Amid the upheaval of moving home – packing boxes, unpacking boxes and deciding where to put everything in your new place – staying connected can make the transition smoother.
Especially if you’re a first time buyer. Something as small as being able to stream your comfort series on your first night living there can go a long way in helping you settle in.
On average, movers face 7.2 days without broadband during a home move. Although a week isn’t that long in the grand scheme of things, it’s more than long enough to disrupt your daily life, especially if you work from home.
To help you stay online when moving into your Pocket home, we’ve put together this handy guide with everything you need to know.
Following Labour’s landslide election victory earlier this month, we break down what the election of Labour means for first time buyers and whether there is reason for hope over the next four years.
What does this mean for interest rates?
A misconception that is often made is that a government has the power to cut or raise interest rates. This is not true. This power is in the hands of the Bank of England which is independent to the government.
However, the long-term economic forecast suggests there may be a cut in interest rates at the end of the summer. Given the continued fall in inflation and the economic stability a new government offers, things are looking promising for a cut from the 16 year high of 5.25%.
What is ‘A Freedom to Buy Scheme’?
Labour’s manifesto promise is to help more than 80,000 young people onto the housing ladder over the next five years. To do this they have promised a mortgage guarantee scheme coined ‘A Freedom to Buy’.
What does this mean? In simple terms, the scheme would support first time buyers by providing a guarantee for part of your mortgage, meaning you will not need as big of a deposit when buying a new home. This is likely to replace the current mortgage guarantee scheme which is expiring in 2025.
What about Stamp Duty?
Currently, first time buyers pay no Stamp duty land tax on properties worth up to £425,000. On any property purchase price of up to £625,000, you will pay no Stamp Duty on the first £425,000. After this first-time buyers will pay 5% on the remaining amount, up to £200,000.
This threshold commitment was made by the conservatives and will run at least until April 2025. However, labour are reviewing this position and may bring the threshold down from £425,000 to £300,000.
Although this is not official yet it’s worth bearing this in mind if you are thinking about purchasing a home in the next 12 months.
Will Labour bring back help to buy?
Labour has no intention of bringing back help to buy.
How else will labour support first time buyers?
Labour have also promised that they will support first time buyers by giving them first dibs on homes in new developments. Labour is yet to provide any further information on how this system will work but expect announcements over the next couple of weeks.
Looking for a way to get on the property ladder?
Pocket offers affordable discounted homes exclusively for local city-makers, providing an opportunity for those on moderate incomes to get their foot on the property ladder and own a piece of the city they love. Our homes are unique and we sell our homes to first time buyers at a discount of at least 20% to other one-bedroom flats in the area. Pocket is an alternative to shared ownership, there is no rent payable on these homes, and you will own 100% from day one.
A blog by Hugo Owen, Marketing and Communications Executive
Have you ever wanted to understand what theories go into making a great place?
Most of us look at buildings and instinctively understand whether or not we like them. But when asked exactly what it is about the place that we like, it is sometimes harder to explain.
At Pocket Living, our design team has many years of experience in understanding exactly what it is that helps elevate our built environments. In this blog, I will outline a few simple design features that we tend to make great places.
Taking out a mortgage to buy your first home is one of the biggest – if not the biggest – financial decisions you’ll ever make. But it’s also one of the most rewarding. Finally, after saving for so long and renting in the city you love, you get a place to call your own.
Having said that, you have to go through the mortgage process first, which can be really confusing. With jargon and paperwork coming at you left, right and centre, understanding what it all means can be a lot to get your head around.
In this blog, we’re helping you get to the bottom of your most pressing questions about first time buyer mortgages, including offers, withdrawals, extensions and the best lenders.
What is a mortgage offer?
Not to be confused with a mortgage in principle (MIP), also known as an agreement or decision in principle, your mortgage offer is what you’ll receive from the lender after they’ve approved your application.
Your mortgage offer includes details like:
The amount of money the lender will loan you
The interest rate (fixed or variable)
Estimated monthly repayment amount
The length of time you’ll repay the mortgage
Any fees due for taking out the mortgage
Specific conditions attached to the mortgage
How long the mortgage offer is valid for
You’ll usually receive your mortgage offer two to four weeks after submitting your application. To prevent any delays in the application process, it’s important to make sure all the information on your application is accurate, and you provide the relevant paperwork, including:
Pay slips
Bank statements
Proof of deposit funds
ID
Tax forms/accounts (if self-employed)
Reasons why a mortgage offer may be withdrawn
Your lender has the right to withdraw the mortgage offer at any time up to the completion date. There are several reasons this could happen, including:
Mortgage offer expiry
A mortgage offer is valid for a set period – usually up to six months – but this varies depending on the lender. If completion doesn’t take place within the time specified in the offer, the lender may withdraw. But there is a way around this (more on that below), so you won’t necessarily have to reapply.
Credit report changes
Your lender will carry out credit checks as part of the mortgage process. This includes a ‘hard’ search after you submit your application and before you receive an offer.
Afterwards, they may conduct additional checks to make sure your credit hasn’t changed significantly. If it has, due to missed payments or new debts, the lender may decide to withdraw your mortgage offer.
Misleading information
The lender will also conduct due diligence to make sure your property purchase is above board, like checking that there’s no fraud and that your funds are from legitimate sources. This is why it’s so important to be completely honest on your mortgage application; any discrepancies between the information on your application form and the supporting documents could cause the lender to withdraw the offer.
Change of situation
Sometimes, unexpected things happen, and circumstances change. For example, a job redundancy or drastic changes to your monthly outgoings. Depending on the severity of the situation, it could result in changes to the mortgage terms or withdrawal of the offer.
Property issues
Sometimes, further conveyancing checks on the property bring to light issues not originally flagged. For instance, flooding issues or structural damage, which might result in the lender withdrawing the mortgage offer.
Can you get an extension on a mortgage offer?
The process of buying a home can be long-winded and complicated. There will inevitably be bumps in the road, from construction delays (if it’s a new build) to legal hold-ups. Don’t worry, though, because mortgage lenders understand this and, in most cases, are happy to extend a mortgage offer beyond the initial agreed period. The length of the extension will depend on the lender, and they may request proof of bank statements to check your financial circumstances haven’t changed since the original agreement.
We recommend contacting your mortgage advisor or lender directly if you want to discuss an extension of your mortgage offer.
Who are the best mortgage lenders for first time buyers?
The best mortgage lender for you depends entirely on your financial circumstances. In the first instance, it’s always wise to speak to an Independent Financial Advisor (IFA), as they can guide you through every step of the process, from finding a lender to completing your application.
We recommend using Censeo Financial as an IFA when buying with us, as they know exactly which lenders offer mortgages on Pocket homes.
Hopefully, you’ve found this guide to mortgage offer withdrawals and extensions helpful. For more information about stepping onto the property ladder, check out our first time buyer guide, which details the process of buying a Pocket home from start to finish.
If you’re not quite at that stage but still interested in owning your own home, create a My Pocket account to check your eligibility, register for available properties and stay up to date on our latest developments.
