The minimum deposit can be as low as 5%. Normally the minimum deposit is 10% however there is a significant reduction in the interest rates available once the deposit reaches 15%.

The amount that each person can borrow is based on their income, their current credit commitments and to some extent the amount of deposit they have.

The cost of the mortgage is governed by three things, the amount borrowed, the term of the mortgage and the interest rate charged and therefore is quite specific to each individual. A general rule of thumb would be about one third of your total take home pay would be the maximum that most lenders would provide a mortgage for.

A repayment mortgage is guaranteed to pay off your mortgage by the end of the term as long as all payments have been made. With an interest only mortgage your monthly payments only pay the interest that is due so at the end of the term you still owe the same amount that you originally borrowed and would need to either sell your property to repay the mortgage or find the money to repay it from another source by that time.

Yes if your income is not enough to get the mortgage amount required then a close family member(usually parents) can act as a guarantor however the guarantor will need to prove that they can afford all of the mortgage in addition to any mortgage they may have of their own.

The building itself needs to be insured plus life insurance is recommended along with Mortgage Payment Protection Insurance which is designed to pay your mortgage payments if you are either off work due to accident or sickness or lose your job due to redundancy. Independent whole of market quotes can be provided on request.

Yes, many of the mortgages that we transact are moving mortgages from one company to another.

• Stamp Duty: (a kind of tax) which is a percentage of the purchase price over £145,000. A handy calculator can be found at http://scottishstampduty.com/

• Solicitor’s fees: which are also based on the purchase price, a quotation can be provided on request; a typical first time buyer will pay between £750.00 and £1,000.

• Valuation fee: In Scotland all properties on the open market will have a single survey as part of the Home Report. Most lenders will accept this report rather than having to instruct your own. When remortgaging many lenders will pay the valuation fee for you.

• Lenders arrangement fees: which can usually be added to the mortgage if required and average about £995.00

• Mortgage broker fee: Can be anywhere from zero to 1 or 2% of the loan amount (Dewar & Partners normal fee is £295.00 which is reduced for repeat customers).

Any links to other websites are independent of the site and we have no control over them and accept no liability in respect of your use or inability to use them or any of the content of such web sites.

Yes you can but beware of early repayment penalties if you have only had your current mortgage product for a short time.

Yes, normally you are allowed to pay off up to 10 percent of the balance in any one year without incurring any repayment penalties.

You can normally only have one residential mortgage but you are able to buy another property to let out.

No, not for your main residence but investment properties bought on a Buy To Let basis will be subject to Capital Gains Tax.

This is a score that we all have and is based on various things about the way we have conducted our finances over the preceding six years and is used by financial services companies to assess our credit worthiness.

You can improve your credit score by proving that you can cope with all your various credit commitments such as loans and credit card payments and by paying things like mobile phone bills and utility bills on time. Being on the electoral role also helps.

By contacting us at Dewar & Partners for a free no obligation assessment.