How Many Times Can You Remortgage in Essex?

When your fixed-rate mortgage heads towards it’s end stages, the vast majority of homeowners will be thinking about taking out a remortgage in Essex. The good news here is that you are able to remortgage in Essex as many times as you want to, though this isn’t always necessarily appropriate.

Why do you want to remortgage in Essex?

Having a conversation with an expert mortgage advisor in Essex about your remortgage options, could possibly save you hundreds of pounds in the future, especially if we can find you a better deal!

One option we come across regularly, is a remortgage to release equity, which can be used for things like making home improvements or debt consolidation. Whilst this will mean your owed balance is likely to increase, these can be great choices for homeowners.

Can I remortgage in Essex early?

Though you will find there are likely to be no restrictions, if you choose to take out a remortgage in Essex before your fixed rate period is due to conclude, you may find yourself with quite a hefty early repayment charge (ERC) that you owe the mortgage lender.

In some instances, remortgaging early may be appropriate, though it is important to discuss this with a mortgage advisor in Essex ahead of time, as the positives of doing so might outweigh the early repayment charges you could be faced with.

If you have a fixed-rate mortgage, then we recommend you remortgage in Essex once your deal is set to end, as otherwise, you’ll find yourself moving onto your lender’s standard variable rate (SVR) of interest, which is likely to be a much more costly option for you.

Are there any benefits to remortgaging in Essex early?

This will ultimately come down to the reason that you want to remortgage in Essex early, as some do it to save money, whilst others will look to release equity for something like making necessary home repairs or improvements.

Your mortgage lender may very well have set an early repayment charge that you would have to pay if you were to exit your contract. You can get in touch with them to gain more clarity on this. It will likely be at a percentage of the remaining mortgage amount. Additionally, there may be exit fees.

We find that people may look to do this ahead of possible changes to the cost of living, as you can lock in to the current interest rates with a fixed rate, which could see you riding the wave of fluctuating interest rates with a consistent deal and lower payments, though this is very much a case by case basis.

Can I remortgage in Essex with bad credit?

As long as you are able to showcase a mortgage lender that you are able to maintain your monthly mortgage payments, it could be possible to remortgage in Essex with bad credit.

Smaller issues such as mobile phone disputes could even be ignored by some mortgage lenders. Having something like a CCJ or default could prove more challenging, however. The further away your credit issues were, the better your chances of achieving remortgage success.

As is the case with any remortgage in Essex, the interest rate payable will be dependant on your credit score, as well as the amount of equity you have in your home.

When is the best time to remortgage in Essex?

We would definitely suggest that you make a start on evaluating the remortgage options you might have available to you, around the 6 month mark prior to your fixed or introductory period coming to its end.

This will give you more than enough time for you to enquire for remortgage advice in Essex with an expert in the field, who will look to finalise and ready your new deal to take over as the previous mortgage deal you had comes to its end.

Speak to a Remortgage Advisor in Essex

Generally speaking, there will be no limit on the number of times you can are able to take out a remortgage in Essex on your home, though most people will look to achieve this when their fixed-rate mortgage period is set to end.

No matter what your situation is, we would always recommend seeking remortgage advice in Essex as soon as you can, to make sure that your mortgage payments do not end up moving onto your mortgage lender’s standard variable rate of interest.

To have a discussion with a trusted mortgage advisor in Essex about your potential remortgage options, book a free remortgage review today and talk with an open & honest member of our expert remortgage advice team.

What Does a Mortgage Broker in Essex Do?

By its own definition, a broker is a business that can arrange or negotiate for something in particular, on behalf of their client. A mortgage broker in Essex is a business that functions in that same way, for a homeowner, home buyer or landlord who is looking to take out a mortgage on their property.

A mortgage is a loan that you have secured against your property, which as a property owner, you will pay back over a particular length in time, through monthly mortgage payments.

Jobs of a Mortgage Broker in Essex

Although a homeowner, home buyer or landlord are able to search for and apply for their own mortgage, you much more frequently find that they will look to utilise the services of a mortgage broker in Essex, because of the different services they can offer their customers.

Probably one of the most important jobs a mortgage broker in Essex can do, is that they are able to cross-reference your information against 1000s of unique products, across many different mortgage lenders. If you went directly to a bank, you will only be limited to deals from that company.

This isn’t completely a negative, as the best deal with that mortgage lender could still be the best one for you, but this can’t always be guaranteed. A mortgage broker in Essex is able to compare on your behalf, usually coming along with exclusive deals only available with that mortgage broker.

The job of a mortgage broker in Essex is more than this though, as there are lots of jobs that a mortgage broker in Essex can do, before and during your mortgage application and after your mortgage offer. They will also vary between companies; Not every mortgage broker works the same way!

