Light at the end of the tunnel for buy-to-let customer

Wendy Bonham-Carter (35), a freelance digital marketing manager and property investor, purchased a one-bedroom apartment in Nottingham through a buy-to-let mortgage in 2016. Following the end of her four-year fixed period, Wendy was looking to secure a deal more suited to her situation, and that’s where Mortgage Light came in.

She comments, “I’d had a few negative experiences with previous brokers not understanding my requirements and I thought it was impossible to get a consultant who understood my situation and could make the process seamless. Essentially, I didn’t want the hassle of filling out paperwork.”

After initially being put on an interest only buy-to-let mortgage, Wendy was looking to switch to a repayment mortgage with the longest fixed-term rate possible however she had concerns that as she’d been self-employed for two years, she would have to go through financial checks again and wouldn’t qualify.

Natasha, a consultant at Mortgage Light, worked with Wendy to find a new deal and suggested the best solution was for Wendy to stay with her existing lender and transfer to a different mortgage  product. This would ultimately mitigate the majority of the financial checks needed with a new lender and would speed the process up.

She comments, “Natasha took the time to scope out all the options available to me and gave me plenty of information and advice as to what was the best solution. She was open and honest with her opinions from the start and although what she proposed wasn’t what I initially thought I wanted, she took the time to explain how this offer still suited my requirements but in a different way.”

Wendy initially wished to switch to a repayment mortgage so she could have the option to overpay when required. However, Natasha provided a few options for her to consider and Wendy found that she could secure a new, interest-only mortgage but with the same benefits as a repayment mortgage – in other words, with the option of making additional payments when she could afford it.

Wendy continues, “Natasha explained that in addition to paying the interest-only payments each month, I could overpay when I could afford it; this has the added benefit that should my flat be unoccupied at any point between tenancies, any over-payments I’ve made can be offset against low income times too; I win both ways! I wish I’d met Natasha and Mortgage Light before as I wouldn’t have been stuck with such an inflexible deal that had such a long-term fixed rate. Thankfully now I have comfort in knowing the rates I’m now paying are secure for another five years but if things go well, I’ll also be able to reduce the capital too at a rate that I can comfortably afford. I won’t be going anywhere else for broker services!”