FAQ


Step by step to your new home
Please review the link below to understand a typical mortgage journey,
Step by step guide

Reasons for using a Mortgage Intermediary as your adviser

With so many banks and lenders offering mortgages, it can be hard to choose which one to go with.  

 

Here are five advantages of using a mortgage intermediary:

 

They know what they're doing – and how to do it

Your mortgage intermediary knows the mortgage market inside out. Getting the best mortgage for their clients is their bread and butter.

 

They're impartial and unbiased and want the best deal for you

 

 

Mortgage intermediaries are impartial – they're not affiliated to any one lender or banking institution, so you know you can trust them to find the best deal for you and your circumstances. 

 

 

A mortgage intermediary will look after the paperwork
 

 

If there's one thing you'll be delighted to have taken off your hands, it's undoubtedly the mortgage paperwork. 

 
 

A mortgage intermediary will save you time

 

Not only will the mortgage intermediary have all the information you need, they'll deal directly with lenders on your behalf – which saves you time. 

 

 

A mortgage intermediary can support you through the process


The mortgage intermediary has done all this before, many times, and knows exactly what's required at each and every stage of the mortgage process.

 

 

They are there at the end of the phone or email to help you with any queries you might have no matter how small. 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Should you get advice when taking out a mortgage.
If you are buying a home you have a choice of dealing directly with a lender or seeking impartial advice.

About 65% of buyers go directly with 35% using mortgage intermediaries (brokers) as their advisers.

A mortgage intermediary searches the market for you, provides recommendations on products and lenders, understands the intricacies of products and manages the whole process through to completion. 
 

Our website was the first website in Ireland to provide comparison information on Irish mortgages. Our visitors can choose to either go directly to a lender or use our mortgage broker services.

Our mortgage intermediary business is regulated by The Central Bank of Ireland.



Understanding Mortgage rates
Many buyers from all walks of life do not understand how mortgages work and the difference between various mortgage rate options.

Hopefully this explanation will assist you.

What is a mortgage?

A mortgage is a form of security taken by a lender on a property in consideration for having advanced funds to the borrower.

Details of the funds advanced and the terms of the advance are contained in an offer letter ,which when signed by both parties represents the contractual terms for the repayment of the loan. The key figures are the advance amount, the repayment term and the interest rate.

Interest

A lender charges interest to the borrower in respect of the loan advanced. The interest rate is either a fixed rate or a variable rate.

A fixed rate will set a specified level of interest for a specific period during which the rate will not change. For example on a 30 year mortgage you may choose to fix your rate for 5 years at 3.35%. Your repayments will not change during that five year period.

Alternatively you may choose a variable rate of interest. When choosing a variable rate you need to be aware that this rate is not fixed and may go up or down.

For example you may want to select a rate of 3.5% variable rate when starting your 30 year mortgage as opposed to a 3.35% fixed rate because you feel that interest rates will fall and you will either move to a cheaper variable rate or a better value fixed rate may not become available.

Uncertain future rates

Future interest rates are uncertain. In Ireland the maximum term you can fix your rate for is currently 10 years. If you do not fix your rate at the outset you need to be prepared for it and expect interest rate movements.

At present interest rates are historically low and the only way they will move over the medium term is upwards.





Where should I buy?
As part of our business we are in constant contact with home buyers. In Dublin there is a chronic shortage of houses, prices are very high and rental prices are probably at an all time high. Other major cities are feeling the squeeze also.

In this market, buyers need to be prepared in their house hunting activities.

1. Mortgage approval 

The starting point must be to arrange mortgage approval. If you are not ready for approval then you need to build a well organised plan to get there. This plan could range from increasing savings levels, paying off debt, moving job, engaging in further study - whatever it takes to afford your mortgage. It will not happen by itself, you have to plan it.

2. Savings .

When it comes to buying a house, the price is usually more than you expect. Sometimes a few thousand euro can be the difference between clinching the deal and not and this is where the benefit of prudent savings habits comes in.

For those who are satisfied that they will qualify for a mortgage, you need to check exactly what savings you will have at the time to expect to make an offer for a house and also clarify the availability of any additional funds - parental gifts for example. 

