Financial Advice
When you buy an affordable property, you need to be sure that you will be able
to afford it now and in the future. Part of our responsibility is to help you
work that out.
Our services are free to people who are eligible for them. But, you will need
a mortgage. We recommend you ask an independant expert to help you arrange one. My4walls staff can put you in touch with independent mortgage advisers.
Types of mortgage
There are many types of mortgages, with terms and conditions that vary a lot.
There are some mortgages which we will not accept.
- you must use a reputable lender for your mortgage such as an established bank
or building society.
- we may refuse certain mortgage lenders if their interest rates or the term of
the mortgage are not considered realistic over the long term.
- self-certified mortgages are not acceptable
- interest only mortgages should be supported by an investment plan to repay the
capital loan
- we cannot accept mortgage offers that offer further borrowing without consent
If you need a mortgage different to the above, please contact us before committing
to it.
What it costs to buy a new home
You will need a deposit. You should check to see how much you will need, this
will depend on who is providing your mortgage. Currently (MAY 2010) you need 5%
if you are applying for HomeBuy Direct and at least 10% if you are applying for
Newbuild HomeBuy (shared ownership) - this is 5 or 10% of the value of the share
you are buying.
You will need a minimum of £2,500 to cover the first costs of buying your home.
These costs include:
- survey and/or valuation on property
- gas and electric tests
- solicitor's fee
- local authority search
- Land Registry fee
- bank transfer fee and other charges
- notice of charge and transfer
- production of a shared ownership lease (if required)
- Stamp Duty (one per cent of the full purchase price of homes costing £120,000
and over) ** see below if you are a first time buyer.
You may have enough savings to put down a larger deposit on the property and
so lower the mortgage amount you borrow.
Once you move into your property you will have regular costs to pay including
council tax, gas, electricity, water and service charges. These will be on top
of your monthly mortgage and rent payments. While we can help when you buy your
home, we won’t be able to help you with these running costs.
Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on a mortgage or
any other debt secured on it.
Property prices can go down as well as up.
**First-time buyers
If you are a first-time buyer the threshold for when you start to pay SDLT is
£250,000. This is only if you have never owned a house or flat in the UK or anywhere
else in the world. If you are buying with someone else they must never have owned
property before either. This higher threshold applies to purchases made on or
after 25 March 2010 and before 25 March 2012.
