FAQS

When applying for a mortgage, you've got two ways of going about it: applying directly yourself, or applying via a mortgage adviser. If you're mortgage-savvy, then you might consider applying directly. But for most, applying through a mortgage adviser is the most sensible route. On top of guidance for those who find sorting a mortgage tough, brokers have details of most lenders' acceptance criteria (not usually publicly available), which they can use to place your application with a lender more likely to accept you. Plus, there are some top deals that can only be accessed through brokers.

All mortgage offers last for a fixed amount of time. In the case of major mortgage lenders, an offer tends to last for six months. With some mortgage lenders, offers might only last as long as three months.

Interest-only mortgages still exist, though these days they are the preserve of higher earners with a large deposit who can provide proof of being able to pay off the entire mortgage balance as a lump sum in future. For most borrowers, a capital repayment mortgage is the way to go. With this kind of mortgage, you'll be repaying both the capital you've borrowed and the interest due each month (rather than just the interest, as is the case with interest-only), meaning your debt will be cleared by the time the mortgage term ends.

Mortgage deals typically fall into two broad categories: fixes and variables. Where you're looking to 'fix' your mortgage, you'll need to decide how long you'd like to fix for. For example, two, three, five, 10 years? This is a really important decision to make, and one that – if you get it wrong – could be very costly. As there are several factors to take into account when working out how long to fix for, there is no one-size-fits-all answer.

This is the percentage of the property value you're loaned as a mortgage – in other words, the proportion you're borrowing. To calculate this, simply subtract your deposit/equity as a percentage of the property value from 100%. So if you've a £60,000 deposit on a £300,000 home, that's a 20% deposit. This means you owe 80% – so the LTV is 80%.

Your LTV has a big impact on the kind of interest rate you might be able to get on a mortgage. That's because mortgage and remortgage rates are priced in the LTV bands – and the bigger deposit/equity you have, the lower the interest rate will be.

Most mortgage deals allow overpayments – typically by up to 10% of the outstanding mortgage balance each year. Overpaying could mean you save £1,000s, even £10,000s, in interest, and reduce how long it takes to pay off your mortgage. Yet while overpaying works out for some, for others it's more sensible to save instead.

Yes, there are various ways of improving your chances of being accepted for a mortgage. These range from quick fixes like getting on the electoral roll to gradually bolstering your credit report.

Yes, your 'creditworthiness' is one the two big factors which dictate whether you'll be accepted for a mortgage (the other being your 'affordability') – and one of the main ways a lender judges your creditworthiness is by looking at what's on your credit report. As a poor credit history can scupper your chances of getting a mortgage, before any application it's best to check your credit file.

In a word, no. A 'mortgage-in-principle' – or an 'agreement-in-principle' –  is a conditional offer from a lender saying you may be accepted, based on a quick check of your income and, possibly, your credit file. In a heated property market, you are likely to be asked for one by a seller before they will accept an offer. In addition, for first-time buyers, it boosts confidence they'll be accepted. But it offers no guarantees. Do be mindful that too many of these checks in a short space of time could harm your credit rating.