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Owning a property, whether it’s your family home or a buy to let in Harrogate, is seen as a valuable asset. It goes beyond providing shelter; it’s a substantial investment that can be sold or passed down to future generations.
The property market is dynamic, with prices fluctuating over time. During periods of price increases, it can be beneficial to explore remortgage options, as you may have the opportunity to access more favourable loan-to-value ratios and better interest rates.
Loan-to-value (LTV) is the ratio of the mortgage amount to the property’s market value, expressed as a percentage. For example, if you buy a property for £100,000 with a £10,000 deposit, you’ll need a 90% LTV mortgage.
Different mortgage lenders offer varying LTV brackets, typically ranging from 60% to 95%. Lower LTV ratios allow access to mortgage deals with more competitive interest rates.
Let’s say your property value has increased to £110,000, and your outstanding mortgage balance is now £80,000. This results in a new LTV of 73%. By remortgaging in Harrogate, you could potentially secure a 75% LTV mortgage with a more competitive interest rate.
Market conditions also influence the interest rate available at the time of remortgaging in Harrogate. Lower LTV mortgages tend to have better interest rates because they present less risk to the mortgage lender.
To access better rates or terms, you need to establish whether your property’s value has increased since you purchased it. To do this, a valuation of your home will be necessary.
When you remortgage in Harrogate, you’ll be switching to a new mortgage lender, unlike a product transfer where you remain with the same mortgage lender.
As a new mortgage lender, they will require a valuation to determine the property’s value against which they are lending. Two types of property valuations will typically be found.
The first is an Automated Valuation Model (AVM), also known as a desktop valuation. It involves cross-referencing similar properties in the area to estimate the value without a physical inspection.
The alternative is a physical valuation, where an expert visits your property to assess its interior and exterior, providing a more accurate value. This method is particularly useful if you have made home improvements or extensions that an AVM might overlook.
You can discuss your preference with your mortgage advisor in Harrogate during your appointment.
Sometimes, homeowners choose to remortgage in Harrogate to release equity. This means taking out a new mortgage with a higher loan-to-value ratio. It’s important to be cautious when considering this option. With a higher LTV, your monthly mortgage payments may increase.
The goal is to invest in home improvements, which would hopefully see an increase in the property’s value. This strategy aims to lower the loan-to-value ratio when you remortgage in Harrogate in the future.
It’s essential to devise a well-thought-out plan, especially when dealing with a significant financial investment like your home. A mortgage advisor in Harrogate can guide you in determining the best approach for your situation.
In some cases, homeowners may think about remortgaging in Harrogate before their fixed-term ends, even as early as a year in advance. It is important to remember that breaking the agreed terms of your mortgage contract usually means paying an early repayment charge (ERC).
Predicting house prices is challenging, and the market’s conditions can be uncertain. While remortgaging in Harrogate early may seem attractive, it might not be financially viable for everyone. People typically consider early exit from their mortgage when there’s a good reason to do so.
In such cases, it’s highly recommended to involve a mortgage broker in Harrogate.
For instance, during the COVID-19 pandemic, when the Bank of England base rate reached record lows, homeowners at the end of their fixed-rate mortgage period had the opportunity to benefit from lower interest rates through remortgaging in Harrogate.
If you were a year away from that point, however, you could only take advantage of this by remortgaging in Harrogate early and fixing the mortgage for a longer period. This is a unique example from an unusual time, as mortgage lenders also limited product availability, reducing options for many borrowers.
Nevertheless, it demonstrates a scenario where early remortgaging could provide financial benefits. If your home’s value has risen, it could be an opportune time to remortgage in Harrogate, as the savings from accessing a lower loan-to-value ratio may outweigh the associated costs.
Please do keep in mind the potential early repayment charge, as well as arrangement, valuation, and solicitor fees for the new mortgage. To fully understand your options, it’s recommended that you speak with a mortgage broker in Harrogate.
Though homeowners may not be aware, yes it is possible for you to have two mortgages!
