Search Results

October was our record breaking month in terms of amount of mortgage applications applied for and offered. Aga has worked very hard and it has reflected in her taking customer bookings for 2 weeks in advance now! Tom has been crazy busy making sure our customers feel safe financially and writing record number of insurance and wills! We work non stop and get results we want to see for our clients. The busy trend on housing market will continue as market is to remain open and house valuations and viewings are still possible in lockdown

Housing market is still very active and there are many customers who, despite the very unprecedented times, decide to move house or buy their first home. Some of us may have realised during lockdown that they need more space, so they want to buy a bigger house. Others, who have enough deposit saved up, may have decided to take the first step now as it is hard to predict what market will be like in the coming months. What questions should you ask the sellers or estate agents that will be important for your mortgage and purchase process? Here’s a list of a few questions you might ask: - Why is the house for sale and have its owners (vendors) already moved out or are they also in the process of buying (in a chain)? - Are the sellers ready to negotiate on price? – lucky if you are doing a viewing with the owners so you can ask them direct - How old is the property? - Is it a freehold or a leasehold property? - If it is a leasehold, how long lease is left in years? - Is this property of standard construction? If non-standard – what type is it? - How long has this house been for sale now? Above are just a few questions which may be crucial in the buying process. Remember, the best thing you could do, is to speak to an independent mortgage broker who will also make sure you are mortgage assessed and so when you are asked questions about your capacity for mortgage, you will also have all your answers and documents ready. If you have any questions, contact us for a free initial chat.

More and more of us think of extra income sources and investing in properties might be the right way to boost income or provide yourself with a retirement income or asset. We often meet customers who are a bit unsure and who think it is very difficult to start. Although, as with any other business, there are risks related to an investment, let’s focus on the positives and answer some of frequently asked questions! First of all how big deposit does one need to buy a house to let? Typically, around 25% of purchase price needs to be presented as a deposit. It can be your savings, a gift or it can be capital raised on remortgage from another property, for example your residential home. Secondly, do I need to earn certain income to get a buy to let mortgage? Yes, some lenders do require that you earn income of ca. £25k annual income however others don’t! There are so many lenders and so many options that you had better speak to a mortgage broker is you want to become a landlord sooner rather than later. Should I consider interest only or capital repayment type of mortgage? It depends on your investment strategy and long-term plan. Both options are possible but it will have to be well thought through. The above are just a couple of questions being asked and there is loads more! Although a mortgage broker cannot dictate your investment strategy, we can help you by showing you options and assessing your circumstances. Contact us for more information if you would like to become a landlord/landlady. GRN Financial Services Limited is an appointed representative of PRIMIS Mortgage Network. PRIMIS Mortgage Network is a trading style of Personal Touch Financial Services Ltd which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority Our fees and charges vary depending on the Services we provide to you. We typically charge a fee of £350. Some of products and services may not be regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. YOUR HOME MAY BE REPOSSESSED IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP REPAYMENTS ON YOUR MORTGAGE

When you are buying a house and putting a deposit for the purchase, source of funds for deposit must first be evidenced. This is due to Anti Money Laundering Regulations (AML) as the lender must be sure that you are using legal source of funding towards the purchase. Usually, most common source of deposit is own savings which can be easily evidenced by bank or savings account statements, typically, from the last few months but there is no limit as to how many months back you will be asked to provide. Second most common source of deposit used for mortgage is a gift. It can be one from a close blood relative, e.g. a parent or a sibling, but some lenders would also accept gifts from others who are not so closely related. In case of a gift, a donor must also provide their bank statements to evidence that they legally owned the money and they need to provide a form of ID as well as a letter stating this is a true gift, not a loan and that they do not expect any interest in the property for this. There may be other sources of deposit like capital raised on another property, inheritance money or very rarely, a loan which can be accepted by only one or two lenders. Source of deposit needs to be evidenced to a broker, solicitor and a lender. If you have any questions about his or any other aspect of a mortgage or house buying process, feel free to contact us.

A customer contacted us to say they took a loan half way through their mortgage application😱….This nearly gave us a heart attack as it might have ruined the whole plan of a successful so far case! So much preparation, hours of work, customer’s hopes they would soon be in new home – all might have come to nothing! Why? Any material change that happens in between a mortgage offer and the moment you collect your keys to new home must be reported to the lender ❗️ Lender reserves the right to do pre-completion credit checks and any such thing as a new loan or car finance or outstanding balance on credit card can be detected, which may mean your mortgage may not be affordable any longer… This is one of the things you shouldn’t do once you have mortgage agreed – DO NOT TAKE A NEW LOAN!!! What else could jeopardise the whole home buying plan? 📌Change of a job 📌Reducing your working hours 📌Getting into arrears or having a CCJ registered There is, however, one thing you SHOULD ALWAYS DO…it is to speak to a mortgage broker first before you do anything.👩‍💻🧑‍💼 Should you have any questions about a mortgage, feel free to speak to us. We are here to help. www.grnfinancialservices.co.uk #GRNFinancialServices

As getting a mortgage has become a bit challenging in recent times, mainly due to the impact that Covid-19 has had on people’s jobs and finances, if you are lucky enough to be in a position to buy, we can help you make your dream a reality. Over the last couple of weeks, we have had local Leek residents in the office who asked for help because their bank or building society turned out to not be very helpful when it comes to getting a mortgage. We have met a first time landlord investing locally, a pensioner willing to purchase with another family member, a couple of first time buyers and also someone who has lived in a council house and looking to buy it. The value of using a local mortgage broker in Leek means that, instead of spending your time going from lender to lender and checking whether you fit their criteria, you come to speak to us and we will do an extensive research for you saving all the hassle and potential disappointment, making sure we match your situation to the right lender. Even if you only plan to buy in future, we can sit down with you to work out the best strategy to get you mortgage ready so you can select from a variety of lenders when you have found your dream home and want to make an offer. If you are looking for a Leek Mortgage Broker, why don’t you make an appointment to see our adviser who will explain all the ins and outs.