For example, an area that we stand out in, is we are able to recommend suitable insurance options for our customers. Whilst it is an additional, optional cost (you don’t have to do it!), our mortgage and protection advisors have a duty of care to make sure you don’t lose your property, no matter the situation.

Before Your Application

When your mortgage process begins, you will most likely be speaking with the appointment booking team of a mortgage broker in Essex. Their role will be to take some general information from you & help you to find a suitable time slot for you to speak with a mortgage advisor in Essex.

As an alternative to this, you are usually able these days, to bypass the need to call up first, as many mortgage brokers in Essex (much like ourselves) have a user-friendly and simplified appointment booking system online, where you can typically choose what type of appointment you would like.

Once you have gotten booked in, the next step will be to attend your mortgage appointment with your mortgage advisor in Essex. Generally you will provide them with some further information to help them better understand what you are looking to do, so that they can help you progress.

From that point, they’ll start looking at a variety of mortgage deals, to help you find the most suitable one for what it is you wish to do. Some mortgage brokers in Essex offer their customers a limited supply of obscure mortgage lenders, others offer more, with some offering a whole of market service.

Whilst we can’t say we are a whole of market company, we can confidently say that we have a greatly sized panel of mortgage lenders, with mortgage products that range from standard mortgage enquiries, to specialist, and everything else you’ll find in-between.

Your mortgage advisor in Essex will provide you with a recommendation on the deal they believe is right for you. If you like that deal, they will look to obtain an agreement in principle (AIP) for you. Our mortgage advisors in Essex are usually able to get this within 24 hours of your appointment.

Estate agents will want you to provide them with this when you make an offer on a property and it will also show the person that is selling the property that you are committed to the offer you have made and are in a position to go forward with the sale.

Also, when you are at this point, you will need to go ahead and submit your documents to the mortgage broker in Essex you are working alongside. The documents that are required can usually vary between each mortgage lender and what you wish to achieve in your mortgage process.

Standard document requests will include proof of ID, proof of your income and deposit, last 3 months’ bank statements and payslips, as well as proof of VISA or right to work in the UK, if you happen to be a foreign national (this is usually done with a share code if you have migrated from the EU).

Documents that are typically requested in more niche situations, include a P60 (not all mortgage lenders will need this), business bank statements and tax calculations/year overviews if you are a self-employed applicant, and possibly also an employment contract depending on what your job is.

During Your Application

After you have achieved all of the latter steps, a mortgage broker in Essex will then work to verify your documents and provide you with their mortgage illustration, which will detail the agreed deal before they move on to submission.

Following on with this, they will progress on to your mortgage application submission, to the mortgage lender. From there, it’s a bit of a waiting game until they get back in touch with your mortgage broker in Essex to confirm if you have been approved or not.

The work won’t be stopping there, as mortgage advisors in Essex still have further steps to complete. They will send copies of your documents to your mortgage lender, as well as liaise with solicitors. During this time, our mortgage advice team can recommend property surveys to you.

You will generally come across 3 different types of property survey. Basic valuation, which will work out the value and resale value of the property, home buyers valuation, which will goes a little more in-depth and a full structural survey, which alerts you to any areas that perhaps you need to look at.

Much as they had done when it came to your mortgage deal in your initial mortgage appointment, your mortgage advisor in Essex will be able to best recommend which property survey is right for you to have taken out.

As you wait for the conclusion of your mortgage application process, you may also have queries or concerns, about what is actually going on. Mortgage advice teams with good reputations will make sure you are informed regularly, often via email, so you are always in the loop with your mortgage progress.

After Your Mortgage Offer

Eventually, the mortgage lender will come back to us with an outcome on your mortgage application, hopefully a positive one! If your mortgage application is successful, you will then receive a formal mortgage offer from the mortgage lender.

From here, the job mostly goes on over to your solicitors to complete your mortgage deal, so that you can eventually be comfortable in your home. There is still more that a mortgage broker in Essex can do for you though.

Here at Essexmoneyman, when you reach about the 6 month mark, before your mortgage deal is due to end, if you had previously took out your mortgage with one of our mortgage advisors, we will be back in touch to offer you remortgage advice in Essex and help you take the next mortgage step.

The Positives of Using a Mortgage Broker in Essex

As is clear, there is much a mortgage broker in Essex can do for you, such as saving you time and money on your mortgage process, whilst they work to reduce your stress levels and bring you one-step closer to completing your mortgage.

We are proud to say that here at Essexmoneyman, we really do care about our brilliant customers. After all, there is no Essexmoneyman, without you! We always put your best interests first, doing whatever we are able to do, to put you in the best position financially for your property goals.

