Moving up the property ladder can be a time of mixed emotions. On one hand your success as a contractor is becoming a tangible asset. Your envisaged new home and a fresh start are concrete proof of that.
But there are also a myriad mundane issues that crave your attention, which you cannot ignore. You thought finding the dream home was the difficult bit? Maybe not, depending upon how you came by your existing mortgage.
If you took out a self-cert all those years ago, you could be in for a shock. The mortgage market changed for good after the credit crunch.
On top of the tasks you’d already got on your to-do list, you may need to add a few more. These are just a few of those pressing priorities:
- shopping for the best contractor mortgage deals;
- find mortgage brokers prepared to even consider your application;
- arrange the move, both in time with your schedule and from a logistical perspective;
- collate appropriate documentation required by lenders;
- they will need proof that you can afford the mortgage based on your accounts or contract rate.
Why is the home mover mortgage market so different today?
The home mover mortgage market is one of the most competitive of its kind. Mortgage lenders want your business as you’ve proved to be worthy customers in the past. This decreases their risk and should have a positive impact on the interest rate you’ll pay.
But for contractors, securing a home mover mortgage presents challenges of a different kind.
Lenders are all too often guilty of highlighting you as a risk. Categorising you thus will either:
- reduce how much you have the potential to borrow, or
- increase your monthly repayments (at the very least).
Even worse, they could reject your application as your accounts don’t stack up to the loan you want.
It’s not always the adviser’s fault. Since the credit crunch, banks and building societies have developed specific lending guidelines. If your income doesn’t fit their preordained model, they see you as a risk.
How big a risk that is will dictate the terms of any home mover mortgage they offer you. That’s if they offer you a mortgage loan at all.
Understanding underwriters and conditioning contractors
At Contractor Mortgages®, we’ve made it our business to work with mortgage underwriting teams. This ensures that those with whom we work understand contractors’ payment structures and income.
They don’t need to know the finite details of a tax-planning strategy. Just that as a limited company owner, a percentage of your income resides in retained profits.
With our help, arranging a competitive home mover mortgage needn’t be complex or time-consuming. In truth, simple and efficient is how we roll. And it works!
Mortgage loans for home movers
Over time, we’ve identified what contractors considering moving home want from their next mortgage. As such, we’ve tailored our products to include:
- immediate decisions, in principle;
- borrowing of up to 95% of the value of your home;
- reduced mortgage rates for lower loan-to-values (bigger deposits);
- affordability assessed on your gross contracting income;
- discounted or zero set-up fees on certain mortgages;
- updates progressing your application;
5 reasons to move home with Contractor Mortgages®
Approaching High Street lenders about moving home is only going to leave you frustrated. Many have a pre-defined list of questions to ask about your annual salary. They seldom take into account the way contractors (or their accountants) structure their income.
You could end up wasting precious time on the phone or visiting in-branch advisors. If you’re lucky.
Not only could these advisors waste the time that is, after all, your money. But if they run a credit search and reject you? That will leave a nasty mark on your credit history for the next lender you visit to see.
At Contractor Mortgages®, we secure only the most competitive mortgages for our contractor home-movers. Our service includes:
- low mortgage broker fee (saving you up to 500!);
- a whole of market selection; as an independent mortgage broker, our choice of lender is unrestricted;
- bespoke underwriting terms with many mortgage providers, including High Street brands;
- affordable mortgage protection & critical illness policies if you need those renewing, too;
- super quick turnaround – often 3-5 weeks – from application to transfer of funds.
We cater for all trading structures and payment mechanisms, including umbrella workers. It doesn’t matter whether you’re PAYE or have an accountant. We get how you operate.
And don’t forget, we negotiate beyond the desks of in-branch sales prevention officers. Approaching High Street mortgage lenders direct is a painful experience. It will get you nowhere, more often than not. But if they’re contractor-friendly, there’s a chance we can elicit common sense for you.
You’ve done the graft, finding your home, positioning yourself to scale the property ladder. Let us take the strain from here; you’ve got enough heavy lifting to do moving home.
