Advice on buying first house/mortgage

digitalphase

Hi, would like some advice on how much deposit we'd need to get a decent rate, obviously it's the more the better but minimum - is it 10 or 15%?

Also, what impact do late payments of about 8mths ago have on a decision and recent searches? To be fair it may well be a year since late payment marker by the time we actually apply, plus the searches will have aged.

Is it better to go to an independant advisor or go in and chat to a high street branch? Are they able to calculate figures and likelihood of being accepted without actually doing a credit search?

delmar39

It goes without saying that the more you put down the better. Your loan to value ratio is important. We've just put a 35% deposit down on a house, but have recently sold so could afford to do this - we didn't get a better rate for this, it just means that we're borrowing less. I'd go and chat to your current bank to get an idea of what you can borrow and what deals they currently have on. You'll get a certificate to evidence the mortgatge offer made to you which can be used when dealing with Estate Agents to bolster your position. You can compare your banks mortgages with others via a financial advisor or broker. Deposit is one thing, mortgaged affordability (i.e. what you can borrow) is another.

digitalphase

delmar39 wrote: »

It goes without saying that the more you put down the better. Your loan to value ratio is important. We've just put a 35% deposit down on a house, but have recently sold so could afford to do this - we didn't get a better rate for this, it just means that we're borrowing less. I'd go and chat to your current bank to get an idea of what you can borrow and what deals they currently have on. You'll get a certificate to evidence the mortgatge offer made to you which can be used when dealing with Estate Agents to bolster your position. You can compare your banks mortgages with others via a financial advisor or broker. Deposit is one thing, mortgaged affordability (i.e. what you can borrow) is another.

Thanks. We're looking at a much lower deposit as we've first time buyers. We've been looking about and seen some reasonable deals for the current climate.

So, what happens... Do you go into a bank and apply for the mortgage just like that? Do you need to deposit in the bank already before you can apply for one? Is there anyway the bank can tell you the liklihood of being accepted before doing a credit check so as not to trash our files?
Also do recent searches on your report matter when applying for a mortgage?

GregH

When i got my first mortgage, i went to an Independant Financial Advisor. He was able to search the entire market for a mortgage to suit me, rather than a bank or building society who will only be able to recommend their own products.

It was free for me to set up my mortage as my IFA got comission from the mortgage company, be cautious that some may charge for their service.

leon103

Plus the IFA will use the information you provided them and can give you a figure of how much you can borrow without doing a credit search