I Don’t Need Mortgage Advice – Do I?

Do I need mortgage advice, or can I go it alone? If you are at the beginning of the house-buying process, this is the question you may be asking.

Whether you can do without mortgage advice rather depends on your situation.

• If you are just looking for a standard mortgage product, and you have access to the Internet, you could probably get by without mortgage advice. Using the Internet you can compare the different lenders’ offerings and choose the best deal. The only problem might be that you may find the sheer numbers to choose from make the process confusing and overwhelming, and you may realise that you can’t possibly go through the whole lot of them. Bear in mind also that it’s not always a good idea just to pick what looks like the cheapest deal. You can’t always be sure you are comparing like with like. Some lenders may be offering special discounted rates just to get your business, and when the discount period is over you could end up with a more expensive product.
• If you have your eye on an unusual property to buy – whether it’s a mediaeval manor house, an old windmill or a converted chapel – you could really benefit from mortgage advice. Lenders of standard mortgages are sometimes a bit wary of very unusual properties and you would do much better with a specialist lender. A mortgage adviser would help you to find the right one.
• Perhaps you have a bad credit history and you are wondering whether you can get a mortgage at all. In this situation you would really be unwise to look on the Internet. A lot of lenders advertising “bad credit mortgages” are only out to make money out of you, and will try to convince you that they are your only hope of getting a mortgage. As a result you could end up paying far more than you need. You really must have good mortgage advice to help you find a product that’s right for your needs.
• You may be having difficulty saving for a deposit and finding house prices are going up faster than you can save. In this situation, one solution might be to borrow a 125% mortgage – that is, 125% of the property’s value. This would enable you to get the house and enough to cover the extras including furniture. However, obviously this is not for everybody and you need to consider all the pros and cons very carefully before you go down this road. It is essential to obtain good mortgage advice if this is what you have in mind.

There is no compulsion to get mortgage advice, whatever situation you are in. You can always try going it alone. But you can make things so much easier and cheaper by taking advice – is it really worth struggling on alone?

Sean Horton is a Director of Enhanced Wealth Limited who provide specialist mortgage advice