3.Areas where you want to live

A great exercise is to write down five areas where you would consider living. Rank the areas from 1 to 5 based on a range of criteria including for example, proximity to work, proximity to friends and family, schools, activities etc and according to your circumstances

5. Elimination process

Starting at preferred area number 1, check if there are properties available in this location that match your budget. In this regard you need to know exactly what is happening in the property market in this area. Check the property price register for details of closed sales, visit each auctioneers office in person. Location takes precedence in almost all circumstances, so as a general rule you should compromise on the house in favour of the location.

If you cant find a suitable house in location 1, move the process to location 2 and so on!

You may finish up in location 5 but at least you will understand clearly how you arrived at this decision.!

Claiming your tax rebate under the help to buy scheme.
The Government help to buy scheme is certainly well worth availing of if you are a first time buyer. We would recommend that all buyers interested in buying or building a new property should check out the details .here through this helpful link to the Revenue website.
Will you take all of my salary into account?

In assessing a mortgage application the key consideration lenders look at is the ability to service loan repayments.

In order to assess this, lenders review your current income and make estimations as to the likelihood of your income continuing into the future.

In considering income the following points are relevant:

  • Some overtime will be taken into account – depending on the pattern of overtime 
  • An element of bonus, to the extent it is guaranteed, will be taken into account .
  • Consideration will be given to length of employment and security of employment .
  • For commission based income – Lenders not to happy taking over 20% of commission in to account
  • Contract income is by it's very nature subject to uncertainty. For contract employment lenders will look at the nature and length of the contract /contracts and the probability of income continuances .
  • Other income to the extent it is verifiable and continuous will be taken into account.

    Please review the lenders products or contact one of our consultants.

Will I qualify for a mortgage if I am on a contract
Employment practices are changing. Many companies want to have the flexibility to adjust workforce levels as the market changes and prefer to use a certain element of contract labour in their work force mix. This practice is common in the technology industry.

From the contractors perspective they lose out on job security ( this is not to say that a company cannot make you redundant if they are restructuring) but they generally can charge in the region of 25% to 30% extra over the wages they would have received if employed full time and permanent.

It is not all one way because a company using contract labour runs a risk of losing contractors to competitors more easily than full time employees!

So there is balance in this new world and banks recognize that employment practices are changing and they need to adopt their lending criteria to deal with this new reality.

So in short contractors can qualify for a mortgage. The underlying test remains the same. Is the mortgage applicant likely to be in a position to afford the mortgage sought and what evidence exists to support the view.

The preferred areas are pharma, technology and medical/ health sectors.

Contractors need to have evidence of previous contracts and supporting documentation in regard to future contract and opportunities. They also need to demonstrate sound financial management with good savings records and minimum debt.




Quick Test.
This short test will help you decide if you could benefit from our Free mortgage advice and arrangement service.

Question 1
Your mortgage loan offer document will contain references to three separate interest rates,
  • The IRR ( Internal rate of return)
  • The APRC  ( Annual percentage rate charged)
  • The follow on interest rate ( Fixed rate mortgages)
Do you understand the difference between these rates and the implications for your repayments of each?

Question 2
On a €250,000 mortgage over 30 years, which figure below do you estimate would represent the difference between the total interest costs payable between two of Ireland's leading banks on a variable rate mortgage.

€10,000
€25,000
€35,000
€50,000
€60,000+

Question 3
What factors should influence your decision on whether to choose a fixed rate or a variable rate.

Question 4
Which lender is more likely to advance a higher level of mortgage than others when you have children.



Answers

Question 1
The mortgage rate or the specific interest rate used in calculating your mortgage repayment during the term of the mortgage.

The APRC is an average rate used to compare mortgages when taking a term of 20 years into account and is used to smooth out the distorting effect of of introductory or discounted rates.

Follow on rates are the rates specified by a lender that the mortgage will switch to after a fixed rate period is over. There are significant differences between lenders on the follow on rates, with the impact often running into tens of thousands of Euro.


Question 2
The correct answer is €60,000+ 

Question 3.
There are a range of factors to take into account when selecting either a fixed rate or a variable rate.
  • If interest rates are expected to rise, fixing at today's rates is generally advisable
  • The opposite is true if interest rates are expected to fall
  • Much depends on the level of expected change in rates over the period of the fix.
  • If you are concerned about rates rising above today's levels you should seriously consider fixing.


Question 4
Ulster Bank typically offer higher facility levels to applicants with children.