Of course this depends on your eligibility. Providing you have enough income, have a strong credit score and a consistent job status, this may become an option for you.
There are many reasons why someone might want to purchase a second home. For starters, you may be wanting to rent out the home you already have and purchase a new one. This is called a Let to Buy.
You may be wanting to help out your kids by releasing some equity, purchasing a second property and mortgaging it, so that they have somewhere to live.
It’s a lot more common for parents to release equity as a means of gifting a deposit, though this still crops up from time to time, especially when you factor in property price rises!
Some may want a second mortgage with their existing lender, on the same home. This is called a further advance and allows you to borrow an additional amount in order to cover various home improvements.
This is a specialist area and would require you to speak with a mortgage advisor in Harrogate.
If you are a landlord, you may require additional mortgages for further portfolio purchases. We find that buy to let mortgages are most commonly on interest only, as this means your monthly payments will be lower, as you’re only paying interest.
You will need to pay back the capital in full at the end of your term though, so that’s something to bear in mind. It’s beneficial to look at speaking with a mortgage advisor in Harrogate ahead of a buy to let mortgage in Harrogate.
We are experts in buy to let mortgage criteria and will work hard to take the weight of your mortgage off your shoulders.
Thanks to situations like divorce and separation, this is unfortunately quite a common occurrence for us. We would recommend looking to get your name removed from the mortgage with your ex, as otherwise you will remain liable for the payments, whether you’ve come to a personal agreement or not.
This in turn, will make it difficult to obtain a second mortgage, as they need confidence in your ability to maintain both payments. You also have to think about your ex’s credit history. If they start to miss payments, this can affect your score too.
Speak with a mortgage advisor as soon as possible and get your name removed if you can, as that is definitely your safest bet. If this isn’t an option, then there still be hope for you to get a second mortgage. Book your free mortgage appointment and we’ll be happy to go over this with you.
Beginning your mortgage journey can come with its up and downs, however, the overall process is a rewarding one.
You have achieved a life goal of owning your own home and can set you up for any future goals for yourself like having children or starting a family. In particular, as a First Time Buyer in Harrogate, getting the keys to your first home can be a huge financial achievement.
Your reason for owning may be that you are wanting a sense of security and somewhere to call yours. From this, you have found that a mortgage is cheaper than renting.
Regardless of the hurdles and challenges, you may have along the way, you will inevitably end up further onto the property ladder or in a position to make an investment purchase to provide some further income.
A remortgage is when you apply to take out a new mortgage product on a property that you already own to either your current mortgage or borrow additional money against your property.
If you are wanting to take out a new mortgage product with your current lender, you can negotiate this which is known as a product transfer.
Regardless of whether you are looking to remortgage or take out a product transfer you will find that a lot of products out there all have their own collection of different deals and rates available.
Like with many products, there are always the ones most people go for and this is the case with remortgage products that are accessible to many homeowners, further down the page we have highlighted the most popular ones.
You may be wondering when is the time for a remortgage. It might be as simple as your circumstances changing or it could be that you are looking at securing a better deal, funding home improvements, consolidating debt or releasing equity.
Usually, a fixed mortgage term lasts between 2 and 5 years. At the time, you will be paying off some interest and capital and when it comes to your remortgage, 2-5 years down the line, you may be able to qualify for a lower loan to value bracket. By doing this, you are open to better rates.
Alternately, you may find yourself not wanting to remortgage, but this can mean you are risking yourself going onto a lender’s standard variable rate of interest (SVR).
This is something you progress onto if you have decided not to remortgage and can be a risk because you could be paying much higher than what you currently are. If you remortgage before this happens and you fit into a better loan to value bracket this could open opportunities for a better rate saving you money each month.
In the case you have been placed on a tracker mortgage, you will find that your monthly payments and interest corresponds with the Bank of England’s base rate. This can fluctuate depending on the economy’s performance.
For instance, if the economy has dipped, base rates may lower, and vice versa. It can be common for Lenders to have an additional percentage onto this base rate that you are normally tracking a rate between 2-4%.
