How to secure a mortgage

Your step-by-step guide to buying a house

Our eight-step home buyer’s journey is designed to guide you through the process and answer some of the questions you may have. You can also email us with any questions or call us free of charge on 0800 169 9661.

We continue our eight-step journey with everything you need to know about securing the mortgage that’s right for you.

Step three: Securing a mortgage

Do your research. There are two routes when looking for the right mortgage. You can either go direct to a high street bank or building society, or you can go through a broker or financial advisor. Once again, there are advantages and disadvantages to both options.

Financial advisors may be better placed to provideyou with an independent view of the whole lending market, but it may take some time to identify which lender has the best product for you.

If you choosea mortgage with a high street bank or building society, you’ll generally be offered one of its in-house products which may limit your ability to obtain the best rates. However, the advantage of using a high street bank or building society is that your lender should be able to process your application quickly, particularly if you’re already a customer witha history of transactions.

But which mortgage is right for you?

Fixed Rate
Interest Only
Standard Variable Plan
Tracker
Discount Rate

And there are some other things to be aware of:

Arrangement Fees
Early Redemption Charges
‘Payment Shock’

‘Payment Shock’

Payment Shock can occur for several reasons: The expiration of an initial or temporary start interest rate (sometimes known as a ‘teaser rate’)

The end of a fixed interest rate period
The end of an interest-only payment period
An increase in the fully indexed interest rate on an adjustable-rate mortgage
The re-casting of a payment option on an adjustable-rate mortgage

To continue your home buyer’s journey, read step four: Arranging a valuation and a survey.