To give you an example of this, if you wanted to take out a remortgage and got in touch with us for remortgage advice in Essex, but your mortgage advisor in Essex felt like you would benefit from taking out a product transfer, they will say so, as it is always about your best interests.

Furthermore, a mortgage broker in Essex may be able to get a mortgage lender to waive some of your mortgage fees, or maybe even look at incorporating them into your overall mortgage balance.

When you are in an appointment with one of our mortgage advice team, they will take a look through all of the costs and fees involved with your mortgage process, during your free mortgage appointment with a mortgage advisor in Essex.

Why use a mortgage broker in Essex?

Really, this is all down to you. If you would like to save time and money, stress and worries, then it may be beneficial to let an expert professional such as a mortgage broker in Essex, take on the bulk of the work for you.

We often find ourselves providing customers with expert mortgage advice in Essex, whether they be looking at first time buyer mortgages in Essex, to those looking for a buy to let mortgage in Essex and even more than that.

Book online today and speak with a member of our mortgage advice team, using our handy online booking feature, to benefit from a free mortgage appointment or remortgage review with a dedicated mortgage advisor in Essex today.

Can I Remortgage in Essex for a Home Office?

Home Office Remortgage Advice in Essex

In 2020, the global coronavirus pandemic forced business models to be revamped and in some cases, changed completely. There was also a huge increase of self employed workers.

Due to business changes and constant shifts in rules and regulations, a lot of individuals had to work from home. At the time, no one knew how long this was going to be, therefore the thought of investing in a home office didn’t seem like such a bad idea.

Even now, investing in a home office seems like a great idea. Who knows what could happen in the future!

You don’t need to purchase your home office outright, there are alternative methods such as remortgaging and incorporating the costs into your mortgage. This is what we’re going to look at in this article – Remortgaging for a Home Office.

What is remortgaging in Essex?

A remortgage is when renew your current mortgage deal or switch over to another deal to replace your current one.

There are lots of different reasons why someone may want to remortgage. You might want to find a better rate, remortgage for home improvements, consolidate debts or just avoid falling onto your lender’s standard variable rate of interest.

When it’s time to remortgage in Essex, if you need help getting the ball rolling, feel free to get in touch with Essexmoneyman and book your free remortgage appointment.

Remortgaging for Home Improvements

When remortgaging for this reason, you will be incorporating the costs for the home improvements into your mortgage. Although this means that your payments will go up, you won’t have to pay an upfront fee for your new home office.

Home improvements costs can vary as it depends on what you’re wanting to improve! A remortgage for a home office is on the lower end of the spectrum if you compare it to a whole new kitchen.

If you take an example of a home office costing £5,000 – £10,000, your monthly remortgage payments may only go up by an extra £20 – £60 per month. Depending on what remortgage product that you take out, your term may also increase.

Remortgaging for home improvements could save you money further down the line as it can value your home.

Reasons to Remortgage for a Home Office

Having an office at home can be beneficial in many ways, here are some reasons that we’ve come up with:

Remortgaging advice in Essex

As a mortgage broker in Essex, we can say that the costs of moving home in Essex will be much more expensive than remortgaging for home improvements. If you want to create more living space, for ease and to save costs, remortgaging could be the better option.


If you are thinking of remortgaging to create a home office, you should get in touch with our remortgage advisors in Essex. We can offer you a free remortgage appointment with an advisor, so get in touch and book yours today.

Fixed-Rate Mortgage Advice in Essex

What is a fixed-rate mortgage

A fixed-rate mortgage is a mortgage that has been fixed for a particular set length of time, with the interest rates remaining the same for the entire duration.

Generally speaking, people within the mortgage world believe that the longer you fix your mortgage for, the higher that interest rate is probably going to be. With that in mind, if you are looking for the lowest rate possible, you should really look at taking out a short term fixed-rate mortgage.

The downside to a short-fixed term, is that you will be reaching the end of your term a lot quicker, meaning you will need to renew a lot sooner than you might have wanted. When the time comes to take out a remortgage in Essex, your monthly mortgage payments might be a lot more than they were before your term finished.

What is a Fixed-Rate Mortgage | MoneymanTV

Medium & Long Term Fixed Mortgages

If you would rather not be searching for new fixed-rate deals every two years, but also have a preference to not reach the point where interest rates go too high, you might be better suited for a medium-term fixed rate mortgage.

Five-year fixed rates are some of the more popular choices that we come across when speaking to first time buyers in Essex, as they will provide you with the security of consistent monthly payments for the rest of your term. The downside with this one, is that if interest rates drop whilst you’re locked into that fixed deal, you will end up paying more overall than you otherwise would have had if you had gone with a shorter term.