If you have been on the property journey and are settled into your new home, you might look at giving your property some home improvements like a new extension, conversion or redecorating. Remortgage can be an option for you to get this work done through the funding of the remortgage.
Before carrying out any of these home improvements, you will need to have estimated costs and have some idea of how much it will cost you. From this, you can include these costs into your mortgage when taking out a new product. Depending on what your home goals are, your monthly payments may increase.
Whether if you are looking to start having children/starting a family, want to add value to your home or add some home improvements, we would recommend remortgaging instead of going through the process of having to sell and buy a property simultaneously. It can be easier to improve your current home.
You could be looking to Remortgage to extend or shorten your term and switch to a more flexible product which will lead to paying off your mortgage quicker. The negative to this is that you will have higher repayments but extending your term does mean that you will reduce your payments and be paying off your mortgage a lot louder.
You do have the option to extend your term during this process. If you shorten your term, it will lead to overpaying which results in your mortgage being paid off quicker.
A flexible mortgage may sound like a good choice, however, it usually correspond n the form of a tracker mortgage. As mentioned, a tracker mortgage works with the Bank of England’s base interest rate, which fluctuates depending on the economy’s performance.
Equity is a way of releasing money from your home with the amount being the sum still owed on the mortgage and the property’s current value. Equity will likely build up the longer you have owned the property. As time goes on, you will be able to remortgage release some of this equity to turn into a lump sum of cash.
What you do with the cash is up to you, some uses include people putting down another deposit on another home to help a family member.
Through our experience as a Mortgage Broker in Harrogate, we usually see that Buy to Let landlords release equity to put down a deposit onto another property to expand their portfolio.
For homeowners who are over the age of 55 and have a property valued at a minimum of £70,000, it may be worth your time looking at your options for Equity Release in Harrogate. Get in touch with a trusted later life mortgage advisor to learn more about lifetime mortgages.
To understand the features and risks, ask for a personalised illustration.
A lifetime mortgage may impact the value of your estate and it could affect your entitlement to current and future means-tested benefits. The loan plus accrued interest will be repayable upon death or moving into long-term care.
In some cases where you have built up some unsecured debt, you can incorporate this into your mortgage. Debt consolidation can be seen as a complex topic so, speaking to a Mortgage Advisor in Harrogate can be beneficial for you to understand this subject.
Debt consolidation is based on the amount you owe, your property value and your credit rating. Remember, that you need to consider the large sums that will be included into your mortgage which will result in your total mortgage amount increasing.
Please don’t hesitate to contact us if you have bad credit and are seeking help from a mortgage expert. Here at Harrogatemoneyman, our team can help you with your needs and circumstances.
If you are at the remortgage stage in your property journey and are coming to the end of your fixed mortgage term, our team can help get prepared for this and aim to take the stress away by doing it for you.
It’s best to start looking into deals 6 months before your deal ends.
Book yourself in for a free remortgage appointment online with one of our knowledgeable advisors in providing Remortgage Advice in Harrogate. Our team can help you through your process by finding you the most appropriate deal that fits well within your personal and financial circumstances.
A credit score is a tool that lenders use to measure whether or not an applicant can afford a mortgage or not. The higher your credit score, the more likely it is that you’ll get accepted for a mortgage. Which means that if you have a low credit score, your chances of getting a mortgage are lowered.
Having a high credit score may sound great, however, it doesn’t guarantee you a mortgage in any way. Each lender has their own unique lending criteria and it’s more than likely that you won’t meet all of them. Sometimes it’s down to your circumstances and not just your score.
It is more than likely that each lender will have completely different lending criteria. Lenders have almost carved out their own niche market. You could end up matching with lots of lenders or it may only be a couple, but all that matters is that you match with one and get an amazing mortgage deal from it!
Whether you receive help from a Mortgage Broker in Harrogate or go solo and use your bank, it’s their job to help you compare deals and match you with a lender.
