mortgage Archives - Freedom Channel

How to maximise your chances of getting a mortgage

September 14, 2022

Getting a mortgage is no easy endeavour. House prices are consistently increasing with the average UK house price now sitting at more than £270,000. Rises in house prices markedly outpace wage increases. This makes it much harder for mortgage applicants to gain acceptance among lenders. Despite these roadblocks there are actions you can take to maximise your chances of getting a mortgage.

Save For a Larger Deposit

The easiest way to enhance your probability of being accepted for a mortgage is to save for a larger deposit. The larger you deposit, the more ownership you will have of the house relative to the loan amount. If the property price is £280,000 and you put down £70,000 as your deposit, you will require a mortgage of £210,000. In this example the loan to value of the property would be the mortgage amount divided by the purchase price. That would result in an LTV of 75%.

With a lower loan to value more mortgages at better rates will be available to you. The reason for this is because as a borrower you present less risk to the lender. The more money you have in the house, the more there is for the lender to recover should repayments not be made.

Pay Off Debts & Don’t Apply for Any New Credit

Pay off any debts you have in full as quickly as possible. Set up a realistic plan to pay back any debts you have before making an application. Mortgage providers are ultimately most concerned with a borrower’s ability to service their mortgage payments. If you have existing debt you will need to make monthly payments, reducing the amount of disposable income available to pay your mortgage. Anything you do to decrease outgoing and increase disposable income helps your mortgage application.

Taking out any new additional loans before applying for a mortgage will hinder your chances of a successful application. The new debt you’ve acquired will be recorded on your credit line. This is a big red flag to prospective lenders who will check any outstanding credit you have via credit rating agencies. Thinking of getting new furniture on credit? Considering a new finance hire agreement for a new car? Think again. These likely unnecessary purchases will adversely impact your ability to get accepted for a mortgage.

Check Your Credit Rating & Make Sure You’re on the Electoral Register?

Every Lender will check your credit rating via a credit rating agency such as Experian or Equifax. Before applying for a mortgage it’s imperative you check your score. Being aware of your score and knowing how to improve it will help maximise your chance of mortgage acceptance.

Credit agencies are aware of your entire credit history as well as current loan amounts outstanding. Late payments and defaults adversely affect the score. Your payment history impacts 35% of your entire credit score. Even one late payment can lower your score. We’d advise setting up direct debits to ensure all debts are serviced in a timely manner to avoid this.

Credit usage has the next largest impact on your credit score at 30%. This is how much you spend on revolving credit e.g. credit cards relative to your total credit limit. It shows how reliant you are on available credit for regular spending. Lenders will want to see you aren’t overly reliant on available credit and your score will be penalised for excessive usage. To be safe ensure you spend less than 25% of your available credit usage.

Credit history length makes up 15% of your credit score. Generally the longer your credit history the higher your credit score provided you’ve paid debts on time and not defaulted. We advise building up a credit history for multiple years ahead of applying for a mortgage. Credit mix makes up the final component of your credit score at 10%. Generally a more diverse credit mix is favoured by lenders.

When applying for a mortgage you will need proof of residency. One easy way to do this is to ensure you are registered on the electoral register. This validates you have a permanent residence and often increases your credit score.

What to Do When Your Reverse Mortgage Becomes a Financial Burden

Finance

August 11, 2021

Did you take out a reverse mortgage? Many seniors consider reverse mortgages to deal with financial issues that they encounter during retirement.

There can be a lot of great reasons to take out a reverse mortgage. However, they are not without their own issues. You need to be aware of the potential pitfalls that you are going to encounter when you have a reverse mortgage.

Some of the problems with reverse mortgages might creep up on you over time. Fortunately, there are ways that you can deal with them.

Here are some things that you can do to offset any issues that were created by a reverse mortgage.

Consider refinancing your reverse mortgage

According to All Reverse Mortgage, “You can also refinance your reverse mortgage if you don’t like the interest or other terms associated with it. This might be your best option if you think that you will need to sell your property in a few years.” Refinancing will keep you from losing a large amount of money and interest. It would also be ideal if you want to make sure that your kids or other people inheriting your estate will get more.

The process of refinancing your reverse mortgage is very similar to that of refinancing a traditional mortgage. The only caveat is that you generally need to wait at least 18 months after taking out the original reverse mortgage before you can refinance it.

