Types of Mortgage and information about them

First Time Buyer:

A first-time buyer (FTB) is a term used in the local property markets, to describe a potential house buyer who has not previously owned a property. They are normally desirable to a seller (vendor) as they do not have to sell a property to purchase, and as such do not involve a housing chain. Many mortgage lenders create a specific range of attractive products to attract business from this sector of the mortgage market, with offers such as Free valuations, No arrangement fees or Cashback incentives.

Buy to Let:

A buy to let mortgage is a product specifically designed for borrowers who are going to rent out existing properties, purchasing a property to rent out. Buy to let mortgages are more difficult to obtain now than in previous years, with lenders typically demanding deposits of around 25% minimum of a rental property's value in return for a buy to let mortgage. Interest rates will also generally be more expensive than residential mortgages, and are not normally available on non- home- owners or First time buyers.

Self- build mortgages:

Building your own home is not for the faint-hearted, and on top of everything else you'll need to take out a special self-build mortgage to finance it. As you might expect, self-build mortgages work differently from house purchase mortgages. Rather than getting all the cash up front, your lender will release it in stages to fund the construction. These steps may include buying the site, right through to decorating the interior and everything in between. To make things more complicated, your lender may want to pay after each construction stage is successfully completed. Of course, most borrowers prefer payment in advance, as it puts less financial strain on them, but not all lenders will agree to it. It's another aspect of your planning that will need careful thinking and a thorough assessment of what each lender is prepared to offer. Because self-build mortgages are relatively risky for a lender you will require a deposit of at least 25% or site equity, and the most attractive deals require 40% or more security. Most lenders will also expect you to have all the relevant planning and building control approvals in place before you approach them, and to see details stamped plans. They will also expect you to employ professional NHBC registered builders, or to have a supervising architect over- seeing the construction, who can provide the required final certificate upon completion with the appropriate indemnity insurances as well. Due to the complexity of the construction process, not many lenders offer a mortgage product for this type of build so expert specialist mortgage advice which we provide will be required in most cases.

Re-mortgaging?

Quite simply, re-mortgaging is the term given to the process of switching onto a new mortgage deal-either with the same or a different lender. The most common time to re-mortgage is when the original fixed, discounted or tracker rate on your existing mortgage ends. At this point you will automatically be moved onto a long term variable rate-usually your lender's standard variable rate (SVR)-and historically this has tended to be higher than the rates available on new mortgage deals, which is the reason so many people switch at this point.