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Re-mortgage hell URGENT HELP REQUIRED

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In July 2007 I wanted to release equity from my property to help fund my business. I was on a good mortgage rate with the Halifax on a repayment basis and the Halifax were happy to lend more. In addition I had a secured loan with Picture Finance which was fairly cheap, they too would have lent the extra I was looking for. My personal and business accounts were with Natwest and I was called in for a review. I informed them what I wanted to do and they suggested that I re-mortgaged with them. I kept reiterating that I was sorted but almost 3 hours later I submitted to the pressures and agreed for them to look into the re-mortgage. They said I would have to pay off the Picture Finance loan as it was secured and I told them that I wasnt happy with this arrangement as it would be eating into the money I was attempting to release. They informed they would solve this problem by offering me a new loan to cover this, alongside the mortgage. I again questioned this as I had only recently been turned down by them for a loan on the basis that the business was too new but again they assured that once the mortgage was moved to them there would be no problem with the loan. Everything progressed very quickly and I kept questioning the fact that I had not heard anything about the personal loan, I was told not to worry as once the mortgage had progressed to a certain stage that the loan would "kick in". The next thing I knew I had a call to say that the mortgage had completed, I said that this was not possible as I had not returned the mortgage offer forms as I was waiting to see what happened with the personal loan but they told me I had pre-signed the documents at the beginning of the process, a practice that they use to speed matters along! In addition I was told that the loan had been declined as "the business was too new!!!" As a consequence I am now paying more for an interest only mortgage than I was paying for a repayment, parted with over £8,000 in penalty fees and charges and failed to release any money as it was all swallowed in paying off the Picture Finance loan and fees! I immediatley reported this to the Fiancial Ombudsman but almost 7 months on our case is still in a queue waiting to be reviewed. I am now penniless, have parted with 60% of my business in an attempt to keep it going (no wage from this at present), have defaulted on credit cards, face court for non-payment of Council Tax on Feb 21 , cut off notices from utility suppliers and now 2 months in arrears with a mortgage I cant afford. I cannot raise credit as my previously good ratings are now really poor, I am self employed with not enough equity in my property to play with since they "stole" it, I cant afford a solicitor and the bank are not willing to offer any sort of help or payment holiday whilst the Ombudsman look into matters. Is there anyone out there that can help with this mess? PLEASE if anyone can offer any advice I would be truely grateful. This is really spiralling now and I am literally losing everything. I continue to chase this now on a daily basis and its just taking over my whole life, there are just no solutions. I cant believe how one visit to my bank just to pay in a cheque has resulted in such heartache and loss.
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Comments

  • I don't know how to help but that all sounds so horrible and I hope someone will be along here soon to offer advice.
    Got £820 back from HSBC! Now entering comps like mad with the hope of winning a nice long holiday....
  • I'd say you certainly have cause for complaint just for the fact that you paid £8000 in penalties.

    I know you're waiting for the FOS to wake up but have you gone through the banks own complaints procedures? (might be a daft question). By that I mean an official written complaint rather than just telephoning their call centres.
  • This does sound awful, I do know how bank's can be so heavy. I went to pay a cheque in and they almost had me signing up for a secured loan and even told me this would help me when re-mortgaging. I had to snap out of the fairytale land they pictured very quickly, and was lucky, I can understand how awful you feel and how easy they make it all seem. I can't advise but just want you to know someone is listening. Hopefully someone will be along soon with some good advice.
  • fc123
    fc123 Posts: 6,573 Forumite
    Hi, I can't offer advice on the mortgage issue BUT I really feel for your situation. I'm a small business owner too (for a long time) and really understand how you are feeling.

    I'm not familiar with this board (only popped over to look at a sticky) but am sure there will be more advice tomorrow with regards the mortgage.

    The DFW (debt free wannabe) board could help in the meantime with support and advice on immediate cutting back (but your no salary situation is critical......someone may be abale to advise on entitlements etc) , negotiating with CC (via debt charities) and other problems. There are great posters on there who have faced similar, critical points in their financial situation.

    I will look out for your post as I understand how difficult it is to budget with variable or shrinking income esp when ones business is under pressure.

    Am happy to "chat" about the business issues too such as whether this is a short term cashflow issue or something deeper (the current climate is a nightmare for a lot of us) but I can only comment from personal experience...I'm not an advisor / guru or anything.:o

    Just wanted to post...please don't despair. These forums are fanatastic.;)
  • God i hope you get this resolved, the person who sold you the mortgage must at the very least be guilty of sharp practice. Is there any way further pressure can be put on the ombudsman to review your case?
    Blackadder: Am I jumping the gun, Baldrick, or are the words 'I have a cunning plan' marching with ill-deserved confidence in the direction of this conversation?
    Still lurking around with a hope of some salvation:cool:
  • silvercar
    silvercar Posts: 49,528 Ambassador
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Academoney Grad Name Dropper
    I'm trying to break down your problem. Tell me if I've got it right.