You should take a close look at your credit history before submitting a refinancing application. Your payment history keeping up property charges is going to be the most important factor for qualifying for a better HECM in most cases.

If your credit has improved since you took out the last reverse mortgage, you will possibly be able to qualify for that terms. You can also try to take steps to improve your credit score if you want to take preemptive measures to get a better deal. You should start by looking at your credit reports and seeing if there are any errors on them. Around 20% of all credit reports contain errors, which could be hurting your score. You should also take a close look at any outstanding debt that you have. If you still have a large amount of money from your reverse mortgage, then you should use it to pay off high interest debts, such as credit card bills. This will both boost your credit score and minimize your long-term expenses. It will be a win-win, especially if you get a cheaper read on your reverse mortgage.

You should also settle any possible liens on your property. They could be hurting your potential of getting a better read on your reverse mortgage.

Lease your home instead of selling it before you move

When you take out a reverse mortgage, the bank is going to give you money that will later be taken out of the value of your home. Unfortunately, you have to hold onto the property if you don’t want to pay the reverse mortgage loan back.

You might end up in a situation where you really can’t stay in your home. You might feel like you are a prisoner to your loan, because it is keeping you from relocating if you can’t afford to pay it back.

You might not have been concerned about this when you first took out your reverse mortgage. You probably thought that you would never relocate. Unfortunately, problems happen. You might get an unexpected divorce. You might develop health problems that prevent you from living in an area with bad weather or excessive pollution. Your kids might take new jobs in another state, which forces you to move as well if you want to be close to them.

Before you bite the bullet and sell your home to repay your reverse mortgage, you should explore other options. One idea that you might want to consider is leasing out your home and using the cash from it to pay for new housing wherever you want to relocate.

This might give you the best of both worlds. You get to keep the money that you secured from your reverse mortgage and have the flexibility to relocate at the same time. You don’t even have to physically deal with your tenants if you are willing to outsource that obligation to a property management company.

Explore property tax relief services

Property taxes are among the reasons that people when face problems with their reverse mortgages. You might be required to repay your reverse mortgage if you stop paying your property taxes.

You might be able to get ahead of the problem by seeking property tax relief services. The terms of these services vary between jurisdictions, so you should pay close attention to the requirements. The governor of Idaho recently signed a property tax relief bill, which is an example of how these services work. If you are eligible, you might avoid property tax problems that could trigger a requirement to repay your reverse mortgage.

Make sure that you are reverse mortgage is a benefit rather than a liability

There are a variety of reasons that reverse mortgages have become popular in recent years. They really do offer a lot of benefits. However, there are some situations where they could become a burden, so you need to take steps to avoid that from being the case.

Getting A Mortgage – Top Advice

Finance

October 20, 2018

So, you’ve decided to take the plunge and buy your first home. Congratulations! Owning a home can be a stressful experience, but it can also be an extremely fulfilling and satisfying one. When you’re a homeowner, your property is your oyster; you can fill it with as much decoration as you like, as well as carrying out renovations and DIY projects whenever you want to.

Taking out a mortgage is pretty much the most common way people buy homes. Most people don’t have the cash to pay for the property upfront, so they negotiate a long-term loan with a bank or building society in order to pay off the cost of the house (plus interest, usually) over time. It can be pretty daunting applying for your first mortgage, so we’ve gathered together a list of handy tips for you to consider when you’re about to apply.

One quick tip before we start: don’t be afraid to take out a second mortgage once you’re comfortably into your first one. Second mortgages can be great for DIY projects, renovations, family planning and many other aspects of life. Check out StepOneFinance’s second mortgage loans to get you started.

Pay off as much initially as you can

Of course, it’s very unlikely that you’ll have anywhere near the requisite amount of money to pay off the entire value of the property immediately – otherwise, why take out a mortgage? With that said, it’s definitely advantageous for you to pay off as much as you can outright. The reason is twofold. First off, you’ll obviously have less to pay on the mortgage over time if you pay more initially, or you’ll be able to negotiate a shorter term. Secondly, many mortgage providers offer lower interest rates to those who are able to put down larger deposits; if you’re able to provide around 40% of the property’s overall value, then you can look forward to lower interest rates in the future.

