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| Many internet companies claiming to offer you mortgage advice and research, simply collect your information and immediately sell it on to another company. They tend to sell this information to a business near your home, which is why your postcode is requested.
When these companies talk of their financial teams or brokers, they are referring to the companies they have signed up to buy your details.
If you ask Platinum to assist you with your mortgage, your adviser will be a member of our staff. This also means we take full compliance responsibility should anything go wrong.
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We are a completely independent mortgage company, and can look at every available mortgage for you, no matter what your circumstances. Whether you are looking to remortgage, purchase a new home, release some of the money tied up in your property, or whether you have some bad debt, we can help.
We don’t charge you a fee, and you will get a dedicated adviser who will support and help you through the whole process. |
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| For your convenience and efficency we will deal with you by telelphone and email. Simply fill in the form below and we will contact you soon. |
Please Note : We offer a personal advice and recommendation service. We will therefore need to discuss your requirements with you. Please help us to help you by providing a contact telephone number.
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Independent Mortgage Advice |
We have included below some comprehensive information on how mortgages work.
Please ensure you understand the type of mortgage you require. The menu below will take you quickly to relevant parts of the text.
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Why should I use a Mortgage Broker? |
- We give you a free and professional search of all available mortgages.
- We do the searching for you saving you time and money
- We manage the whole mortgage process for you, talking to the lender on your behalf, so that you get less hassle
- Many of the deals we offer are not available via the high street, but are exclusive deals available only through brokers like ourselves
- We don’t charge you a fee.
- You will get a dedicated adviser who will support and help you through the whole process
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MORTGAGE TERMS EXPLAINED: TYPES OF MORTGAGES
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A Fixed Rate mortgage offers you a period of time when your mortgage payments will remain static or fixed, regardless of any movement in interest rates.
You might consider a Fixed Rate mortgage if you would find it easier to budget knowing exactly what your mortgage payments will be for the period, or if interest rates are likely to rise in the near future. However if interest rates drop below the level you are paying during the fixed rate period, you will either have to continue paying the higher rate or incur redemption penalties if you switch.
At the end of the fixed rate period, you will revert to the lender’s standard variable rate of interest, and your monthly payments may therefore increase. You are then free to switch to another lender who may offer you a more competitive rate, or talk to us and we will help you find the best deal.
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A Discount Rate mortgage offers you a period of time when your mortgage payments are based on an interest rate “discounted” below the standard variable rate.
Your mortgage payments will therefore be lower during this discount period than if you were on the lender’s standard rate, but you will revert to the standard variable rate when the discount period ends.
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A Tracker mortgage “tracks” one of the money market rates (such as the Bank of England base rate, or the LIBOR – London Interbank Offer Rate), plus or minus a certain margin (depending on the mortgage).
Your mortgage payments will therefore change as soon as the money market rates change, and can therefore go either up or down.
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Repayment Mortgages (Capital and Interest) |
The mortgage payments you make each month covers both the capital (the amount loaned) and the interest elements of the mortgage. Over the term of your mortgage (e.g. 25 years), the amount of capital borrowed and the interest payable steadily decreases. At the end of the term your mortgage will therefore be paid off.
It is usual to take out a life insurance policy to cover the repayment of the capital, should you die before the loan is repaid. This would probably be a “term” policy, which would finish with the final repayment of capital on the loan. The cheapest type of life insurance for a repayment mortgage is a decreasing term policy, where the amount which is paid out when you die (the sum assured) decreases over time, closely matching the outstanding balance on your mortgage.
We can advise you of the best policy to meet your needs.
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Interest Only Mortgages |
The monthly mortgage payments you make will only pay off the interest element of the loan. At the end of the mortgage term you will still be required to pay back the amount of capital you initially borrowed. Therefore to repay the capital element of the loan, you will need to consider alternative ways of ensuring your loan is paid off in full at the end of the mortgage, such as an ISA or endowment. We can discuss your options with you.
The most usual type of life insurance policy to cover an interest only mortgage is a level term policy. This means that the sum assured (or amount which is paid out when you die) always remains the same. This is because your outstanding mortgage balance will remain the same during the term of your mortgage if you have an interest only mortgage
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MORTGAGE BUYERS |
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Buying your very first home can be confusing!
We will find the best mortgage to suit your needs and explain it using language and methods that are easily understood.