    You started off with a mortgage of X and a picture loan of Y and wanted a loan from NatWest to fund your business. Pesumably X+Y+NW loan would all be less than your property value.

    NatWest tell you they would prefer to take over the whole lot. So they move your mortgage (pre-signed!!). So the new mortgage amount is it X+Y or more?
    They then reject your application for a loan.

    Is this NW mortgage interest only or repayment. Why are the repayments higher than before? Do you mean higher than the mortgage or higher than the mortgage+picture loan?

    If the mortgage is for a lower amount than the old mortgage + picture Loan + redemption fees, no wonder you have cash flow problems!

    If they won't give you a business loan, one option would be to increase the mortgage. If it isn't interest only already, this could be an option to lower costs.

    Did you receive any money from the sale of part of your business? Could your business partner provide some capital to help the business.

    It does sound like your business model may need examining.

    Neil Quinn is right, you must go through the banks internal procesures first or your complaint will be rejected.
    I'm a Forum Ambassador on the housing, mortgages & student money saving boards. I volunteer to help get your forum questions answered and keep the forum running smoothly. Forum Ambassadors are not moderators and don't read every post. If you spot an illegal or inappropriate post then please report it to forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com (it's not part of my role to deal with this). Any views are mine and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.com.
  • Kemp1
    Kemp1 Posts: 11 Forumite
    Before I went into Natwest I had the option of going from a repayment mortgage to interest only plus they would have loaned additional money. Or, I could have had additional borrowing from Picture Finance and gone interest only as well, either way I could have raised the money I needed to comfortably progress the business and continue meeting the mortgage/loan repayments until I was financially sound again. Natwest paid off the Picture Finance loan and with the fees and redemption penalties attached to this, all but ate up what I had remaining but for a few thousand. I have "saved" about £50 a month on our outgoings but now cant meet the repayments as obviously failed to raise the funds that were needed when they declined the loan. I'm not paying anything off the mortgage itself as I was doing before on the repayment. The £50 "saving" has forced all my other borrowing up to the limit whilst I try and sort the mess, meaning that I am paying more than ever! As for the business, its progressing steadily. I have been in the same line of work for over 15 years and professionaly qualified in what I do, I had a chance to set up on my own and took it. I was very careful and planned every move, presenting cashflow, income/expenditure etc to the bank and identified that by August I would need to raise some funds and organised my options accordingly. I just made a terrible decision in terms of going along with Natwest. My business partners are financing the progress of the company, I did not recieve a fee for the "sale", she instead injected money straight into the project to allow me to continue for a share of it. This is slowly paying off but it will be a couple of months yet before we break even and then start to make a profit. We're working round the clock. I just dont know if I can survive the next few months. Going bankrupt would mean I lose my career as well as my home. ( I am a 36 year old woman with 3 children, running a business and also studying for a second Fellowship with my next lot of exams in a few weeks time! I have worked so hard all my life, having never claimed a thing, I feel so fed up being in this position). I have spent the last few months exhausting the banks complaints proceedures which often results with me in floods of tears having got nowhere. I phone/email and write. They agreed to an interim payment as I would not accept their offerings as "full and final" but the payment only served to pay off the arrears that had clocked up in the time they took to deal with the complaint. They are slapping on bank charges left, right and centre and will not put the mortgage payments on hold whilst the ombudsman look into matters. It's awful!
  • silvercar
    silvercar Posts: 49,528 Ambassador
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Academoney Grad Name Dropper
    Is your natwest mortgage now interest only or repayment? If the latter, ask to change to the former for a short while. Do you have a business manager at NatWest? They are usually far more helpful than the branch staff.

    If NatWest have rejected your business loan application, there is nothing to stop you going to a different bank with your business.

    I suppose, if you want to go down this road there is nothing to stop you taking another loan secured or unsecured.

    Increasing borrowing secured on your home puts your home at risk .....

    but if this is genuinely a short term cashflow problem it is an option.
    I'm a Forum Ambassador on the housing, mortgages & student money saving boards. I volunteer to help get your forum questions answered and keep the forum running smoothly. Forum Ambassadors are not moderators and don't read every post. If you spot an illegal or inappropriate post then please report it to forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com (it's not part of my role to deal with this). Any views are mine and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.com.
  • PasturesNew
    PasturesNew Posts: 70,698 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    Kemp1 wrote: »
    In July 2007 ... .... ..... ...... and loss.
    Bugg4h that IS shoddy.

    I wish you well!

    From what you say you were well and truly shafted by them. I hope it turns out OK soonest, although as your posting states it's already had some irreversible damage on your credit rating and sanity as well as bank balance.

    :(
  • Were you informed that you were pre-signing an acceptance? I would seriously think about seeking legal advice!
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