Mortgage

[Lily27]

Hi mortgage question here. I and my partner are 55+ and need a fresh mortgage as we want to sell the place we own and buy another one. We do need a long term mortgage of 20 years plus. I know some mortgage providers won’t do this. But some do. Eg some building societies. My question is: is it better to go via a specialist mortgage broker or should I just approach the lenders individually to see what we can get. I think I read somewhere that it’s best to go via a broker as you dont want a credit application refused as it would then count against the credit rating. Thank you 🙏

Would always recommend a broker, yes some providers will lend into retirement depending on your circumstances but a broker will know that.

I'd go via a broker. They can quite often get deals that you wouldn't get going directly to the lender. Do you need to extend your current term? When we last moved, our mortgage advisor managed to port our existing mortgage (saving us early redemption fees) and borrow the additional we needed for the next house at the same time. I've always just sorted out remortgaging myself previously but wish I'd gone to her years ago!

def saves yourself potentially lots of time and hassle and approach a broker

@Lily27 definitely a broker. London and Country are a free mortgage broker recommended by Martin Lewis who do whole of the market. We have used them over the years for all different circumstances like self employed, sole earner etc. I would ring them and have a chat, it shouldn't be a credit check chat just to see how many mortgage deals there would be for that type of situation and what their advice would be. We have always found them really helpful.

Thank you so much - that is super helpful. Will call them today itself

I used L&C - they 'only' got me the rate I could get myself but, by heck, it was a whole load less hassle having them do it for me.

As someone who works for a different broker, there are plenty of us smaller guys out there, and the ones recommended on Martin Lewis's website actually pay to be on there (I've looked into it before). family and friends, local recommendations very much appreciated!

Thanks for all the replies, everyone suggests broker - glad I asked

Completely agree. Definitely worth asking family and friends. A work colleague recommended mine - a small, free of charge, independent who has really good relationships with mortgage providers. She now monitors our mortgage and calls us with recommendations a few months before a rate change. One less thing to track!

A lot of mainstream lenders are lending to 80 now as long as you have a safe pension income.

Check with your current lender if it's possible to port your existing mortgage to a new property. Avoiding exit and redemption fees, and possibly holding onto a favourable rate, might prove a cheaper option than a new mortgage.

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/mortgages/porting-your-mortgage/

Definitely a broker. We had tried Habito and L&C but ended up paying for Charcol which was worth every penny.