Mortgages For First Time Buyers
Buying a home for the first time is a big step. You’ll need at least a 5% deposit to put towards the cost of the property plus enough money to cover other costs such as the property valuation, solicitors, stamp duty and other fees if applicable. You will also need to know that you can afford the monthly payments of both the mortgage and the house, and lenders will check this and your income out thoroughly before they agree to lend to you.
There are some government backed schemes aimed at giving first time buyers a helping hand;
Help to Buy comes in 2 forms and for both you need a 5% deposit of your own. One is an equity loan which gives an interest free loan for the first 5 years of up to 20% of the purchase price but it only applies to new-build property. The second is a mortgage guarantee which gives the lender a guarantee of up to 15% of the mortgage if the lender has to repossess and sell the property and the amount that it is then sold for isn’t enough to repay the mortgage. There are also Shared Ownership Schemes where you buy a share of the home and rent the remainder from a housing association, or Shared Equity Schemes where you buy part of the home and have a loan for the rest which is paid off when you sell the property.
Some lenders also have schemes where parents/guardians/close relatives can either join in the mortgage with you, provide a guarantee or deposit savings as additional security.
We understand that it is difficult to find your way around what lenders require, the rules that they have and the schemes and the mortgages that they offer-this is where we come in to understand what you need and then guide you through to make sure that you get to your goal of owning your own home.
Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.