The flip side to that, is if interest rates go up during your term, you’ll be sat comfortably at that lower rate for the duration. It’s because of this, that lenders may increase the interest rates on shorter terms, to future proof themselves, just in case. Usually, the longer your term, the more expensive it is going to be.

There are only a select number of 7 to 10-year fixed rates available to home buyers on the property market. These have always been the least popular of the choices, due to how long they are overall. Many feel that having a decade-long term is too long to be fixed in for a mortgage.

What other fees are involved?

On top of interest rates, you will also need to consider the booking and arrangement fees that are involved.

A booking fee is payable upfront, whereas an arrangement fee is only payable on completion of the mortgage. You might know people who have added fees to the total of their mortgage amounts, but this of course increases the total amount you’d be paying off at the end.

Sometimes you might also find that your financial circumstances can suddenly change and you might need to repay your mortgage balance a lot earlier than had initially been planned for. When this happens, you will likely end up being charged for it.

Early Repayment Charge (ERC)

This charge is known as an Early Repayment Charge (ERC for short). The ERC is calculated as a percentage of the amount that remains on the mortgage balance. If we say as an example, the mortgage amount you have remaining is £200,000 and you are able to pay that off earlier on into your term, with a percentage that is 2%, you would end up having to pay back £4,000 to cover the broken fixed contract.

Many homeowners aren’t aware of the Early Repayment Charge and think it’s as simple as paying off their fixed mortgage early. You are tied into a contracted deal and you can’t just jump out of it and pay it off early, unless you are quite content having additional large charges added to your account.

People who know about the charge may opt to just pay it off early anyway, in order to get a better deal that is currently on the market, especially if it is a limited offer that may not be available a few months down the line.

As an experienced mortgage broker in Essex, we would highly recommend that you avoid chasing after “headline” deals. Always make sure you remember that the lowest rates tend to come with the highest setup fees. Please get in touch today for any further fixed-rate mortgage advice in Essex.

Fixed-Rate Mortgages in Essex

The Importance Of Having Your Mortgage Reviewed in Essex

Mortgage review advice in Essex

If you haven’t checked on your mortgage payments and rates in a while, perhaps it’s time for a change. We are regularly approached by customers who are checking to see whether they can access a better mortgage rate or not, and the majority of the time… they can!

In fact, most applicants show that they’ve been able to access a better deal for much longer than expected; this is why you should get your mortgage reviewed, especially when it’s for free.

What is a mortgage review?

Firstly, a mortgage review is a simple look over your current mortgage situation and personal and financial circumstances to see whether you can access a better mortgage rate or not.

A mortgage review is carried out by your lender, building society or mortgage broker in Essex. The process will work similarly to the way your original mortgage process did, starting with your enquiry through to completion.

During the process, you will also have to supply evidential documents such as Identification, bank statements, payslips and proof of address. This will allow your mortgage situation to be evaluated effectively as you have documents to back up factors like your income and how you are managing your current mortgage payments.

If you go through the mortgage review process and it turns out that you can’t access a better rate or you’re already on the best rate, you should know that you won’t be charged at this point if you use our services. So, you should take advantage of our free mortgage review, just to get an idea of what your current mortgage situation is.

Why is a mortgage review important?

A mortgage review is always worth it if you end up being on a better rate from it. Even though you’ve already been through the process before, doing it again could save you lots of money, further down the line.

Getting a mortgage review from time to time (usually every time your fixed mortgage term ends), may prevent you from slipping onto your lender’s standard variable rate on interest (SVR). Their SVR can usually be quite high. It’s likely to be higher than your current rate, meaning that you may see your monthly mortgage payments go up by quite a bit.

Remortgage and product transfer

If your mortgage review concludes that you can access a better rate, it’s now time to remortgage or transfer products. If your remortgage advisor in Essex can see that there are deals out there that you match the criteria to, they will try and pick one out that perfect for you through a remortgage or product transfer.

A remortgage is when you take out a new mortgage product with another lender and a product transfer is when you take out a new mortgage product with your existing lender. Either route will help you obtain a new mortgage deal at a new rate (hopefully more competitive!).

Taking out a new mortgage product and avoiding your lender’s SVR could save you a lot of money further down the line, and that’s why a mortgage review can be so important.

Taking out equity

During your mortgage review, you may get the option to take out a new mortgage product and take equity out too. You can release equity from your property for home improvements, to pay off debt or to even go on holiday, it’s completely up to you what you do with the money.

Releasing equity is a specialist subject remember, so if you are looking for a new mortgage deal and wanting to release equity too, we would recommend that you speak to a mortgage broker in Essex, like ourselves.

