Topic 3 - Borrowing Products Flashcards
What is the main reason ppl borrow money over a long period?
- to fund large expenditures: a house, car, study at uni, emergency life event
What providers sell loan products specially designed for MT + LT borrowing?
- banks
- building societies
- friendly societies
- credit unions
- finance companies
- insurance companies
How can the process ‘rolling over’ (using a ST borrowing product for a LT purpose) be done?
- by a credit card or overdraft
What should the length of a loan reflect + relate to?
- type + size of expenditure
- affordability of monthly repayments
What is a mortgage?
- a very LT loan to finance the purchase of a property
- loan secured on property being bought
What groups can mortgage borrowers be categorised into?
- first-time buyers
- existing customers moving home
- existing customers switching their mortgage
- existing customers inc. their mortgage
Why might existing customers move home?
- may be moving to new area
- buying larger home bc family grown
- buying smaller home bc can’t afford cost of present 1
Why might existing customers inc. their mortgage?
- may need money for another purpose (e.g. building extension)
- lender only allows if inc. equity
What are residential mortgages?
- loans for ppl buying their own home
Why are mortgages not available to anyone under 18?
- as a customer must have full legal capacity to borrow
What costs must a person pay at the time of purchase when buying their own home?
- a survey of the property
- legal fees
- stamp duty if property is > a certain value
- a mortgage application fee
- insurance
- cost of furnishing + fitting property
What is the amount a customer can borrow closely connected to?
- how much they can afford to repay: connected to income
What are the 2 main aspects determining how much a provider will lend to a mortgage customer?
- loan to income (LTI)
- loan to value (LTV)
What is loan to income (LTI)?
- ratio of size of loan to income of customer
- means the lower someone’s income, the less they can borrow
What calculation is used to calculate the max. amount someone can borrow/ their discretionary income?
- basic annual salary + any xtra annual income - monthly credit commitments
What is the mortgage lenders responsibility?
- to check borrower can afford to repay loan
- have accurate info ab borrower’s income
What is the max. amount mortgage lenders can lend?
- 4.5x income to 15% of their total new residential mortgage applicants (only applies to lenders lending >£100M/yr
What is loan to value (LTV)?
- ratio of size of loan to value of property
What is the equity of the owner?
- diff. between property value + amount lent
What is the relationship between the mortgage period + amount of monthly repayment?
- the longer the mortgage period, the lower the amount of the monthly repayment
- longer = higher interest to pay
Why is the age of the borrower a deciding factor of the mortgage term?
- as bank will want to know borrower will be of working age throughout period of mortgage
What are the 2 types of payment someone must make when borrowing money on a mortgage?
- capital
- interest
What is capital?
- total amount they borrowed (paid back in full)
What must the borrower pay interest on?
- amount borrowed over period of yrs of mortgage
What are the 2 types of mortgages?
- repayment mortgages
- interest-only mortgages
What are repayment mortgages?
- has a monthly repayment instalment that inc. some capital + some interest
- most common
- amount of instalment doesn’t change (unless variable rate mortgage) but proportions of capital + interest changes
- when last instalment has been made: debt is settled
What is an interest-only mortgage?
- monthly repayment covers only interest on amount borrowed (for whole mortgage period)
- at end of mortgage period borrower must repay full amount borrowed in 1 payment
How do borrowers pay full amount borrowed in 1 payment at end of mortgage period when using an interest-only mortgage?
- must have financial plan: to afford repayment
- lenders responsibility to check plan is likely to succeed
What are examples of repayment methods for an interest-only mortgage?
- endowment insurance policy
- stocks + shares ISA/unit trust/OEICs/investment bonds
- stocks + shares
- personal pension
- sale of second home
- sale of other residential property not yet purchased
What are part interest-only + part repayment mortgages?
- part of monthly instalment represents capital (not full amount)
- so borrower must have a repayment plan to pay the capital shortfall at end of mortgage period
What are mortgage borrowers always advised + why?
- advised not to borrow limit of what they can afford + leave a margin of safety
- so can continue to repay mortgage if interest rates rise + so monthly repayments inc
What are the main interest categories of mortgage?
- fixed-rate mortgage
- variable-rate mortgages
- discounted mortgages
- offset mortgages
- loyalty mortgages
- mortgages to help 1st time buyers
What is a fixed-rate mortgage?
- fixes interest rate for a stated number of yrs at start of mortgage
What are the benefits + disadvantage of a fixed-rate mortgage?
- if interest rates rise during fixed period, they will continue to pay lower fixed rate
- provides certainty that monthly payment won’t change: helps draw up budget
- if interest rates fall, will will continue to pay fixed rate
- charges early repayment fee (can be expensive)
What happens to the interest rate at the end of the fixed rate period of a fixed-rate mortgage?
- becomes variable for remaining term of mortgage
What is a variable rate mortgage?
- borrower pays a rate of interest subject to change from outset + throughout term of mortgage
- some linked directly to leader’s basic mortgage rate
What is the variable mortgage rate usually known as?
- standard variable rate (SVR)
What risks do variable rate mortgages have + not have?
- have interest rate risk
- doesn’t have risk of coming to end of a fixed rate period + being unable to pay higher SVR