Financial Services

Smart Step Mortgages offers independent mortgage advice and the associated areas of income protection, mortgage protection and mortgage life cover.

Buying a house is the biggest financial commitment most people ever make. As house prices soar, the implications for first-time buyers, those buying to let and those trading up make striking the best deal essential, this is where independent advice from a professional Independent Mortgage broker will help you through the mine field. Detailed below is a plain speaking description of the main products on the market, what they are for and some of the key benefits and pitfalls.

• House Purchases
• Self Certified Mortgages
• Re-mortgages
• Adverse credit mortgages
• Buy To Let Mortgages
• Repayment or Interest only Mortgages
• Commercial Mortgages

House Purchases

Mortgages are big business and the market is competitive. Banks, building societies, insurers, financial advisers and estate agents all offer them. This is good news for you, but means that shopping around is crucial. This is time consuming especially with some much fine print, our job at Smart Step Mortgages is to find the right product and the right price for you. Our experienced team will point out the major issues with each product and discuss with you the implications to you.

Self Certified Mortgages

Welcome to the property boom! Self-certification mortgages have also increased in popularity. You do not have to provide proof of your earnings to a mortgage company, making them useful for the self employed and freelancers, but research has shown that in a rising market buyers are being tempted to borrow much more than the recommended 3.25 times limit – sometimes up to eight times their salary. This is highly dangerous. Be warned that interest rates are at their lowest level for around 50 years, and could always go up. If interest rates climbed to 10%, a level they last reached in 1992, then the repayments would cost more than your monthly salary

Re-Mortgage

In the old days many people stuck with one mortgage loyally sticking with a bank or building society’s standard variable interest rate, which is nearly always a bad deal. At Smart Step Mortgages we ensure our client don’t end up paying too much because the good introductory offer they chose in the past has run its course and they haven’t bothered to shop around since they took it out.

You don’t have to move house to re-mortgage, though you’ll probably have to change lenders to get a better deal. Compare what’s on offer, including how much it will cost to re-mortgage. This can cost up to£ 800 in application fees, valuation fees and lawyers bills, but it could well be worth it.

Adverse credit mortgages

• County Court Junctions CCJ

Getting a mortgage or re-mortgage with CCJs or other defaults may not be as difficult (or as expensive!) as you think.

• Individual Voluntary Agreement or IVA

If you have an IVA (either current or satisfied) Smart Step Mortgages can still help you get a mortgage. This includes arranging a re-mortgage to close a current IVA.

• Mortgage Arrears

Regardless of how many mortgage payments you have missed, Smart Step Mortgages can usually help you re-mortgage to pay off your arrears and get back on track.

• Bankruptcy

If you are a discharged bankrupt, Smart Step Mortgages can help you get a mortgage to start rebuilding your credit history and your life.

• Facing Repossession

If your home is facing repossession, you need to act now. Learn how Smart Step Mortgages can arrange an express mortgage to pay off your debts fast and stop the courts from proceeding.

• Non Standard Construction

We have lenders that specialise in concrete buildings, high rise flats and other non traditional property constructions.

Buy To Let Mortgages

Buy to Let Mortgages are for second properties which are an investment, rather than as a home. The interest rates charged for them are higher than for your own home, and lenders often only give you 75 to 80% of the value of the property. Your existing mortgage on your own home will determine how much lenders will be prepared to give you for a buy-to-let property.

The danger is whether or not the property market will go into freefall – leaving you with a second mortgage on a house that is falling in value and which, perhaps, you may not be able to rent out.

Repayment or Interest only Mortgages

There are two types of Mortgage

• Capital and Interest (repayment)
• Interest only

A repayment mortgage is the most straightforward way of paying off the debt. Each month you make a payment, which is used to pay off the interest and some of the debt itself. As long as you keep up the payment over the term of the loan you are guaranteed to have paid off all your debts. The three most common investment plans that people have alongside an interest-only mortgage are endowments, pensions and ISAs.

Interest-only - Borrowers pay off only the interest every month so they also need to consider how the capital sum will eventually be repaid. It may mean setting up a separate investment plan to pay off the capital owed at the end of the mortgage term. Our brokers at Smart Step Mortgages will advise you on the risk in taking out an interest only mortgage and understand exactly what they are getting into.

Commercial Mortgages

Smart Step Mortgages arrange business mortgages up to £2M, and sometimes more.

A commercial mortgage is a loan secured on a commercial property. However if you run a small business and trade from your home you may also qualify for a commercial mortgage.

Our lenders do not require you to submit detailed business plans or cash flows. We may not even need to talk to your accountant.

At Smart Step Mortgages we understand that speed and flexibility is vital for our business customers.

YOUR HOME IS AT RISK IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP REPAYMENTS ON A MORTGAGE OR OTHER LOAN SECURED ON IT.

Suitable security and adequate life cover may be required by the lender. As licensed credit brokers, written quotations are available on request.