Hints & Tips

The Mortgage Process

When buying your new Ogilvie home, finding the best mortgage for your circumstances is a crucial part of the process. Ogilvie recommend Premier Choice Mortgages who are Independent Mortgage Advisors. They will guide you through the mortgage process and will search the whole of the mortgage market in order to provide you with the cheapest mortgage available. Their advisors are available 7 days per week with evening or weekend appointments to suit. As a client of Ogilvie Homes, the advice is completely free of charge, with no obligation whatsoever. Premier Choice Mortgages can be contacted by telephone on 01698 276493 or email at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

Timing - Arrange your mortgage well in advance as obtaining finance is often crucial to buying a new house. 

AIP – the first stage in the mortgage process is to obtain an Approval In Principle. This means that a lender will ask you for information on your circumstances (address, income, outgoings etc.). The lender will then submit this information onto their system and the system will carry out a credit check. A credit check involves checking your credit history and payment record. When the credit check is returned (normally instantly), the lender will inform you if you have been approved or not. Lenders will differ in their lending criteria and some will lend more amounts than others. If you have been unsuccessful with one lender it does not necessarily mean that you will not be able to obtain a mortgage. You may want to obtain an approval in principle before reserving property.

Full Mortgage Application – a full application involves moving your application forward from the approval in principle stage. At this stage the lender may require documentary evidence to confirm the information you have supplied at the approval in principle stage e.g. payslips, identification etc. The lender will also require a valuation of the property to be carried out.

The Mortgage Offer – when the lender has received all the relevant documentation and they are satisfied with your application, they will issue the Mortgage Offer. A copy will be sent to yourself and a copy will be sent to your solicitor. The mortgage offer is an agreement in writing from the lender setting out the terms and conditions (monthly payments etc) of your mortgage. The mortgage offer needs to be issued before your solicitor can obtain the funds from the lender to complete your purchase. A mortgage offer will be valid for a certain period of time depending on lender. With some lenders this will be 6 months but with others it may be shorter. You need to ensure that the entry date for your property falls within this period. Some lenders will be able to extend their mortgage offers, given certain circumstances.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Booking a Rate – with certain lenders it is possible to “book” a particular interest rate before submitting a full application thus securing your payments at a particular level.

Change of Circumstances – if your circumstances change during the mortgage process (change of employment, etc), you are required to inform your mortgage lender.

Multiple Credit Searches - each time you apply to a lender for an approval in principle they will carry out a credit search. Each time a credit search is registered on your credit file it lowers your credit score.

Lenders Timescales - different lenders will have different timescales for processing mortgage applications.  You may need to consider this if, for example there is a quick entry date for your property.

Lending Criteria - different lenders will have different rules and regulations, i.e. some will lend more than others, some will lend up to 90%, some will lend up to 85%, etc.

Moving House

Moving house can be both exciting and stressful at the same time, so to help ease that stress we have put together some helpful hints on the important things to remember.

Once you know your completion date for moving you need to start planning because planning your move in advance will save you hours of heartache in the long run.

One month to go –

• Make sure you have notified your landlord (if applicable)
• Book a removal company or van
• Start collecting boxes for packing or ask your removal company if they have package crates and/or wardrobe boxes they can deliver to you prior to your removal date
• Use up your frozen food
• Inform the gas and electricity companies to let them know where you are moving to and when
• Organise the reconnection or installation of your telephone line
• Start clearing out all your unwanted items
• Make sure you have booked time off work
• Book a hotel if you think you will need to stop over before moving in to your new home

Two weeks to go –

• Contact the post office to redirect your mail
• Notify all the important organisations and important people (dentist, doctor, optician), including the local authority of your new address
• Make sure there is someone who can take care of the children and pets for the day of the move
• Start to pack and make sure that the items you’ll need to get your hands on first are the items you pack last
• Make sure you have ample wrapping paper, sticky tape, bubble wrap and string
• Consider which rooms in your new home will be used for what

One week to go –

• Make sure you have cancelled such services as the window cleaner, milkman, newspaper delivery etc.
• Arrange payment for final bills
• Get all meters read and arrange to pay any outstanding amounts
• Organise layout for new home to give to removal company so they know which boxes go in which rooms
• Collect the keys for your new home as soon as possible
• Contact utility companies
• Make sure you have some dust sheets to put down so you can protect the carpets in your new home

The day before your move –

• Make a list of what is in each box so you can find what you are looking for easily
• Finalise packing and label/number your boxes
• Defrost your fridge and freezer
• Finish cleaning/tidying your current property

The day of your move –

• Make a final check around the house, garden, garage and shed to see that you have left nothing behind
• Disconnect all remaining appliances
• Check that all doors and windows are locked
• Count in all boxes to ensure that everything has been delivered

Remember not to work too late into the night trying to get everything unpacked, a good nights sleep will recharge your batteries and make it easier to get organised the next day.