Did you know you might be able to buy a house at a discount and without even any deposit?! How good is that?! If you are buying a house from the council or a housing association, you qualify for a DISCOUNT on the market value of the property. MANY LENDERS TREAT THIS DISCOUNT AS DEPOSIT so you don’t need any more savings to buy. Of course, you may still wish to add on to the purchase and take a smaller mortgage. Always check with a qualified mortgage adviser as not all lenders are the same and some may still ask you to have a deposit. How much discount can you get then? Discount levels are different by the length of tenancy, type of property and region. For example, after 3 years of living in a #councilhouse, you can get 35% discount of the market value of the property. When you have lived in the house for 5 years, this discount then goes up by 1% with every year up to a maximum of 70% discount. To calculate your discount eligibility, use free calculator tool: https://righttobuy.gov.uk/right-to-buy-calculator/ If you are buying from the Housing Association, the discount you could get is between £9,000 and £16,000 of the price of your property. For any questions on #mortgage for #righttobuy or #righttoacquire, feel free to contact us: www.grnfinancialservices.co.uk

Child Trust Fund programme was launched 15 years ago for every child born between September 1, 2002 and January 31, 2011. Children were offered a voucher worth £250 by the Government. In some cases, another payment of £250 was made if the child was born between September 1, 2009 and July 31, 2010. Poorer families received £500 in each case. Government would set up a stakeholder account on child’s behalf where parents could also top up with own payments. As the accounts will now be maturing, many families may not realise, or may have forgotten, that their children might be eligible for a pay out! If your child is 18, they can find details of their fund by visiting: https://gov.uk/child-trust-funds/ find-a-child-trust-fund The Share Foundation charity can help locate your child’s fund if they are over 16. At the age of 18, your child can either request a pay out or they might move the money to another saving account, for example an ISA account.

Have your home buying plans been affected by Covid 19? Do you have too little deposit to buy? There are still options you might want to explore! Pre Covid 19 lenders would lend to home buyers who had as little as 5% deposit and there was generally no issue with getting these mortgages. But these things have since changed and now, to have a choice of lenders and a decent interest rate, buyers need 15% or even more as a deposit. There are rare deals for 10% and nearly no 5% ones so what can buyers do to still be able to get their dream home? There are Government schemes which might help and, as long as you understand fully the ins and outs, you might still be able to move home. Shared Ownership scheme, for instance, allows buyers to purchase between 25% and 75% of the house value and pay rent for the rest. The good thing is that deposit needed is calculated based on the share being bought so if someone is buying a 50% of a property worth £200k as an example, they will only need deposit based on £100k (50% of £200k). This way, the deposit you have saved up may actually be sufficient for you to buy the house. You would still need to pass the financial assessment and be able to afford both mortgage payment and rent, but at least you would not need to pay for the whole house at once. You can then buy the rest of house shares in future. Should you feel you would like to get more information about this scheme, do get in touch and our adviser will explain

Credit score check is a crucial element of house buying process. A good mortgage broker should check credit report prior to submitting a mortgage application as this document can help select the right lender and avoid hurdles in a house buying process. The times we face currently might create extra financial pressures on many of us. Whether you are employed or self-employed you may be challenged by loss of income, you may struggle to meet your credit commitments, which, as a result, may damage your credit score. Your health is also never guaranteed so being unable to work due to illness may force you to take decisions that will affect your credit score and your ability to be able to re-mortgage or buy a house in future. If you have never heard of credit score protection, we encourage you to speak to us to see what is available that might prevent you from drastically affecting your credit score during times when you won’t be able to work due to health reasons. We now offer online video consultations to answer any questions you might have

The Government has come up with a scheme for both home owners and landlords that will help make properties energy efficient. The Green Homes Grants will provide homeowners with vouchers to install one or more of the following: ✅solid wall, under-floor, cavity wall or roof insulation ✅air source or ground source heat pump ✅solar thermal In addition, households may also be able to use their voucher for further energy saving measures. These include one or more of the following: ✅double or triple glazing/secondary glazing, when replacing single glazing ✅upgrading to energy efficient doors ✅hot water tank/appliance tank thermostats/heating controls Government has also announced that home owners will be able to obtain suitable advice on home energy efficiency from Simple Energy Advice (SEA) service. This service will offer guidance what home improvements may be eligible for grants. Households will be also able to check a list of approved TrustMark and MCS registered tradespeople in their local area whom they could engage to do the work. Once the works are agreed, vouchers will start to be issued from the end of September. For more information, please see the link: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/906544/ghg-additional-information.pdf?fbclid=IwAR16AMMGuR3xCwm1A4DlzlIT6sUWm7gn3Bst0snI935Bp7otG8Z9r6k7EpY

Covid-19 has really shaken all aspects of our life and taking a mortgage may feel like walking through maze these days! You may easily get lost looking at options and frequently changing lenders' criteria...😕 The rules on mortgages keep changing daily whether it be employment assessment or affordability criteria, the way lenders look at self-employed income, changing interest rates, different rules on deposit amounts and sources that are acceptable - it is really hard to keep up with all this when you are on your own. The last thing you want it to waste your time and nerves and risk being declined by the lender. But don't worry, we can minimise the risk and eliminate all the stress and frustration by finding the most suitable deal for you.🧐 We speak to lenders daily and get their updates so you will have the peace of mind and enjoy the excitement of your new home👨‍👩‍👧‍👦🏡 Speak to us - we will take you step by step on your home ownership journey.