Free mortgage review

For a free mortgage review in Essex, get in touch with our team today. We have helped thousands of customers in the past achieve a better mortgage rate, even when they thought that they couldn’t!

For expert mortgage advice in Essex, contact Essexmoneyman today; open 7 days a week.

Remortgage for Home Improvements in Essex

Remortgage Advice in Essex

Firstly, what is a remortgage? Remortgaging is simply switching to a new mortgage product. This can also be known as a product transfer. The difference between a remortgage and a product transfer is that when you remortgage, you change products and lenders, whereas when you complete a product transfer, you change mortgage products but stick with the same lender.

The reasons for people wanting to remortgage can be different, it all depends on what the homeowner wants. They may want to look for a better rate of interest, consolidate their debts, or raise capital for things such as home improvements.

In this article, we are going to focus on remortgaging/transferring products for home improvements.

How does it work?

Before you remortgage, you will have to work out the estimated costs for the home improvements. Home improvements could be anywhere from extensions to conversions, so depending on how you want to improve your home, the costs may increase.

Once you have worked out your estimated costs, they will be incorporated into your mortgage. This will slightly increase your overall monthly payments as you are now paying off your mortgage as well as your home improvements. In some cases, your payments may barely increase. Again, this all depends on the home improvements being carried out. As a Mortgage Broker in Essex, we’ve seen some customers go up by an extra £50, to an extra £200.

Estimated costs include:


We would also advise that you have some spare savings aside from the remortgage, as if things go wrong or the costs don’t quite add up, you may have to cover them.

Why would I want to remortgage for home improvements?

The most common reason for people remortgaging for home improvements is to make more space. Whether it’s because they’re starting a family or just want a bit of extra room within their home, the whole process is easily done and it also saves you moving home in Essex.

Rather than going through the whole moving process, if you already love the home that you live in… why move? It often works out that it’s much cheaper to remain inside your current home too!

You can remortgage for various different types of home improvements, some include:

Remortgage Advice in Essex by MoneymanTV

Remortgage for home improvements summary

If you are thinking of improving your home and want to go down this route, feel free to get in touch with our team for remortgage advice in Essex. Whether it’s because you need more room or just because you want to modernise your home, there is always a good reason to remortgage.

Our team works 7 days a week, so make sure to get in touch whenever you want to have a chat about your remortgage options. There are other reasons to remortgage, so if you want to go down another route, we would be more than happy to help with that too.

What is a 95% Mortgage?

A 95% mortgage is as simple as the name would suggest; you are borrowing against 95% of the price of a property, and then you are covering the remaining 5% with your deposit. An example of this is if you looked at buying a property that was worth £150,000 with a 95% mortgage, you would be putting down £7,500 as your deposit and borrow the remaining £142,500 from the lender. 

95% Mortgage Advice in Essex

Off the back of the March 2021 Budget, Boris Johnson announced a Mortgage Guarantee Scheme for mortgage lenders, making 95% mortgages more readily available from the bigger high street banks.   

This is fantastic news for First-Time Buyers and Home Movers alike, as this scheme will continue running until December 2022. Certain terms and conditions will apply though, which is something your Mortgage Advisor in Essex will be able to look at, to see if you qualify.    

All our customers who opt to get in Touch will receive a free, no-obligation mortgage consultation where one of our dedicated mortgage advisors will be able to make a recommendation on the best possible route for you to take.

Can I get a 95% mortgage?

95% mortgages are usually accessible by both First Time Buyers in Essex & those who are Moving Home in Essex. Whilst saving for a 5% deposit sounds like a pretty straightforward concept, you’ll still need to have an acceptable credit score and prove that you are able to afford your monthly mortgage repayments, in order to access a 95% mortgage.

Improving your credit score

A good credit score is essential in the process of obtaining any mortgage, especially a 95% mortgage. Things like paying any current credit commitments on time, ensuring your addresses are updated and checking that you’re on the voters roll, can all help with your credit score.

Affordability 

Affordability is another one that is important to take note of. By giving the lender details of your income and monthly outgoings (things like your bank statements will be necessary for this) and any pre-existing credit commitments, your lender will be able to get a general overview of whether or not you are able to afford this type of mortgage.

Can my family help me get a 95% mortgage?

Nowadays we see lots of family members helping each other get onto the property ladder, especially parents looking to further their children’s lives. The way this usually happens is by gifting the person looking to find their home, the deposit required. Known through the industry as the “Bank of Mum & Dad, Gifted Deposits are only intended to be a gift, and not as a loan. The lender will need proof that this has been agreed, before it can be used towards your mortgage. 

How do I choose the right 95% mortgage?