Thoroughly research the property

The last thing you want as you move into your new property is to discover something ugly or unwanted about it that you didn’t know when you moved in. Estate agents are just doing a job, but it’s in their best interests to cover up or circumvent potentially problematic aspects of the property in order to secure a sale. Make sure that you visit the property as many times as possible before you buy; in addition, see if you can find anything out on the Internet in terms of the area in which the property is located. There’s nothing worse than moving in to what looks like your dream home, only to find out that it’s a crime hotspot or there’s a local source of unbearable noise day in, day out.

Find out your credit score

If you want to get a seriously good mortgage deal for yourself, you’ll need a good credit rating. Failing to pay back loans, accruing big credit card balances and holding multiple credit accounts at once can all negatively impact your credit score, which in turn can be a big blow to your ability to get a mortgage. A low credit score isn’t necessarily a complete barrier to getting a mortgage, but the better deals require a higher score. You can use services like Experian and Noddle to check your credit score, which you should do prior to beginning any mortgage proceedings; coming armed with that sort of knowledge can save you a lot of time and hassle further down the line.

Self-employed? Have documents to hand

Most mortgage providers will require your latest payslip to prove your income, and in some cases they’ll want to see a bank statement to prove the income is regular. That’s if you’re in regular employment. If you’re self-employed, getting a mortgage can become a real headache. Self-employment is a difficult prospect for lenders, because it can be hard to understand how being one’s own boss translates into a regular, dependable income. You’ll need to collect proof of your earnings over the last 2-3 years to show to your lender, whether this is via an official HMRC form or your own meticulously kept records. If you don’t keep records, you should absolutely start doing so if you want a mortgage.

Settle as many debts as possible

Mortgage lenders don’t like outstanding debts, as they look like a good indicator of your inability to pay a mortgage. One top tip offered by Your Mortgage Solutions, based in Rugeley; Examine your income and expenditure closely and see where you can pay off debts you’ve accrued. Outstanding credit card debts, unsecured loans and unused accounts can all contribute towards mortgage lenders passing you over, so get your affairs in order before applying.

These are just a few tips to get you started on the road to your first mortgage. Owning a home is an arduous process; there’s paperwork to be filled out and a thorough assessment of your finances to go through. Once that’s done, though, it’s an unmatched adventure.

10 Things You Ought to Know Before Getting Yourself a Mortgage

Money

November 23, 2016

Before you start to approach local banks and other financial institutions with the aim of obtaining a mortgage to buy a new home, there are a few facts that you need to know. Borrowing such a large sum of money without doing some research first is not a good idea as you will be entering into a binding contract that lasts for many years. With this in mind, below is a list of 10 things you really ought to know before you apply for your first mortgage, which should stand you in good stead when you get in touch with local lenders.

10 Things You Should Know Before Applying for a Home Loan

Make a note of the following ten points, or bookmark this page so that you can refer to it whenever you want.

1. Your Credit Score – Your credit score and history will dictate the rate of interest you are likely to be charged on a mortgage so the first thing you need it know is what kind of score you currently have.

2. Your Budget – What a bank or mortgage broker thinks you can afford and what you can really afford are often two completely different things. Go through your budget carefully to make sure you do not overextend yourself.

3. Your Partner – This may sound like an odd one but if you are getting a joint mortgage, you need to be absolutely sure that your partner is 100% reliable.

4. Your Building Company – If you are paying a Perth builder to create a beautiful new home for you, take the time to get to know how they work before you sign on the dotted line. If you click here, you can get a good idea of what reputable firms have to offer.

5. Possible Benefits – Depending on where you are in the country and the current regulations, there may well be certain government schemes for which you are eligible, which could help to defray the cost of your new home.

6. Your Location – The location of your new home will have a major influence on its future value so research this particular factor very thoroughly.

7. Your Future Plans – Given the long-term nature of mortgages and the fact it may take some time before you can sell your new home for a profit, you need to consider your future plans carefully.

8. Your Lender – Although it is tempting to make all the arrangements online, you should visit the bank from which you are going to borrow, to make sure you are happy with their terms and conditions.

9. The Fees – Virtually all Mortgage Providers charge application fees, and there may be other costs involved in dealing with them too. Make sure you are aware of them all up front.

10. The Real Value – Pay for an independent valuation of the house you wish to buy.

There are other things you should know but the list above will get you off to a great start when applying for home loans in Western Australia and elsewhere.

Tag: mortgage