As a Mortgage Broker in Harrogate, we would always recommend taking up our free mortgage consultation offer. This way, we can evaluate your situation and compare deals for you straight away. If you go to a bank, you could just be added to a waiting list.
If you are struggling to match a lender’s criteria, it could be down to multiple things or maybe just one. The most common reason why people don’t match their lender’s criteria is that they have a low credit score. If this is your situation, then you need to find some ways to improve your credit score.
Having unnecessary credit searches on your file could negatively impact your credit score. Lenders don’t particularly like seeing repeated credit checks; they may think that there is a reason behind it and they may even start asking you questions about it. Even using price comparison websites could damage your score.
On another note, if you are applying for a mortgage, it is unwise to apply for any form of extra credit in the meantime of your application.
If you manage to pay back owed money before your application, it will look good on your file, however, if you are borrowing/paying back money during your application, it will have a reverse effect. If you borrow credit, some lenders’ could think that you cannot afford the deposit and are relying on the credit to help you.
A great way to improve your credit score is to register onto the Voter’s Roll. Lenders love seeing applicants that are registered on it as it indicates stability. It’s really easy to get yourself registered and the fact that it can boost your credit score surely means that you have to sign up if you haven’t before!
Even if you are already registered, it’s always a good idea to double-check that you have entered all of your information correctly. If you have an old address on their system, lenders will easily spot this mistake and it could go against your score.
Maxing out your card each month will have a detrimental effect on your credit score. If you are using a credit card, a lender would much rather that you pay off the full balance each month rather than cutting it short. Showing you can meet set payments each month shows reliability and can help your chances of being accepted for a mortgage.
On the other hand, if you are doing the opposite and exceeding your credit limits or overdrafts, your lender will think that you don’t take your finances seriously. This could massively impact your credit score, especially if you get declined by a lender due to this reason.
Your address should always be up-to-date. People usually get caught out when they move out from their parent’s house and forget to update all of their address’.
If you forget to change your address on things such as credit accounts, it will appear that you are living in two separate places. This can hurt your credit score once lenders see this so make sure that you are keeping on top of what address’ are linked with each of your accounts.
If you have any store/credit cards that are no longer in use, you should contact the provider and get them to fully close down your old account(s). These types of accounts are probably doing more damage than you think.
However, if you manage to close your account(s) it could still have a negative effect on your credit score as the credit reference can’t really tell if it’s you closing the account or the provider.
Don’t worry about this, if they ask, you will have to explain and it could work in your favour as you are proving that you want to improve your chances of being accepted.
Remember that it’s always good to check up on these types of things just in case. For example, you could’ve lost a card and you didn’t realise, then you fall victim for fraud. This could end up having a worse effect on your score.
People often don’t know that they are still financially tied to a family member or ex-partner. If this is the case, it can have a negative effect on your credit score without you even realising.
If the account that you are still tied to is still active, you must know that you will not be able to remove your link just yet. If you want to remove any of these links, then you should get in touch with the credit reference agencies and make a request.
As a Mortgage Broker in Harrogate, we know that some applicants see credit scoring as an unfair way of determining whether or not you’ll get accepted for a mortgage. For example, you may have a low credit score due to personal circumstances that couldn’t be prevented.
As a Mortgage Broker in Harrogate, we mostly see that it’s people that are moving home or self employed in Harrogate struggle with their credit score. However, if this isn’t your mortgage situation and you still need help with improving your credit score, you know to get in touch with.
Sending an up-to-date credit report to your expert Mortgage Broker in Harrogate could prove extremely beneficial to your mortgage journey. A great tool that we always recommend to our customers is checkymyfile.com.
The more your advisor knows about your finances the better. There are still some lenders out there that prefer to do things the old-fashioned way and will manually assess your application. They will still have rules that they stick by about the number of defaults and CCJ’s that they will allow.
A Mortgage Broker in Harrogate, like us, likes to do things the new way and will always aim to deliver you the same fast and friendly mortgage advice service that you are all used to. We hope to hear from you soon.
