The government’s Help to Buy scheme has enabled 134,558 people to buy their own home, of which approximately 80% were first-time buyers. *
This has sparked many high street and specialist lenders to release very competitively priced low-interest rates for first-time buyers with only a 5% deposit required. Some lenders will even accept builder’s cashback incentives on new build homes as a contribution towards your deposit.
Due to the rising cost of living, it can be difficult for first-time buyers to save up a large deposit. In a bid to help people onto the property ladder, a handful of lenders will now offer 95% loan to value mortgages. Interest rates on these mortgages are higher than those offered to customers who only require a 60% mortgage, however, we can help you to shop around to get the best deal.
Some lenders offer special incentives throughout the year, such as the lender covering your legal fees, cashback and no product fees, which can really help to free up some extra money to spend on household essentials or celebrating your new home.
Customers with a less than perfect credit history can really struggle to find a high street lender who will offer them a mortgage. There are a range of specialist lenders who are mainly only available via Mortgage Brokers who individually underwrite every mortgage case, which allows them to look beyond a credit score and lend to you even if you’ve had missed credit card payments, CCJs or defaults etc.
Rates are a little higher than those offered to customers with a squeaky clean credit file. However, once you’ve been able to demonstrate that you’ve made consistent repayments on the mortgage, we can then look to remortgage your home with a high street lender.
Some lucky first-time buyers may be given a helping hand onto the property ladder by parents or a close family member. This can either be in the form of cash towards a deposit or a percentage of the equity in their home being used as security for the mortgage. Larger deposits can help you to access the cheapest mortgage deals that could potentially save you thousands of pounds over the term of the loan on mortgage interest repayments.
Not all lenders will consider a gifted deposit that’s from a family member, such as a grandparent, uncle or aunt. In most cases, the person gifting the deposit or equity may need to seek independent legal advice to ensure that they understand that they will have no interest in the property you are buying. We can help you to find the most competitive deal available – even if the deposit isn’t coming from the bank of mum and dad.
It can be difficult for self-employed customers with less than 3 year’s accounts to secure a mortgage because lenders like to see a steady income over a period of time. Some lenders won’t consider individuals who only have one or two year’s accounts as they feel it is too high risk.
Certain lenders do specialise in offering mortgages to self-employed customers with 1 year’s accounts or more, particularly if they can prove that their business has plenty of work going forward. Having a good credit score can also greatly improve your chances. Our experienced team works with self-employed borrowers every day, so we can certainly advise you on the types of mortgage deals available to you.
For free advice on the best type of first-time buyer mortgage to suit your needs, contact our whole of market Mortgage Advisers.
Call us on 01702 533 400 or arrange a call back.
