Remortgage with only 1 regular income?

Debbie_Hobdell

Hi there,

Hubby & I have had our mortgage with Abbey for 11 years.
Interest rate is currently 6.450%, compared to BoE base rate of 4.5%.

We would like to remortgage, but do not have 2 regular incomes at present. Does anyone know how realistic it is to try & get a better mortgage rate bearing this in mind?

We have had reduced income for 2 years; mortgage protection paid 50% of our monthly payments for the 1st year, but for the last year we have been managing without this, and have not defaulted at all on our payments.

I don't see why we should be paying nearly 2% above base rate, but feel certain that financial institutions will be unwilling to consider us with our current joint income.

Any advice will be welcome, as I don't fancy explaining the situation then spending time going through the process of form-filling etc. only to be told at the end, "sorry, insufficient income"!

Thanks,
Debbie

Phantom_Flan_Flinger

I've remortgaged with Alliance & Leicester twice over the last few years. Only had to sign the paperwork to transfer the mortgage over, nothing else.

Abbey have a 2 year fixed at 4.59% with a booking fee of £600 (which can be added to the mortgage rather than paying it up front). Admittedly not the cheapest, but it should save you money on what you're paying out just now and if they do as the A&L do, it'll just be a case of signing some papers.

I'm sure someone more informative may be able to give you better advice though. As you can see, I'm more of a lurker than a poster.

dwsjarcmcd

Debbie, whether you have one income or two has nothing to do with it, it is whether you can afford the loan based on the income you have and/or can afford it. Most lender's sites have a 'how much can you borrow' section which ask for very basic details. Fill in a few of these to get an idea of who will lend you what.

Ian_W

Phantom Flan Flinger wrote: Abbey have a 2 year fixed at 4.59% with a booking fee of £600 (which can be added to the mortgage rather than paying it up front).

Abbey is one of the companies who operate a ... "brand new customers only" ... policy in respect of many of their best rates, so you need to check if it is available to you. :mad: If it is, it's probably your best bet.
If not, do what dwsjarcmcd says.
Plenty of very good fixed rates about at the moment. Having one income won't be helped by the fact you're paying over the odds at 6.45%! Check out the links, brokers and mortgage finders on the Mortgage section of this site, I'm sure you'll find something more suitable and cheaper. A little work could save you a lot of money. :j
Good luck.

payless

although they do have a range of products for client retention ( usually not as good as new business rates) , and an in house (34£) swap would not usually involve financial underwriting, and depending on loan size can often work out nearly as good as a remortgage and less hassle

herbiesjp

Whether or not you will be able to move on the one icnome will depend on the loan amount needed and the income in question