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Tips to afford the house you want
If you've found your dream home but can't quite borrow enough to make it yours, here's a few tips that could help make your dream home a reality:
Start by reducing your outgoings
Check your credit rating
Try to put down a bigger deposit
Borrow over a longer term
Or have you thought about...
Buying with friends
Having a guarantor
You could also consider the following schemes depending on the type of property you buy...
Start by reducing your outgoings
Ideally you would pay off any existing personal loans, credit cards and store cards before you apply for a mortgage, so you can borrow the maximum amount. Unfortunately life's not always that simple, so consider rolling your debt into one monthly payment with the lowest possible interest rate. Find out what loans we have available
If you've had problems with your credit in the past, even a few missed payments on your credit card, this may reduce the amount you can borrow. The first thing to do is contact the credit reference agency and ask for details of your credit file, which they have to provide by law. The credit reference agency for Halifax is Experian.
Once you have all the details, you can then sit down with a Mortgage Adviser to get some helpful advice.
Even if we can't help, our sister lender Birmingham Midshires may be able to.
Try to put down a bigger deposit
This could really work in your favour, as it means you could be offered a much better rate of interest. You may even be able to afford a bigger or better property.
You can also extend your mortgage term beyond the standard 25 years. We offer a term of up to 40 years. Just bear in mind that the longer you take to repay your mortgage the more interest you'll be charged.
If you're still not able to borrow enough, there are other ways on to the property ladder.
Buying with a close group of friends is becoming more popular. It's one way to get on the property ladder sooner and at least your renting days will be history!
You could consider asking someone (like your parents) to be a guarantor on your mortgage. Basically a guarantor is someone who guarantees to repay the mortgage if the borrower can't or won't for any reason. This is usually a short term option. You can request to remove a guarantor at a later date, when you are financially able to pay off the mortgage yourself. It's a good idea to get some legal advice if you decide to look into this option.
You could also consider the following schemes depending on the type of property you buy
One way to get on the property ladder is to buy a home that's available on a shared ownership basis. For example, you could own 75% of the property while someone else (usually a housing association) owns the rest. You pay a mortgage on 75% and rent on the other 25%. You would also have the option to buy more in set proportions. To find out more about this option, speak to your local housing association. You'll find their details in your local telephone directory.
With this type of scheme you'd buy a property at a discounted price, for example 90% of the purchase price. Then someone else (such as the property developer) holds a second mortgage on the property for the other 10%. This means that when it is eventually sold they would receive 10% of the property's new value.
Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.
Next Steps
If you prefer to speak with one of our mortgage advisers - call us on 08458 50 37 05 or let us know when its best to call you back
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