When looking for a 95% mortgage, you want to make sure you have the right type of mortgage. Each mortgage type works differently, with that choice allowing you to find one that is most appropriate for your personal and financial situation. 

Some homeowners and home buyers prefer Fixed Rate or Tracker Mortgages, mortgage types which mean you either keep interest rates at a set amount for the term given or have your interest rates tracking the Bank of England base rates.

Alternatively, you might find that Interest-Only or a Repayment Mortgages are more your style. Interest-Only allows cheaper payments until you need to pay a lump sum at the end (mostly now used for Buy-to-Lets), whereas a Repayment mortgage (a normal mortgage if you’d like) means you’ll be paying interest and capital combined per month.

How can a bigger deposit help with my mortgage? 

Seeing as a mortgage is such a large financial outgoing, you need to be prepared and need to be aware. You might find things like higher interest rates, remortgaging difficulties due to less equity and then negative equity all cropping up if you’re not. 

There is no need to worry though, as all these can be avoided if you’re savvy enough with your process to begin with. The more deposit you put down for a property, the less risk the lender will see you as. 

A larger deposit, of say 10-15%, would not only reduce the rates of interest by a noticeable amount, but would also give the property more equity and reduce the risk of negative equity, thanks in part to you borrowing less against the property. 

So, whilst the risks may seem intimidating, planning ahead and saving for a bigger deposit to access something like a 90% or even an 85% mortgage will be a massive help in your mortgage journey and something you’ll be able to reap the rewards from in the future. 

A Guide to Remortgages in Essex: Top Reasons to Consider

Remortgage Broker in Essex

The mortgage journey is one full of adventure and the potential for great reward. It has its fair share of both highs and lows, but ultimately you will end up with either your dream property to settle down in and maybe start a family, a stepping stone property to propel you higher up the ladder or an investment purchase to provide you with some additional income.

Regardless of the route you took, there will eventually come a time when you are reaching the end of your mortgage term. You could sell up and upsize/downsize into a new home, starting fresh.

Maybe you are looking sell your portfolio to the tenant or another buyer and look at other investment opportunities? The most popular option that customers take, however, is a Remortgage.

What is a Remortgage?

First, let’s look at the definition of the term. A Remortgage is where you use the proceeds from a new mortgage obtained to pay off a pre-existing mortgage. There are a wide variety of different options when taking out a Remortgage, ranging from minor to major.

Utilising the 20 years or so knowledge of our resident “Moneyman” Malcolm Davidson (host of our YouTube channel MoneymanTV), we took the time to put together a quick guide to all the options you could have when it comes to taking out a Remortgage in Essex.

Remortgage For Better Interest Rates

Your initial mortgage deal will normally last on average around 2-5 years and feature low fixed rates or possibly discounted rates for that time period. In some cases, you may even be placed on a tracker mortgage, which follows the Bank of England’s base rate, increasing and decreasing as and when their rate does so.

When your existing mortgage term ends you will likely be moved along to something known as the lenders “Standard Variable Rate” (you may see this mentioned across the web simply as SVR).

In short, an SVR is a mortgage with an interest rate that can change depending simply on what the lender deems it necessary to charge. This does not follow the Bank of England’s base rate like a tracker mortgage does.

As such, these usually end up being the most expensive paths to take, leaving many to look at Remortgaging for better rates, with the idea of hopefully saving you money on your monthly repayments.

Remortgage For Home Improvements

2-5 years into occupying your home, you may have a complete change of heart. Maybe you feel that you need an extra room or larger living space for your kids or belongings, a new kitchen, a new office, or a handy new loft conversion.

Rather than move into a larger house, a large number of homeowners seek to release their equity with a Remortgage in order to fund home improvements.

Though the concept of having to obtain planning permission and fund/manage your own project may seem rather daunting, some would argue it’s a lot less stressful and more rewarding than the process of having to find a new home, selling your current one and moving your personal belongings.

Over the course of time, this may prove even more beneficial. Creating more space and having good quality craftsmanship will likely increase the properties value, something that is useful for if you ever do decide to sell up or rent out.

Remortgage for Changes to Your Term

In many cases, people may simply wish to Remortgage in Essex for a better mortgage term, whether this be by reducing the length or switching to a more flexible and favourable product.

Reducing the length does mean you won’t be paying back your mortgage for as long as you might have done, so aren’t completely tied down forever, but as such your monthly repayments will be a lot higher than you might’ve expected beforehand. The longer your term, the lower the payments will be over the length of said term.

Some opt for a more flexible mortgage term when the time comes to Remortgage in Essex. The benefits provided by this option can prove winsome to some current homeowners.

