beginners guide to mortgages and remortgages
Getting a mortgage to buy a property (or a remortgage to get a
better deal on existing property) is not easy. Mortgaging is a
complex process and will always involve some professional
services and advice.
At a minimum you will require a solicitor to handle
conveyancing and title of the property, you may also use a
mortgage broker or advisor and even perhaps a property
consultant and/or surveyor (in addition to the surveyor acting
on behalf of mortgage lender).
For some, particularly first time buyers, dealing with all these
"experts" can seem daunting. So lets examine some of the basic
issues regarding mortgages and remortgages to better prepare you.
A mortgage is simply a "home loan", basically a type of secured
loan using the property as security for the lender. To protect
themselves lenders will need to know how much property is worth
just in case they have to sell it to recover the mortgage (i.e.
if you fail to make mortgage repayments), to establish rough
property value lenders will instruct a home valuation survey.
Using the valuation recieved from survey report lenders can
establish the loan to value (LTV) they are willing to offer.
Loan to value is a basically the percentage of the value of the
property up to which they are prepared to lend, for example, if
a property was valued at