Mortgage Tips & Advice

In theory, getting a mortgage as a locum doctor should be easy. NHS staff shortages. Income of £220/day. Hours available over and above the normal working week. NHS staff shortages (did I already mention that?). What’s not to like about locums as a mortgage applicant?

On the surface, everything looks rosy. But dig a little deeper and you’ll find locum doctor income – and the structure thereof – can be labyrinthine. Continue reading about  Understanding Locum Doctor Income for Mortgage Purposes

Mortgage Strategy published a thought-provoking article last month. Its premise suggests that self-employed borrowers get a raw deal with mortgage lenders.

Harsh, you might say. But I agree with the content…to a point.

The majority of self-employed workers do still struggle to prove their mortgage affordability.

The problem is often that they try to get approved at their local or a High Street branch. But a generic advisor doesn’t understand (or can’t use) income listed as a net profit.

If the system’s broke, get a broker to fix it

So, what’s the answer? Do you forfeit the ability to buy your own home if you work for yourself?

Continue reading about  Determining relevant self-employed income and lending criteria

Self-employed mortgages have become harder to secure since the credit crunch. That’s no surprise; advisers see most non-PAYE applicants as higher risk. But there are self employed friendly lenders: lenders sympathetic to independents.

But how do you know who the best self-employed mortgage lenders are?

Continue reading about  Self-employed mortgage lenders

There are two ways you can apply for a mortgage when you have your first year of trading under your belt. A fast, savvy way or the slow and painful approach.

The fastest way for self-employed people is to speak to a specialist mortgage broker. Not just any broker, but one who knows what they’re doing. And that’s key, here.

Continue reading about  You can get a self-employed mortgage with just one year’s accounts

Securing mortgage finance on the High Street is far from straightforward for the self-employed. Few lenders assess self-employed income in the same way.

Each bank or building society has its own idea of risk. That risk invariably transfers to independent professionals when they set out to get a mortgage. Here are some of the danger signs.

The one trait lenders share is adopting their own unique self-employed assessment criteria.

An oxymoron that thought process may be (as well as a real pain), but it’s nonetheless true.

One lender may insist on seeing three years’ accounts. Another may just ask for one year’s accounts. Yet another can ask to see your contract, bank statements and recent history.

Continue reading about  How to evidence self-employed income to get competitive mortgages

Many contractors still find it hard to secure mortgages from High Street lenders. There are two classic reasons, both revolving around education:

• 1. they go direct to lenders they know, most of whom don’t have bespoke contractor mortgage policies;
• 2. branch/call centre staff at these institutions don’t understand how contractors and freelancers work.

Continue reading about  Two fatal mortgage judgement calls almost all contractors make

It’s no secret. If you’re self-employed and don’t work PAYE, you struggle with High Street mortgage lenders. But some lenders have thrown freelancers and contractors a mortgage lifeline. It’s based on their contract rate and extends beyond typical IT-based check-boxes. And, believe it or not, it even bypasses ill-educated branch staff.

Advisors in branch may even have told you that you only qualify for a self-employed mortgage. But mortgages for contractors don’t rely on payslips and accounts, as they’d have you believe.

Continue reading about  Are mortgages for contractors easier than for self-employed?

ANY professional contractor can now apply for a mortgage based on their daily contract rate* through The Halifax.

Before this strategic move by the UK’s largest lender, only contractors working in the IT sector would be entertained. Now, Halifax has lowered the barrier to entry by offering freelancers mortgages in any niche based on their contract rate.

Continue reading about  Mortgages for self-employed contractors just got a lot easier

We’ve all been there. Our decision to go self-employed seems to be justified. Business is booming. With it, the freedom we sought is within our grasp. But there’s still one niggle: rent!

Private rent can be the most frustrating aspect of contracting. Knowing that we’ve earned it by our own means, us contractors develop an uncommon affinity with our cash.

Continue reading about  Self employed mortgages are not beyond your reach