A Mortgage Lender, such as a Bank or Building Society will loan you an amount of money towards the purchase of a property, and you repay the loan with interest over a pre-determined period of time, usually (but not necessarily) 25 years.

If you don't pay back the loan as agreed the lender can take possession of the property and sell it to repay the loan.

The loan is divided into the capital (i.e. the amount of money you borrowed to buy your property) and the interest (i.e. the amount the mortgage lender charges for lending you the money - which is why they're in business).

You'll see hundreds of different names for mortgages. Ignore them. They all boil down to the two main types of mortgage,

"Repayment mortgages"

and

"Interest only mortgages".

What makes mortgages seem complex is the different variations you get on the two basic types.

Actually there is a new third type; the current account mortgage also referred to as an “Offset” mortgage (please see below).

Speak to Westcroft Mortgage Services and we will be more that happy to explain all the in’s and out’s of varying mortgages.

If you are in the very fortunate position to be able to buy a property outright in cash, then you will not need a mortgage. But for most of us, this is extremely unlikely. It would take years to be able to save enough money, and even then the effect of inflation would probably mean that the purchase price would go up well beyond our means. This is where a Mortgage comes in. A Mortgage enables you to borrow the money now to pay for a property, on the understanding that you make regular (normally monthly) payments to the Mortgage loan.

A Mortgage Lender will lend you money towards the purchase price of your property? You then pay back the loan & interest over a pre-determined period of time.
There are two main methods of paying back a mortgage loan.
1) Capital and Interest
You repay an amount of money back to the lender (normally monthly), which comprises of an amount of interest and an amount of capital towards the debt. Providing all payments are made to the lender on time, this is the only method which guarantees your mortgage will be repaid.
2) Interest only
you repay an amount of money back to the lender (normally monthly) which is comprised of just interest. At the end of the pre-determined period, you then repay the debt in full. A suitable investment product or cash sum will be required to ensure that the capital can be repaid at the end of the mortgage term.

How much you can borrow varies between Mortgage Lenders. It is generally dependent upon your, and your partners earnings, and can sometimes be affected by how much (if any) deposit you have available. Most experts generally agree that the first stage of a house purchase should be finding out how much you can borrow and the costs involved in the transaction. By completing our Mortgage Enquiry Form we will be able to tell you whether we believe you will be able to qualify for a mortgage, and if so, how much you can borrow.

You will need to contact us so we may establish your needs and locate the right mortgage to suit your requirements.

More often than not there will be a lender who will be prepared to lend money to clients who have a CCJ (County Court Judgement), Default and missed payments. You will need to provide us with more information at which point we will search the market for the best provider.

Remortgaging is not about buying a new home but switching your mortgage to another deal to lower your repayment amounts and save money or raising capital against your home.

Conveyancing is the legal work involved in buying and selling a house. It would normally be done either by a solicitor or a licensed conveyancer. As a buyer you need to have one or the other for the sellers/vendors Estate Agent to contact immediately your offer is accepted so try to have one lined up before you get to this stage.

This is a conditional offer made by a mortgage lender that - provided the information you give them is correct - they will "in principle" give you the loan you have discussed with them.

It's very useful to have one before you even start looking for a house to give you the edge over any competition. Having one means you should be able get the actual mortgage quicker when the race to buy your chosen home begins. However, they generally have an expiry on them and vary between companies (28 days to 90 days).

Knowing what you can afford will help you narrow your search. You can get this offer in writing to show to Estate Agents and sellers who will see you as a serious prospect and not a timewaster.

To get a mortgage in principle you need to contact Westcroft Mortgage Services and we will search the market for the best deal to suit your requirements.

The new mortgage rules mean the brokers now have to automatically give you more information.

The Initial Disclosure Document gives you the key facts in a series of different sections:

1. The firm must tell you that the Financial Services Authority (FSA) regulates financial services.

2. It must explain whose mortgages the firm offers.

3. It must reveal what service the firm will provide.

4. It must state what you will have to pay for the service, if any.

5. It must explain whether the firm will refund a fee in any circumstances.

6. It must state who regulates the company.

7. What there permitted business is e.g. Advising and arranging regulated mortgage contracts and arranging regulated insurance policies.

8. Explain what you should do if you wanted to complain.

9. Are they covered by a compensation scheme.

Westcroft Mortgage Services Ltd Initial Disclosure Document

The other major document you should get from your mortgage broker is the Key Facts Illustration (KFI).

When recommending a mortgage to you, the Mortgage Broker has to outline why they are recommending this - using the Key Facts Illustration (KFI). The KFI document will include detailed information about the recommended mortgage, tell you about the level of service they are offering, and how much their fee or any commission will be.

For £2 you can get details of the credit held on your files by the credit reference agencies Experian and Equifax as these are the main two but there are others that share information.

If the information on your file is wrong, or if you would like to add a note of explanation, either of them will add an agreed statement to your file.

To obtain a credit report you will need to send a cheque/postal order to the relevant addresses below. Alternatively, further details may be found online at www.equifax.co.uk or www.experian.co.uk

* Westcroft Mortgage Services Ltd cannot be held responsible for the content of external websites.

Experian, PO Box 8000, Nottingham NG1 5GX

Equifax Europe, Department 1E, PO Box 3001, Glasgow G81 2DT

In order to make it easier for people to compare differing rates of interest, the Government introduced the concept of the APR which is an abbreviation for the phrase "Annual Percentage Rate ".

The APR represents the total cost of credit and takes into account all the added costs such as valuation fees, lender's conveyancing charges etc which are not included in the nominal rate of interest. Until April 2000 it was possible for different organisations to calculate APRs in various ways. The government has now standardised the practice of calculation so that the APR reflects the cost of borrowing over the total term of the loan and inclusive of any concessionary rates that may be applicable in the early stages.

On 31 October 2004 the Financial Services Authority (FSA), a governmental body, took over the regulation of the retail market, this covers Banks, Building Societies, Independent Financial Advisers/Brokers and Lenders. The regulation was introduced to regulate the advice and sales process and to offer a clear understanding to the client of what to expect when looking for a mortgage, however, certain types of commercial mortgages are not covered by this regulation.

Westcroft Mortgage Services will search the whole market for the best mortgage to suit your requirements.

(Link to info@westcroftmortgages.co.uk to be able to email a question) Call back system.