About Remortgaging
What is Our Role?
We act on behalf of your new lender and are responsible for transferring the mortgage from your existing lender or setting up a new mortgage. We will update you throughout the process but please bear in mind we are acting for the lender only so cannot provide you with any legal or financial advice regarding your transaction.
What Should I Expect?
Every transaction is unique and some transactions will take more time than others. That said, assuming your remortgage goes to plan, it should take around four to eight weeks from us being instructed, to the remortgage being completed. Of course it can take longer if your remortgage is more complex, but rest assured, we will do all we can to make it happen at the speed you require.
Who Will I Be Dealing With and When Can I Contact You?
From the outset you will be assigned your own dedicated case handler who will be completing your transaction. They are contactable by phone, email, instant message or video conference, and are supported by colleagues who are able to answer your questions if your case handler is unavailable. We are available 8am to 8pm Monday to Friday and 9am to 5:30pm on Saturday.
What Can I Do to Speed Up the Process?
To speed up your transaction, please complete and return any documentation to us as soon as possible. We still recommend doing this even if you don’t have a completion date in mind, so we can review these and ensure that, when you are ready to complete, there are no delays.
We understand that people have busy lives, so please provide us with the best method of contacting you.
We may ask for proof of identity. If this is the case, please provide this as soon as possible to avoid any delays. Usually we will ask you for a copy, which you can post online. If we ask for an original document we recommend that you send this via recorded or special delivery – rest assured, documents will be returned using the same method you used to send to us.
It is possible that, depending on the amount of your new mortgage compared to that of any existing one, there may be a shortfall in fund that will need addressing before completion can take place. If you think you will have a shortfall, please let us know in your questionnaire. If we require you to make a payment it is essential that the funds come from those people who own the property. The quickest method of payment is by personal debit card. If you are in any doubt regarding this please contact us at your earliest convenience.
The Remortgage Journey
1. Opening your file
We will obtain information from the Land Registry relating to your property and from your new mortgage lender about your application.
2. Welcome call
Once we have obtained the title information from the Land Registry we will verify this against the information provided by your new lender. At this point we will be in touch to discuss any discrepancies and to talk to you about your online journey with us. We will send access details to you for your case tracker so you can submit information to us online as soon as possible.
3. Obtain settlement figure
We will contact your existing lender, where applicable, to obtain the amount outstanding on your current mortgage and this will enable us to then request the funds from your new lender. Steps 1, 2 and 3 will often happen within hours of instruction from your new lender.
4. Review documentation and set completion
Once we have received all the document required, including your questionnaire, mortgage offer from your new lender and mortgage deed, we will complete our final checks and set a date for completion. At this point we will then request the funds from your new lender.
5. Completion
On the day of completion we will transfer the funds provided by your new lender to your old lender and/or yourselves. Once this transfer has taken place we will tell you and then send out a completion statement.
6. Dotting the ‘i’s and crossing the ‘t’s
Once you have completed we still have a few things to do, including changing the registration details at the Land Registry. We shouldn’t need anything else from you other than for you to let us know how well we have done, by completing our customer satisfaction questionnaire.
Useful Distinctions
Solicitor vs. Conveyancer
We are a conveyancing firm and specialise in conveyancing. Solicitors can provide a much broader range of services, conveyancing being one. Ultimately, there is no real difference between the two unless you require any additional legal services that a conveyancer can’t provide for you.
Repay vs. Postpone
We will automatically repay your main mortgage on your property; however you may have additional mortgages or secured lending that we will need to deal with. We can either repay this for you as part of your remortgage or you may wish to keep the secured loan, in which case we will have to process this by postponing it in favour of your new mortgage lender; i.e. the loan is still secured against your property. If you have any questions regarding this please do get in touch.
Occupier vs. Tenant
An occupier is anyone (other than the parties to the mortgage, e.g. you) who will be living in the property when the new mortgage completes. A tenant will occupy the property under a format Tenancy Agreement, more commonly seen in Buy-to-Let properties.
Freehold vs. Leasehold
Freehold is where you own the property and the land (this is the case with the majority of houses), whereas leasehold is where you own the lease (see Jargon Busting) to the property for a fixed period, e.g. flats or apartments. Please note, if your property is leasehold the conveyancing process can typically take 30% longer as it is a more complex transaction.
Date Set vs. Completion
Towards the end of the process we will set a date for completion, which will be inline with any request from you. We will also contact you to confirm this. We refer to this as a ‘date set’. The completion date is the day we receive funds and complete the transaction.
AIP vs. MIP
‘Agreement in Principle’ or ‘Mortgage in Principle’. Both of these terms describe having a mortgage agreed in principle by a lender, but not that the lender has guaranteed to provide you with one. Before doing so, lenders will need to see the results of a valuation survey on the property and complete their underwriting process. Once this is done, if the lender is happy to proceed, they will issue you and us with a formal mortgage offer.
Jargon Busting
Shortfall
when the money you are borrowing doesn’t meet the amount needed to repay your existing lender you will need to make arrangements to provide the difference.
Surplus
Any money left over from the redemption of your old mortgage. This can also be referred to as equity release.
Lease
A document under which an owner of a property grants another person exclusive possession of the property for an agreed period, usually in return for an agreed periodic payment.
Completion
the term used to describe the point at which your existing mortgage is repaid and your new mortgage starts with your new lender.
Redemption Statement
A document issued by the current lender indicating the total amount owing on a current mortgage.