We will then manage the mortgage process for you, working with your lender, to ensure smooth progress towards getting your mortgage offer.
In addition, you have professional advice on hand throughout the whole home-buying process.
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Whether you are looking to save money on your existing mortgage, or want to release some of the equity in your property for home improvements, we will be able to find the best mortgage to meet your requirements.
The vast majority of home-owners in the UK are paying too much for their mortgage. If you are paying your existing mortgage at the standard variable rate, you can usually save money by re-mortgaging.
We aim to give an impartial view of a client’s mortgage requirement and we will always recommend the most appropriate mortgage for the client, even if that mortgage is not available through us!
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Many people are deciding to become landlords.
Also with the current high property prices, large numbers of people are renting because they can’t afford to buy their own home. Taking advantage of this, there has also been an increase in the number of people investing in properties to rent out.
Most lenders will advance up to 85% of the purchase price, however buy to let mortgages work very differently from traditional residential mortgages.
Buy to let mortgages are usually based on the expected rental income of the property. This rental income must at least cover the mortgage payment, and some lenders require the rental income to be a certain percentage more than the mortgage payment.
Once you have become a landlord, many professional letting agencies exist to find the tenant and manage the property on your behalf for a small percentage.
And if you find you enjoy being a landlord, many lenders will allow you to build up a portfolio of properties up to a value of £1 million!
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We also offer Let-to-Buy mortgages which allow you to rent out your current property and buy another one to live in!
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If you are self-employed or unable to prove your income, some lenders offer self-certification mortgages.
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Bad Credit Mortgages/ Adverse Credit Mortgages: |
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Some borrowers can find themselves in financial difficulties, with a poor credit history. This can be caused by mortgage arrears and missed payments, mortgage defaults, County Court Judgements or CCJs, Individual Voluntary Arrangements or IVA, bankruptcy or repossessions.
Many mortgage lenders will lend to people who have a poor credit score, and these are usually known as sub-prime mortgages.
The maximum mortgage available and the interest rates charged will depend on the degree of debt you are in, but we will always recommend the best mortgage for our clients, even if that mortgage is not done through us.
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We can help with most “unusual” mortgages – from large advances, to self builds, to second homes, to flats, to ex-council right-to-buys.
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MORTGAGE FEES |
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These are charged by the lender usually to cover their administration costs in setting up your mortgage. They are sometimes also called Booking Fees, and these fees can usually be added to your mortgage so that you don’t have to pay them up-front.
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All brokers will normally receive a commission payment direct from the mortgage lender. This is built into the mortgage costs, and therefore means that you won’t be paying any more by going through a broker, than you would by going direct to the lender.
Some brokers charge clients an additional fee. At Platinum, we do not believe that clients should be charged such a fee, and so our service to you is free.
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Redemption penalties are penalties that lenders sometimes charge if you decide to switch or pay off your mortgage early. Beware of mortgage deals that have an initial attractive discount or fixed rate but that require you to stay with the lender beyond that initial discount period.
The rate will normally then revert to the lender’s standard variable rate and there may be severe financial penalties if you try to move your mortgage during this time. If possible, always look for a mortgage which has the same “tie-in” period as the term of the special rate.
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Your mortgage lender will require you to pay for their valuation survey before making you a mortgage offer. The purpose of this valuation survey is to make sure that the property is worth at least what they are going to lend you. It is not aimed at telling you whether the property has any defects such as damp, or intended to give you an indication of the condition of the property.
You should always get your own survey carried out as well by a fully qualified surveyor. Most lenders will allow you to have this carried out at the same time as the valuation report, so saving you money.
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Your solicitor or legal adviser will charge you for both the sale and purchase of a property. Legal fees usually include:
- Land Registry Fees: a once-only charge made by your solicitor who carried out the registration work on your behalf.
- Local Authority Search: this procedure checks whether any official plans, decisions or restrictions affect the property you intend to buy.
- Bankruptcy Search: your solicitor will undertake a bankruptcy search on you and your partner immediately prior to completion on behalf of the lender.
- Stamp Duty: Stamp Duty is a tax levied by the Government applicable to all property transactions where the value of the transfer exceeds £120,000. The rates that currently apply are 1% of the purchase price from £120,000 to £250,000, 3% of the purchase price from £250,001 to £500,000 and 4% when the price exceeds £500,000.
