Mortgage Guide

Mortgage Advice

Professional, independent mortgage advice is very important for first time buyers if you want  to make the right decision about which home loan is right for you. This is the case whatever your mortgage requirements, as the industry is becoming ever more complicated.  

Whether you are thinking of remortgaging, taking out a first time buyer mortgage or releasing equity in an existing property the right independant mortgage advice is important and readily available.

Since 2004 the giving of personal financial and UK mortgage advice has been governed by the Financial Services Authority. Companies or individuals offering advice on mortgage products must comply with the Financial Services Act or they are breaking the law.

Mortgage advice can be sought from a number of sources:

A tied mortgage advisor: These work – and will therefore recommend products – on behalf of just one lender.

A multi-tied mortgage adviser: These will recommend products from a limited range of lenders.

An independent mortgage advisor : These will recommend products from the whole market.

However, if you consult an independent mortgage advisor, they will be independent on mortgages but perhaps not insurance – and nearly all home buyers take insurance alongside their mortgage.

FirstRungNow.com does not offer personal mortgage advice so we work very closely with a reputed mortgage advice network which offers an excellent mortgage advice service. They are trained and qualified to offer some of the best mortgage advice in the UK. 

By researching and reading it is relatively easy to glean a certain amount of useful information but we believe seeking personal mortgage advice from a mortgage advisor will secure you the best mortgage advice service. 

Mortgage advice can be given over the phone, by email or in person. Different mortgage advisors work in different ways, many now choosing to offer online mortgage advice. These days they are pretty flexible. In order to give you proper financial mortgage advice, mortgage advisors will need to have a great deal of information about your personal finances. The most important aspect is that  they will want to determine that you can and will be able to make the mortgage payments. The last thing they want is to repossess your property if you default on payments . They will ask your permission before they give financial or mortgage advice.

What type of information is required for a mortgage application?

Your lender will require to see the following:

Your passport and  national insurance number;
Your employer's name, address and details, also a contact number;
Any documentation relating to income and outgoings, such as salary or wages slip, pension details, alimony or child maintenance payments, income from investments.
All documentation relating to outgoings such as bills and bank statements;
Details of any assets including bank account balances, deposits or any properties or other investments;
Details of all liabilities including student or other debt, credit cards, car loans and other loans.

Remember that all this documentation has to be repeated if you are applying for a joint mortgage, as all applicants must provide the same level of information.

Your lender will then make an assessment based on all the information received before deciding how much money they are willing to lend.

There will also be legal, valuation and mortgage administration fees to take into account so make sure you are aware of ALL costs before proceeding.

The advice and information offered will cover both repayment mortgage advice and interest only mortgage advice.

Some advisors charge for giving mortgage advice and others make their income from commission they earn from selling insurance policies and mortgages. You are quite entitled to ask about what charges will be applicable.

www.cml.org.uk – council of mortgage lenders.