You may gain the ability to overpay, resulting in the choice of paying your mortgage off as quickly as you’d like, as well as being able to carry the same mortgage and rates over to another property, should you decide to move at any time later on in life.

Though a flexible mortgage sounds like the ideal situation, they usually come in the form of a tracker mortgage, which as mentioned previously, follows the Bank of England base rate.

This means one month your payments could fluctuate based on interest, making them a little unpredictable and unreliable in an instance where most would rather have financial security.

Remortgage to Release Equity

Everyone has some level of equity in their home or property. This is worked out with the difference between what is still owed on the remaining mortgage and the current value of the property.

As touched upon briefly, this can be used for home improvements, however, there are still a variety of options available for you out there.

Some use it to cover long-term care costs, to supplement their own income, to have a nice family getaway, to pay off an interest-only mortgage or to simply have free spending money to do with as they please.

In some cases, we find that a lot of Buy to Let landlords will use a remortgage to release equity as a means of covering their deposit for buying a future property to add to their property portfolio.

For homeowners who are over the age of 55 and have a property that is worth at least £70,000, it may be beneficial looking at your options for Equity Release in Essex. Speak to a qualified later life mortgage advisor to learn more about lifetime mortgages.

Remortgage to Consolidate Debt

On the topic of Equity Release, another big one people use it for, is to pay off any unsecured debts you may have built up over a period of time.

Though it may seem like an easy enough process, Debt Consolidation not only bases the amount on how much you’re owed and the value of the property, but it is also based on your credit rating. This could mean you are limited in the amount you are able to borrow.

Additionally, to pay off your pr-existing mortgage and your debts, you will need to borrow more than the amount of your outstanding mortgage. This means your monthly repayments will most likely be a fair bit higher. Though not an ideal situation, at least you can rest assured that should you find yourself in an unfortunate predicament, you do have some options out there.

If you have a particularly damaged credit rating, you do still have options to choose from, though these will be quite difficult and require very Specialist Remortgage Advice in Essex before going forward. Even then, there is no guarantee of a remortgage, so do not get your hopes up until you speak with a professional.

You should always seek mortgage advice in Essex before choosing to consolidate and secure any debts against your home.

Experienced Mortgage Advisors in Essex – Get in Touch

If you are reaching the end of your term and are wondering what your option may be for Remortgaging, it can be very beneficial to get in Touch with an experienced and dedicated mortgage broker in Essex.

An advisor will be able to discuss your circumstances and future goals, in order to create the best plan of action for you in the next step of your path to obtaining a mortgage. It is our aim to ensure this go-around is a quicker and smoother process than your initial mortgage journey.

The Pros & Cons Of Using A Mortgage Broker In Essex

Have you ever thought of using a mortgage broker in Essex? Well, you may not realise it initially but the fact is there are some good reasons for it. Although, it is quite possible to proceed by directly contacting the lender, most people prefer dealing with a mortgage broker.

What Are The Pros & Cons Of Using A Mortgage Broker?

People often consider it a great chance to save money by not hiring a mortgage broker. It seems a cost-effective idea to proceed with everything on your own.

So you may also be one of those who prefer going directly to the Bank or Building Society. Another pro that was previously in the minds of the people was that “the Bank Manager knows my finances inside out”, although this changed when credit scoring was introduced.

It is also true that some lenders have various mortgage products only for the people who directly reach out to them. The main intention behind such ideas is to attract the consumers directly and grab their attention with exclusive offers.

Ultimately, it serves as a great tool to spread the business. The interesting part is that it is equally enticing to speak with a mortgage broker as well. Some offers can be found only through a mortgage broker.

From 2014 onward, it was not possible for the lenders to sell mortgages to anyone on a non-advised basis. At that time, it was a common perception that non-advisors were forcing their advice on the customers and not letting them benefit from consumer protection benefits that should come with speaking to a professional mortgage advisor in Essex.

There’s also the fact that taking an appointment with a bank can sometimes take months to happen. A mortgage broker in Essex can often get you booked in within that week.

Now you can easily understand how these kinds of issues gave rise to the importance of mortgage brokers and diverted the minds of the people towards them. As a result, more and more applicants started relying on the mortgage brokers and were quite willing to pay their fees.

Now they had more trust for the mortgage brokers who are often able to offer their services the same day, like ourselves. We are always ready to help you, so get in touch and we will put you through the qualified mortgage advisors either immediately or within the same day if we can.

Handling Difficult Cases

You might be wondering: what can be the reasons that make some mortgage applications far more difficult than they should. So let’s have a look at some of the examples: 

In the past years, it was much easier for the lenders to get the competitive edge by just presenting more enticing offers than their competitors. But it is not as simple now and the thing that distinguishes one lender from the other is the lending criteria.