- Telegraphic Transfer Costs: your mortgage funds will be usually be transferred from the lender to your solicitor by telegraphic transfer, and you will be charged for this.
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Mortgage Indemnity Guarantee (MIG): |
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Also known as a Higher Lending Charge (HLC). If your new mortgage is for more than a certain percentage of the actual value of the property (usually 90% or more), the lender may require you to take out a Mortgage Indemnity insurance policy. This protects the lender in the event that you cannot continue to live in the property. It is a once-only premium based on the amount that your mortgage exceeds that percentage (which varies depending on lender).
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OTHER MORTGAGE RELATED ISSUES |
Mortgage Payment Protection: |
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You should protect your mortgage payments in the event of sickness, accident or unemployment, as your home may be at risk if you cannot keep up your mortgage repayments. We shall advise you on the most appropriate means of protecting your payments.
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Mortgages usually quote an interest rate, with an APR figure quoted after it. The Government introduced the concept of APR (Annual Percentage Rate of Change) so that people could easily compare differing nominal rates of interest. The APR represents the total cost of borrowing over the total term of the loan, and takes into account all the added costs such as arrangement fees, valuation fees, etc.
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Life Insurance & Critical Illness Insurance: |
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It is usual to take out a life insurance policy to cover the repayment of your mortgage, should you die before the loan is repaid.
If affordable, you should consider cover against any insurable critical illness by taking out Critical Illness Insurance.
The amount of your life insurance should repay your entire mortgage debt in the event that you die or suffer a serious illness. This is because any surviving partner will still be liable for meeting the monthly mortgage payments in the event of one of you dying, and this may therefore cause them further hardship and problems.
- There are two main types of mortgage related life insurance:
- Decreasing Term Life Insurance, where the sum assured (amount paid out if you die) decreases over the term of the policy
- Level Term Life Insurance, where the sum assured remains level over the term of the policy.
We can advise you on the best type of cover to meet your needs.
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BAD CREDIT / ADVERSE CREDIT / SUB-PRIME MORTGAGE TERMS |
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This is a general term for people with a poor credit history or with credit problems.
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Arrears are when mortgage or secured loan payments are missed, and are not made by the due date. Many mortgage lenders will consider your application, depending on the number of arrears in the last 12 months.
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This occurs when a person or a company is declared legally insolvent, meaning that they cannot meet their financial commitments.
A bankruptcy discharge can happen as quickly as 12 months after being declared bankrupt, but the bankruptcy will stay on your credit rating record for a period of up to six years. There are still some lenders who may consider you in such circumstances.
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CCJ / County Court Judgement: |
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A CCJ is a judgment given by a county court for non payment of an unsecured debt. If a judgment is settled in full within 30 days of the date of the judgment, it will not appear in the credit register.
If the CCJ is paid after that date, the judgment will appear in the register but will be shown as being satisfied.
CCJs will remain on your credit file for a number of years. Again, there are lenders who will take on your application if you have CCJs.
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Default is the status of an account when four or more months payments are missed. If the applicant can be found, a CCJ will usually be issued against them.
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Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA): |
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An IVA is a repayment plan that has been agreed with your creditors. It will usually involve them agreeing to you repaying them a lower monthly figure than they are due. This helps stop Bankruptcy proceedings and allows you to continue earning and paying your commitments. Many lenders will consider your application if you have IVAs.
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This is when a mortgage lender takes possession of a property because payments have been missed, and negotiations between the mortgagor & mortgagee have broken down.
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This website is owned and operated by Platinum Financial Consulting
Authorised by The Financial Services Authority
Your Home is at risk if you fail to keep up payments on a mortgage or other loan secured on it
Written quotations available on request |
ABOUT US | CUSTOMER PROMISE | INITIAL DISCLOSURE | TERMS & CONDITIONS | PRIVACY POLICY | CONTACT US
Platinum Financial Consulting
The Old School House, East End Road
Bradwell-on-Sea, Essex, CM0 7PY
Telephone : 08450 55 95 65 Fax : 0871 277 1422 Email : info@platinumifa.co.uk
www.platinumifa.co.uk
Bad Credit Problem Mortgages | Independent Mortgage Advice
FSA Registration Number : 227014
Independent Mortgage Advice |
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