After the effects of COVID-19, a lot of people are now having to change the way they work whilst at the same time, warming up to working from home due to the benefits that it holds. Certain benefits can include:
In the past, relocating for work or for a better living environment isn’t an uncommon situation. However, now that the general public are realising that working from home means this doesn’t have to be the case means that they are able to shape their home to fit in a new workspace such as a home office which will help shape their home around this situation. This brings more value to the statement of ‘improve, not move’.
The price of converting an existing room can be somewhat low cost and can range between £5 – 15,000. Recently interest rates have been dropping for a considerable amount of time and remains to be low which could mean that upcoming monthly mortgage payments will increase by an affordable amount.
Assuming an interest rate of 2% is possible over 25 years it might cost you:
You will have to remortgage a property to be able to raise additional funds in order to remortgage for a home office. These funds will let whichever room is chosen to be converted. The most common choice is a spare room or a garage.
The first step of the process will be to find a remortgage deal. If you choose to go on your own and go directly to a bank, you will only be allowed to access deals that are offered by them. By going further than your bank you’ll be opened up to more deals that could potentially mean that you’re better off in the long term.
Our Mortgage Broker in Harrogate is able to be on hand to be able to look through thousands of remortgage deals so that you end up with the one that will suit you the most. We make it so as our mortgage advisors can give you expert Remortgage advice in Harrogate to only keep your best interests at heart.
For the cost of a home office, you will need to find out an estimate of how much the work that will be carried out will cost. Such things as room size and how much work will be needed on the room in order to get it in shape will also be needed to be taken into consideration.
Some of the lowest rates that have been present in the mortgage market are present right now and so the money that you are able to save by converting will extend further than your remortgage.
If you’re thinking about setting up a remortgage in Harrogate then our Mortgage Advisors in Harrogate have accumulated experience from numerous years of been in the mortgage field. By approaching our Mortgage Broker in Harrogate, we’ll assist you with the process as you may find the lender might extend the time frame of your remortgage process.
When your introductory mortgage deal comes to an end your mortgage lender may offer you a new deal to stay with them, this is known as a product transfer.
Unfortunately, lenders do not always reward your loyalty and the offer they make you may not be competitive with deals you could get elsewhere. Even more annoyingly, these product transfer rates are not as good as the deal they offer new customers either!
Whilst swapping to a new deal with your current Lender may well be fairly easy online, it is always in your interest to see what other deals you may be eligible for. Lenders will also tempt you to effect a new deal online without taking advice.
This can be really dangerous because if you do this without advice you are waving goodbye to all the valuable consumer protection you would otherwise have benefitted from.
We have seen numerous examples of customers affecting these “follow-on” deals and locking themselves into an inappropriate deal. Because they opted out of advice then they have waived a lot of their rights in terms of making a complaint.
We did have a recent case where a customer who was pregnant did this and was declined for a small further advance to fund some necessary home improvements a few months later. She then had to pay a hefty early repayment charge to swap to a new lender who would grant her the additional funds.
If we think a product transfer is the most suitable deal for you we will recommend that as a course of action for you and if we arrange the mortgage for you as a mortgage broker then all the regulation and consumer protection will apply.
In short, even if your requirement seems straightforward we recommend you always take advice – a second opinion costs nothing and making a mistake when taking a new product can be costly.
The remortgage market is highly competitive and savings can generally be made by searching the market for a new deal. If you want remortgage advice in Harrogate and help form an expert, don’t hesitate to call us!
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UK Moneyman Limited is Registered in England, No. 6789312 | Registered Address: 10 Consort Court, Hull, HU9 1PU.
Authorised and Regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
We are entered on the Financial Services Register No. 627742 at www.register.fca.org.uk
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Harrogatemoneyman.com & Harrogatemoneyman are trading styles of UK Moneyman Limited, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
UK Moneyman Limited is Registered in England, No. 6789312 | Registered Address: 10 Consort Court, Hull, HU9 1PU.
Authorised and Regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
We are entered on the Financial Services Register No. 627742 at www.register.fca.org.uk
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