Mortgage brokers & is now a good time?

[Ariosa]

Hi,

I'm thinking of moving forward with a first time mortgage.

Can you suggest any good brokers you've used? What should I be careful of?
I've had a few discussions with a couple of brokers but not sure if they're sourcing the best products for me.
I'm going for 400K with at least 10% deposit (I know, low). What interest rates should I be happy with (2 years fixed initially) ?

Also, is now a good time or should I wait more?

Thanks!

[WTFH]

Hi,

I'm thinking of moving forward with a first time mortgage.

Congratulations.

What should I be careful of?

Mortgage advice from people who don't understand how contractors work

not sure if they're sourcing the best products for me.

If you think there are better options and that you will get approval for it, then don't use that particular broker.

10% deposit (I know, low).

Get a bigger deposit, that will open up the options for you - also consider going for a lower cost house, so you're not stretching yourself as much.

What interest rates should I be happy with (2 years fixed initially) ?

In reality, you've got a low deposit, you're a contractor, the question is: What will they offer you?

Also, is now a good time or should I wait more?

If you can save more for a deposit, then wait. A 25% will give you a bigger option of lenders and better interest rates.
Where will house prices go over the next few months? Who knows.
It depends on where you are buying and what you are buying

[ladymuck]

CMME and Freelancer Financials specialise in the contractor space. Going direct, I believe Halifax are contractor friendly and there's another one but the name escapes me.

A low deposit will not get you the best deal but, if that's all you've got, then you'll have to suck it up and try to over pay initially then move onto a better deal in a couple of years.

I wouldn't move until the new year. Things are heading down but I reckon they've got a way to go yet. That gives you an extra 6 months to top up your deposit.

YMMV IANAP

[GhostofTarbera]

Hi,

I'm thinking of moving forward with a first time mortgage.

Can you suggest any good brokers you've used? What should I be careful of?
I've had a few discussions with a couple of brokers but not sure if they're sourcing the best products for me.
I'm going for 400K with at least 10% deposit (I know, low). What interest rates should I be happy with (2 years fixed initially) ?

Also, is now a good time or should I wait more?

Thanks!

Nice one

Get in now before prices drop 25% in the biggest resession in history

In 2032 you will be in profit


Sent from my iPhone using Contractor UK Forum

[Scratch It]

My experience:

CMME: initial consultation good but then my advisor became very difficult to get hold of. Eventually contacted Power Mortgages and Freelancer Financials,

Power Mortgages: Who I eventually went with - Ben helps you think strategically about the right product for you - discount if you mention CUK.

Freelancer Financials: Called me back a day after Ben from Power Mortgages - came across very professional, though had already progressed by this point.

[Maslins]

If you've got 2+ years trading history for your company, then that should open up the market to all the main providers (eg high street banks/other big name lenders). If you don't, especially if you don't even have 1 year complete trading history, then you'd be limited to the specialist/niche lenders. Be warned their rates will almost certainly be higher, compensating for the fact they'll get involved with what are deemed riskier lending.

As others have suggested (and from a personal rather than professional perspective), is now really a good time to buy? Nobody knows for sure what the future will hold, but does seem government action over the last 2 months has propped up the economy. This cannot continue indefinitely. When it stops, potentially that will be when the economic pain really hits (eg possible house price falls etc). Even if there isn't a crash, whilst I can imagine there may be a very short term flurry of buying activity (as those who haven't been able to move for the last couple of months suddenly can), I can't see house prices rocketing upwards over the next couple of years. Combine that with your modest deposit, and personally I think holding fire and building up your savings for larger deposit seems more sensible.

[ladymuck]

If you've got 2+ years trading history for your company, then that should open up the market to all the main providers (eg high street banks/other big name lenders). If you don't, especially if you don't even have 1 year complete trading history, then you'd be limited to the specialist/niche lenders. Be warned their rates will almost certainly be higher, compensating for the fact they'll get involved with what are deemed riskier lending.

As others have suggested (and from a personal rather than professional perspective), is now really a good time to buy? Nobody knows for sure what the future will hold, but does seem government action over the last 2 months has propped up the economy. This cannot continue indefinitely. When it stops, potentially that will be when the economic pain really hits (eg possible house price falls etc). Even if there isn't a crash, whilst I can imagine there may be a very short term flurry of buying activity (as those who haven't been able to move for the last couple of months suddenly can), I can't see house prices rocketing upwards over the next couple of years. Combine that with your modest deposit, and personally I think holding fire and building up your savings for larger deposit seems more sensible.

My other concern (as I too am looking) is that when said economic pain starts to pinch, the mortgage lenders will quickly tighten up their lending criteria. As AIP's don't last much more than 3-6 months, you kind of have to find a sweet spot of getting the right deal, at the right time, and hoping it isn't withdrawn when the lenders get the collywobbles.

[WTFH]

There's a lot of property coming on the market - due to death, sales falling through, or people wanting to start again somewhere new.
The region we've been looking at, before pandemic, you'd get maybe 2 pages of new properties every day on right move in our budget. It's a big area - a 30 mile radius of a particular town.
During the pandemic, you'd be lucky to see more than half a dozen new houses on page 1.
Yesterday we had 5 pages of new properties.

That would imply it's a buyer's market.
But does it mean prices are going to crash? If so, by how much?
And will it be a straight 25% across the board, or will location and type of property have an impact?

I guess the biggest piece of advice I would give is: don't buy now for a short-term investment.
Next would be: If you're getting a mortgage, get the longest fix rate you can, and one that you can over-pay.

A 2 year fix at 1.5%, when you come out of that, the economy may not have picked up but the interest rates probably will have, so you get your next "deal" at 3.5%. A 5 year fix at 2% might be a better option. You need to consider what you can afford, and how far you can stretch if rates go up at the end of your deal.

[jamesbrown]

There's a lot of property coming on the market - due to death, sales falling through, or people wanting to start again somewhere new.
The region we've been looking at, before pandemic, you'd get maybe 2 pages of new properties every day on right move in our budget. It's a big area - a 30 mile radius of a particular town.
During the pandemic, you'd be lucky to see more than half a dozen new houses on page 1.
Yesterday we had 5 pages of new properties.

That would imply it's a buyer's market.
But does it mean prices are going to crash? If so, by how much?
And will it be a straight 25% across the board, or will location and type of property have an impact?

I guess the biggest piece of advice I would give is: don't buy now for a short-term investment.
Next would be: If you're getting a mortgage, get the longest fix rate you can, and one that you can over-pay.

A 2 year fix at 1.5%, when you come out of that, the economy may not have picked up but the interest rates probably will have, so you get your next "deal" at 3.5%. A 5 year fix at 2% might be a better option. You need to consider what you can afford, and how far you can stretch if rates go up at the end of your deal.

Seeing the same thing here (south).

Prices are a very mixed bag. There are plenty that would represent all time high selling prices for that type of property/location. However, there are others with dramatic drops, below recent sale prices. These are mostly student BTLs, which is not overly surprising (probably quite leveraged, fearing the worst both w/r to prices and the impact of covid on universities). Price discovery will take a while. I would highly recommend waiting a few months in this market. It will take a while for sellers to accept, en masse, that their properties are not worth what they were a few weeks ago.

[ladymuck]

I'm getting occasional alerts of price drops in my target area but I agree it will take a little while to truly take a turn. Once the CJRS and other free money schemes start shutting down, I give it a couple of months and the wobbles will start.