What are you looking for - The shrinking mortgage market - But still competitive - Working on figures - Equity Release - How much could you raise?
What are you looking for?
**A new mortgage or do you need to re-mortgage?**
**Do you have a fixed rate (or a tracker) that's coming to the end of its term?**
**Are you in the 'buy-to-let' market?**
**Would you like to release some of the equity in your house to give you a lump sum or an extra income?**
We are a truly independent mortgage broker. We don't have 'favoured' lenders, nor do we operate from a limited panel. Each enquiry is properly researched across the whole of the available market. You can be sure that we will find the best deal for you; the one that most closely matches your needs.
A 'phone call will get you a rapid personal response from one of our two qualified mortgage advisers. Whether you then prefer the initial 'fact-find' to be by 'phone or face to face, we can gather the information we need in around 20 minutes. We will by then have a good idea of whether or not we can help to guide you through the complexities of the available options. Alternatively you can outline your needs in an email (office@omega-consulting.net) to us; We promise to respond within 48 working hours.
The Shrinking Mortgage Market
Two years ago there were over 26,000 different mortgages to choose from, provided by a huge number of lenders. Today the market has come down, relatively, to a large handful. Lenders are now very wary of borrowers looking for loans of more than 85% of the value of the property being purchased.
The 'credit crunch' takes the blame, although it has become such a well known and well used phrase that it seems to have become a scapegoat for a wide variety of ills. You might think that this should be a wonderful time for lenders to be making mortgage loans. After all . . .
The few traditional lenders who get most of the money they lend out from their customers deposits are indeed doing very well. Since the Bank of England (BofE) cut rates to ½%, savers have watched their returns sink to an average less than 2%, yet by June 2009 the average residential mortgage rate was still over 6%.
But It's Still A Competitive Market . . .
Rates will come down! Mortgage lenders for whom mortgages are still their core business need to lend money and are in competition for business. As base rate has dropped so has the more significant (for Mortgages) London-Inter-Bank-Offer-Rate (LIBOR). This is a wholesale money market from which many Mortgage lenders borrow. Rates in this market follow the trend of the BofE base rate and have been dropping steadily as the BofE has dropped base rates.
We're starting to see the return of special offer rates; new and better fixed rates; more flexibility in borrowing limits; more loans for the self-employed; some facility for those with impaired credit. Things are looking brighter.
We Will Find the Best Deal
As a properly qualified and fiercely Independent Mortgage Broker we subscribe to a state of the art 'real-time' software programme guaranteeing our ability to find and compare every mortgage product available on the 'open' market.
Working On Figures
We have a calculator that tells you what the monthly cost of repaying any given mortgage over any period of time will be. Go to Mortgage Payments for instant answers.
If you already have a mortgage and wonder how many months/years you'd reduce it by if you started regularly overpaying, the Overpay Mortgage calculator will tell you.
EQUITY RELEASE
Omega Consulting is specially qualified to advise in this difficult area.
Retirement is supposed to be a time when, with good (or even reasonable!) health you're able to enjoy life to the full – doing those things that there was never time for whilst at work. But it doesn't work out like that for many of us.
With the fall in Stockmarket values around the world over the past two years, the value of nearly all Personal Pension plans has fallen dramatically. As recovery begins prices will, in the end also begin to recover. But how long will it be before they regain 2007 levels – if they ever do – and what do you do in the meantime if you're about to retire?
Suppose you've never managed to put away quite enough into your pension or retirement plan? It could be impossible even to keep up the standard living you had, let alone find money to spend on the lighter side of life. How can you find enough income to live comfortably?
For those who are relatively 'Asset-Rich' but 'Cash-Poor' Equity Release might offer a solution by providing a cash lump sum that you can use as you wish; you could for example re-invest the money to provide a level of regular income.
There are 2 types of Equity Release:
- A Home Reversion plan. With this scheme you sell a part or all of your house and in exchange you are given a cash lump sum with the guarantee that you can live in the property, without paying rent on the part you've sold, for the rest of your life. Many people worry about this concept – it's 'giving away (part of / all of) my inheritance. But the amount of cash you can raise will, in some cases be greater than you'd get with a Lifetime Mortgage.
- A Lifetime Mortgage. This is exactly the same as a normal mortgage except that you are not obliged to make capital or interest payments on the loan during your lifetime. The interest charged on the loan you raise is simply added to the sum borrowed each year. You are given a guarantee that no matter how long you live, or how much the interest owed you will never end up with a debt bigger than the value of the house – you'll never be in 'negative equity.
How Much Could You Raise?
We've built a calculator to give you some idea in terms of a Lifetime Mortgage of how much cash you could generate, and what it might mean in monthly income if you re-invest the money. Have a look at this Equity Release link if it's of interest.
Be aware thought - this is a complex area; the amounts that can be raised and the exact interest rates vary hugely between lenders whereas our calculator groups peoples ages into simple bands, and takes an overview of what the interest and investment rates could be. For a more precise answer email us at office@omega-consulting.net with your exact age and the approximate value of your house. We can also demonstrate the effect of the 'rolled-up' interest rates on your final Estate, and make calculations for you showing how the effect is reduced as house prices rise (and conversely of course how it is increased if house prices drop).
We feel strongly that this is an area where our professional advice is vital and the decision to raise capital this way should never be taken lightly. Amongst other considerations the impact on other family members may need to be taken into account; as does any possible change to a variety of Benefits entitlements. We promise you will get carefully considered and impartial advice when you consult with us.
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