transfering existing mortgage offer to new proper...

[melysion]

I have a mortgage in advance for one property - but have been messed around by the vendor so much that I'm looking for an alternative.

If I find something else and an offer is accepted, do I have to go though the whole mortgage process again or just pay for a valuation for the new property?

I rather like the terms of my existing offer and don't want to lose it.

Apologies for what might be a silly question - FTB so still learning the ropes

[dimbo61]

You may well have an AIP which is approval in principal !
This means that the lender has agreeded to lend you £XXX,XXX amount of money based on your income and deposit.
Now most mortgage deals have a time limit which means you must complete with in a certain time ( some deals last 6 months while some have a Set time ie 31-12-12.
You need to read any paperwork that came with the offer or contact the lender to find out how long the offer has left

[Lilla]

Let me please clarify a few things here.

A mortgage process has various stages:
1) agreement in principle (BEFORE an application is made to check borrowing potential based on income, outgoings, credit history and other details)
2) mortgage application (when a specific deal is selected and the lender matches documents with previously provided information and carries out valuation)
3) mortgage offer (after the lender has done their checks and confirms the borrowing)
4) exchange of contracts (when the transaction becomes legally binding and typically 10% deposit is paid)
5) completion (when the rest of the deposit is paid along with the mortgage and the seller hands over the keys to the buyer)

By the sound of melysion's post, it seems that they have a mortgage offer, not just an agreement in principle (otherwise they wouldn't be worried about losing the mortgage product).

It is fairly common to pull out of a purchase and use the mortgage application / offer on a new property after stage 2 and before stage 4. Indeed it just means that you have to pay for a new valuation and normally sign amendment paperwork prepared by the broker (or the bank, if doing it direct).

Finally, I would agree with dimbo61 - the mortgage offer states how long the offer is valid for, so you'll have to bear this in mind and complete (stage 5) within the time limit on the alternative property.