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What Happens During The Mortgage Application Process?: The mortgage application process, once underway, does not take very long. Once you have decided to go with a certain lender and signed a purchase contract, the lender will run a full credit check verifying your income, liabilities and your ability to repay the loan.
How Much Is The Valuation Fee?: The Valuation fee covers the expense of the mortgage lender visiting your prospective property to ensure that it is worth what you are intending to pay.
What Happens If Interest Rates Change?: If you have some form of fixed interest rate mortgage you will be unaffected by changes in interest rates. Otherwise you can expect a change in the rate of interest charged on your mortgage.
What Are Capped Rate Mortgages?: A capped rate mortgage puts a limit on maximum interest payable on your mortgage over a predetermined period. If the mortgage rate is BELOW the cap the borrow will enjoy the lower interest rate available.
What Are Buy To Let Mortgages?: A buy to let mortgage is an excellent opportunity to cash in on the property boom at the moment – because while many homeowners can afford a 2nd home, there’s also a booming market for those who cannot afford to get a mortgage, and need to rent. Find yourself a good location and reliable tenants and your monthly repayments on your mortgage will be covered by their rental yield.

How Does A Joint Mortgage Work?

When you decide to get a mortgage with another person – both your incomes can be taken into account. The general rule is that you can borrow three times the first income plus half of the second income, or two-and-a-half times the joint income.

The bigger the deposit you can give, the less interest you will have to pay, and in general, you will be expected to have a deposit of between 3 - 10% of the asking price of the property you want to buy.

It is absolutely vital that you are both very clear before you buy a house together and get a mortgage that you both know where you stand from a legal point of view. It's possible for up to four people to be joint legal owners of a property, and if you are a joint owner it means no one else can force you to leave unless they get a court order, sell the property without getting your agreement or a court order or take out a loan against the property without your agreement. You should discuss the options with your solicitor before you decide, and you will have to sign a written agreement confirming what you have decided before the sale goes ahead.

There are two different ways to joint own a property, the difference being, what will happen to the property if one of you dies.

Joint tenants

This means you have equal rights to the whole of the property - many couples who are married or in long-term relationships choose this option. This agreement means that if you die, the other joint owner automatically inherits your share of the property, regardless of anything that is said in your will.

Tenants in common

This is the option that couples in new relationships and friends and/or relatives who are buying together often choose. This means that you each own a specific share of the property, not necessarily an equal share. If you die, your share of the property doesn't automatically pass to the other legal owner(s), but to whoever is named in your will or, if you haven't got a will, to your next of kin. If you want to leave your share of the property to the other legal owner(s), you will have to state this in your will. This type of agreement can be transferred into a joint tenancy, but only if the other owner(s) agree to it.

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