Remortgage: Nationwide vs HSBC vs Santander? Quickest / most efficient?

itchyfeet80

I also encountered multiple problems with the Nationwide IT system, including it doing several hard credit searches instead of just one. I had to apply via a paper application in the end with an in-branch advisor, but everything went through OK and I've now received my offer 2 weeks after they received the application so although it took time to get there in the beginning, once I bypassed the system errors, it was plain sailing.

xyz123

SouthLondonUser wrote: »

Touch!

Do brokers require face-to-face meetings or lengthy telephone conversations? My wife and I both work long hours, in totally different parts of the city, so we wouldn't be able to meet with a broker in person. We'd be able to arrange phone calls, of course, just not at the same time.

Would we be able to send documents online? Or would we need complicated certification procedures, like having documents certified at the post office or a bank branch (massive waste of time)?

From personal experience few months ago in similar situation with regards to low LTV and income. Multiplier.

I had four phone conversation with broker. All documents send by scanning and email. I had done my research earlier though and had few options already identified. I was not asked for any certified documents.

Best of all, I has to pay no fees. My case was as straight forward as it gets but I have no complaints in using broker. After he applied, I got mortgage offer within 36 hours... If u want his contact details pm me..

SouthLondonUser

In the end I applied to HSBC directly.
It was a mistake. In the future I am going to use a broker, unless I need a very specific deal which is not available through brokers.
I applied online. Then my wife called to confirm her details. She spent two hours on the phone but HSBC couldn't find the application. Then they found it. They told her I had to amend certain details because I had entered them incorrectly (I had the starting date for her job wrong by 4 days - surely that completely alters our risk profile and affordability!!!). So I tried to login to change these details. I can't, they're all locked. I tried the IT approach - log out and back in. Now the HSBC website asks me for "memorable answers" I had never set! I use a password manager, and diligently enter all these passwords security questions memorable this and memorable that - well, those questions I had simply never set.
Now I have to call another HSBC number to "unlock my account".

Over the last months I must have spent tens and tens of hours applying for this **** mortgage, and every single time there is some kind of IT ****-up which makes me waste even more time and makes me lose the will to live. Note that it's never a question about affordability, income, risk profile or anything like that -- it's always about some IT f***-up. We are basically slaves to machines and algorithms we do not control.

SouthLondonUser

In summary, my experience with these banks over the last 4 years or so is:

Nationwide: useless. It takes determination to lose documents as many as 3 times [sic], and to block an application because of some unspecified IT glitch, for a mortgage to a proeprty the bank had already mortgaged 4 years ago!

Chelsea Building Society: weird documentation requests and useless solicitors in its panel. They asked for a copy of our marriage certificate. !!!!!!? How is it relevant? The solicitor made me waste time and money forcing me to buy an insurance policy because a company liquidated 70 years ago had some kind of claim on the land. If it was so important, why did no other banks bother?

First Direct: the only decent of the bunch. Everything was ready to go but I had to cancel because my circumstances changed and I now need a mortgage with no early repayment charge. The underwriting was smooth. They asked lots of questions about income and expenses, which is understandable, but didn't make me waste time asking for useless paperwork.

HSBC: the IT system sucks. see above. This is actually weird since First Direct is part of the HSBC group.

Thrugelmir

Seems far simpler to book an appointment , take a day off work, and do everything in house.

charco

Nationwide were fairly swift with us despite unexpected delays caused by Purple Bricks and their useless conveyancers. What I did find is that their IT system is poor. It's set up to send SMS alerts. However, these are limited and appear to be triggered by mistake a LOT. Can be a concern if you don't know to expect it.

Definitely use a broker. They'll need an appointment but most of it can be done by email or phone. Just make sure you have past 3 months payslips, utility bill and passport/driving licence.

SouthLondonUser

We called HSBC again this morning. We spent 50 minutes and got nowhere. The lady on the phone reset my account; I was asked to set new security questions etc etc.; then, while the lady was still on the phone, I tried to login again… and the system, once again, asked me for answers to security questions I had NOT set! It was, well, beyond words, really. When I finally managed to login (after yet another reset), I could not modify my details; the lady on the phone did something (after a long wait) and I finally managed to modify them. Then I log out, clear browser cookies etc etc, and pass the telephone to my wife. She logs in online, the system welcomes here with: “Welcome, Mrs. Wife”… but the system had mixed up our data: it was showing my DOB instead of hers. And no, it was not my mistake: I had entered the DOBs correctly, and have screenshots to prove it. My wife asked how on Earth HSBC would rectify this and the lady on the phone had no clue. At this point we had wasted 50 minutes on the phone and we simply decided to give up.
Oh, by the way, we were both late for work, of course. We couldn’t have called this evening and, well, calling in the morning was the only option.

I then called again to ask how the application in a branch works. Should be easier, right? Wrong. Branch applications are on an advised basis only and we must go to the same branch at the same - an issue for us: we work far from each other, so the only realistic option is to go on a Saturday and hope our child does not misbehave. Oh, and we might need two appointments! Why two? One to apply, one to discuss the results of the application. What’s there to discuss? I know what I want, you either give me the mortgage I want on the terms I want or you don’t. No, it doesn’t work like that, we need to consider the situation in its entirety yadda yadda ya…

So broker it is for me. At this point I don’t even care if, by going through a broker, I’d pay more fees (my wife is an HSBC customer so she could save £200-300 of fees in a number of cases). My time is more valuable and I have wasted too much of it already.

The crazy thing is, I don’t really need a broker. I don’t need any advice. I know what I want. There is no question about affordability (low LTV, low salary multiple, no other debts). If the IT systems of these banks functioned properly, our application would have been processed weeks ago. Technology can bring many positive changes; but botched implementations are all too common, so we end up slaves to broken IT systems which cause errors no one can explain or sort out!

ACG

Santander seem to be single handedly keeping us busy at the minute.
3 applications in the last month where they have spent 4-5 weeks assessing applications only to go on and decline the application. In fairness to Santander, 2 of those were submitted by brokers who should not have applied to Santander as the case did not fit criteria.

But the fact it is taking them to take 4-5 weeks to say no is very slow.

amnblog

I thought we had agreed this time last week that you should be using a broker ?