To make all this easier, all you need to do is to discuss your situation with an experienced and professional mortgage broker and ask them whether they encountered a similar situation in the past or not. After a lot of research and hard work, a mortgage broker will hopefully be able to help you through and recommend the most suitable mortgage that matches with your budget and does not break the bank.

Here it is worth mentioning that even if the application is simple, we have more experience and knowledge that will surely help you in getting the most appropriate deal. For example, we have a professional team of mortgage advisors in York that will guide you about other professional options and services such as solicitors. When you keep yourself in touch with us, we will also update you about the surveys and protection information available to you.

Responsive Service

Our distinguishing feature is that we are far more fast and responsive compared to the other mortgage brokers. The biggest reason why customers often need the mortgage help is that everyone nowadays is very busy and needs someone who can lift off the weight. Our mortgage advisors will do that for you quite smoothly and you will definitely appreciate the benefits of having an expert on board.

Ready to discuss your mortgage plans? Feel free to Get in Touch with your specialist mortgage broker in Essex. We are available 7 days a week, to help you out in finding the right mortgage deal. 


We cover Essex and surrounding areas: Mortgage Broker in ChelmsfordMortgage Broker in BrentwoodMortgage Broker in Southend-on-Sea

The Different Types of Mortgages in Essex Explained

Mortgage Advice in Essex

Regardless of whether you are a first time buyer in Essex looking to make that initial jump onto the property ladder, or are going through the process of moving house in Essex, it will soon become apparent that there are multiple different types of mortgage available to customers.

Some options are a little more popular than others and some are quite hard to come across. We put together a list of mortgage types we find that we encounter the most frequently and that you will likely come across in your search for a mortgage. You will also see each section accompanied by one of our MoneymanTV episodes, which we hope you will find very useful ahead of the mortgage process.

We have a collection of Helpful Mortgage Guides on moneymanTV here, as well as our “Mortgages Explained” playlist here.

What is a Fixed-Rate Mortgage?

A fixed-rate mortgage means that your mortgage payments, for a specific period of time, will stay the same, giving some consistency to your process. The length of your fixed payments is completely your choice, with generally homebuyers choosing common lengths of anywhere around 2, 3 or 5 years or longer.

Regardless of any changes to inflation, interest rates or the economy you can rest easy knowing that your mortgage payment, often your single biggest outgoing, will not drastically change, giving you some normality.

What is a Fixed Rate Mortgage? | MoneymanTV

What is a Tracker Mortgage?

A tracker mortgage means that the interest-rate of your mortgage will follow the base rate of the Bank of England. What this means is that the lender that you are with do not choose interest-rate and neither will you. Instead, you will be paying a percentage above the Bank of England base rate, something which can change slightly. A prime example of this, is if the base rate is 1% and you are tracking at 1% above base rate, that means you will be paying a rate of 2% on interest.

What is a Tracker Mortgage? | MoneymanTV

What is a Repayment Mortgage?

When you take out a repayment mortgage you will be paying back capital and interest combined each month of your term. So long as you keep your payments going for the full length of the mortgage term, you will be guaranteed to have your mortgage balance paid off by the end, with the property then becoming yours to own.

In regards to mortgage payments, this is considered to be the most risk-free way to pay your capital back to the mortgage lender. Early on into your mortgage term, you will primarily be paying back the interest portion of the payments, and your balance will start to go down really slowly. This is especially the case if you have taken out a longer term of around 25, 30 or more.

Where this changes for you, is when it comes to the last ten years or so of your mortgage. Your monthly mortgage payments will be more capital than interest, with the balance coming down much faster.

What is Repayment Mortgage? | MoneymanTV

What is an Interest-Only Mortgage?

Whilst many modern day buy-to-let mortgages are set up on an interest-only basis, you’ll find it a lot harder trying to get a residential property on the same basis. The likelihood of a mortgage lender offering an interest-only product to customers these days is not very high, though in some cases it is possible.

Situations where this might apply to a customer include downsizing when you are older or have other investments that can be used to pay back the capital. Lenders have strict rules when it comes to offering these products now and the loan to values are a lot lower than they used to be back in the day.

What is an Interest-Only Mortgage? | MoneymanTV

What is an Offset Mortgage?

With an offset mortgage, the lender will set you up a savings account that will function alongside your mortgage account. The way that this works is that, for example, let’s say you have a mortgage balance of £100,000 and £20,000 is deposited into your savings account, you only pay interest on the difference between this, which in this case is £80,000. This can be a very efficient way of managing your finances, especially if you pay a higher rate of tax usually.

What is an Offset Mortgage? | MoneymanTV

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