"you have got an agreement in principal but havent"

princessg_3

This message thread title is an exact quote of what I was told by an assosciate of my IFA this afternoon.
After months of getting nowhere and being fobbed off (northern rock's broker on holiday, IFA on holiday, IFA never available) this is the reply i was offered today to my question of "where exactly in the process are we - do we have an agreement in principal or not".

Can you sort of have an agreement in principal?! When asked to elaborate - the IFA's assistant tried her best to explain that it means northern rock have agreed to lend us the money but until further confirmations of employment and salary can not say how much they will lend (i changed jobs half way through application)
I asked if we had been credit checked and if this agreement to lend us money was definite - she couldn't answer.

Does this sound familiar or at all normal???

To add insult to injury - last week northern rock took £500 from my partners account - no permission, no warning. I was told the details of bank account came from IFA and we eventually were told this was to cover valuation fees - but there has been a hold on the valuation until my employment contract letter is received.

We still also have no solicitor. Have been informed by IFA not to pay the solicitor he instructed to work on our behalf until the valuation goes through???

HELP!!!!

I have posted on here previously with details of our dilemma but here is background info if it helps at all:

Partner and I going for joint mortgage (together mortage help with costs) with northern rock - £63,000 for price of house and an extra £15k for renovations.
I have just found new permanent employment - £16k p/a and partner earns around £15k as civil servant.
We have no deposit and partner has fairly good credit score. Mine has suffered with several missed payments here and there but nothing more serious than that. (think experian had it as being 'poor' though)

Fed up of everything now - am tempted to go back to renting!!!

MortgageMamma

Don't stress it sounds like you have just had a lazy IFA who has not explained things properly to you:

1. An agreement in principle is a credit check by a lender. they also check your earnings to see if you can lend the amount you want.

2.It sounds as though you were credit checked in one job and then changed job as the mortgage was going to application stage is that right? This means that the original agreement in principle, if there was one, is now invalid as you have had a change of circumstances

3. Your IFA should have advised you to instruct a solicitor at application stage - better still if he offered really good service he would have got a quotation and arranged this for you

4. I suspect what is happening now is the mortgage went to full application but because of the change in circumstances the IFA put it on hold because NR needed to see your new employment contract before they would agree to lend. Now your employment contract has arrived they have perhaps provisionally agreed the case subject to valuation and the valuation has subsequently been instructed and deducted from your partners bank account. Your IFA should have forewarned you about this and made you aware it was happening.

I'm sorry to say it like this but to me it seems you have really bad service from your IFA, and it is very likely to be because he will not be making a great deal of money on your mortgage and he has bigger fish to fry. You have made the application now so are pretty much stuck with him but if I was you I would make him aware that his lack of communication and advice is not satisfactory and you would like to see an improvement from now on. that should give him a big fat kick up the !!!! and make him give your case the attention it deserves.

Don't let this give you abad impression of financial advisers and brokers in general, most of us are very hard working and do our jobs properly.