgage has started but the mortgage would need to be underwritten again and the mortgage would still need to be affordable on the new term.
Additional borrowing
This may be possible if it is affordable and first in with the lenders’ criteria. Speak to us at BGA Mortgages and we can run through all of your options.
