Santander mortgage reviews (+3 tips)

In this blog, we will consider Santander mortgage reviews and how to analyse the publicly available information about Santander mortgages and be able to review them so you can make up your mind about if you want to apply for a mortgage with Santander.

Santander is a UK bank which offers mortgages in the UK. It is one of the biggest mortgage lenders in the UK and so its Santander mortgage reviews are in demand by a lot of people.

The Santander mortgage review

When looking at Santander the first available information you have is the trust pilot review on the Santander bank which you can see here. If this review is anything to go by then this will imply that the Santander mortgage reviews won’t be so good.

What kind of mortgage does Santander offer

In our Santander mortgage review, we considered the various types of mortgages which Santander offered.

Santander Fixed-rate mortgages:

With these mortgages, the rates are fixed for a period of 2, 3 or 5 years and provides you certainty over your Santander Mortgages mortgage for that time frame.

Santander Variable rate mortgages:

You can access a host of variable mortgages through Santander Mortgages mortgages and this mortgages will have a variable rate which can be increased or decreased at any time by Santander Mortgages mortgages.

Santander Tracker mortgages:

You can access a host of tracker mortgages from Santander Mortgages mortgages. These mortgages will usually track the bank of England’s rate and will move in line with it, although it may not be the exact rate but rather a rate which will increase by the same point or increase by the same point as the bank of England rate.

Santander Remortgages:

You can access a host of remortgages on any of Santander Mortgages mortgages products.

Santander Mortgages buy to let:

Santander Mortgages mortgages also offer a host of buy to let mortgages for buy to let investors.

You may be able to access mortgages on Santander Mortgages mortgages with up to 95% Loan to value (LTV).

Do Santander mortgages allow you to make overpayments?

Santander Mortgages mortgages may also allow you to make overpayments on your mortgage but there may be a fee for doing so and a limit on how much you can overpay your mortgage each year.

Does Santander offer the best mortgage deals?

Whilst conducting our Santander mortgage review we looked to see what mortgage provider offered the best mortgage deals but during our analysis, we discovered that the mortgage rates which most consumers ended up getting were based primarily based on their own mortgage affordability and not necessarily the rates offered. This is because every borrower may have different circumstances.

You can contact Santander directly through their website here.

Can I borrow more on my Santander mortgage?

Yes, you may be able to borrow more from your Santander mortgage if you meet the mortgage affordability requirements set out by Santander at the time of your request to borrow more from your Santander mortgage.

If you are a first-time buyer then Santander mortgages welcome you and you may be able to find some mortgage products on offer from Santander mortgages which may suit you.

For a mortgage as a first-time buyer, you will usually need at least a mortgage deposit of at least 5% and in many cases you may be able to use a host of government schemes which help you increase the amount of mortgage deposit you have or reduce the total cost of the property purchase.

Some of these first-time buyer or home mover government schemes include:

• Lifetime ISA– gives you a government bonus of £1,000 if you save a maximum £4,000 a year.
• Help to buy ISA– gives a maximum bonus us £3,000 if you save the maximum allowed of £12,000. Before you get either you should consider which is better. Lifetime ISA vs Help to buy ISA.
• Help to buy equity loan– gives you up to 40% as a 5-year interest-free equity loan. You begin to pay interest at 1.75 % after the fifth year and 1% plus RPI for every year thereafter.
• Shared ownership– You can buy between 25% to 75% of the property initially with a shared ownership mortgage and then buy more using a staircasing mortgage.
• Armed forces help to buy– similar to the help to buy equity loan but specific for the armed forces personnel giving them an increased chance of acceptance.
• Rent to buy– This is the right to buy scheme on which this guide is currently discussing. A different marketing name is just used. Watch out for this when shopping to avoid missing out on eligible properties due to confusion.
• Right to buy– allows you to buy your home at a discount price.
• Preserved right to buy– same as above.
• Right to acquire– similar to the above.

Depending on where you live, you may also be able to take advantage of home buying schemes provided by your local council. Example: In Norwich, the local councils provide the Norwich home options scheme.

Is Santander a good mortgage lender?

As with all mortgage lenders, you will have to make up your own mind on if Santander is a good mortgage lender or not.

Throughout our Santander mortgage review, we didn’t find any reason to term Santander mortgages as a bad mortgage lender.

You should also be aware that all mortgage lenders in the UK are regulated by the FCA and so they have to meet certain minimum standards. Mortgage lenders and all FCA regulated entities have to “treat customers fairly”.

What is a Santander mortgage in principle?

A Santander mortgage in principle is simply a letter which indicates how much Santander mortgages is willing to lend to you.

How long does Santander give to complete a mortgage?

When buying a property most mortgage lenders will give you 6 months within which you must complete on the mortgage. This is the same with Santander. If you need more time you may be able to apply for an extension but you may be charged some fees.

What documents do I need for a Santander mortgage?

During our Santander mortgage review, we tried to come up with a sample list of documents you may be expected to have before applying for a mortgage in principle with Santander.

Having these documents ready will ensure your Santander mortgage application is handled swiftly and you can get a mortgage offer in record time.

The documents you may need include:

3 months worth of bank statements

3 months worth of payslips

Your P60 tax return

Your SA302 tax calculation form(if you are self-employed)

Your company accounts or self-employed accounts if you are self-employed

How long does a Santander mortgage take?

A Santander mortgage application may take as much as 4 weeks to complete but this all depends on your own individual circumstances. If you have a more complex situation then your Santander mortgage application could possibly take longer.

How long does a Santander remortgage take?

When conducting our Santander mortgage review we considered how long the remortgage process could take with Santander.

The Santander remortgage process could take as long as 4 weeks but this is all dependent on your personal circumstances. If you are getting a remortgage on a non-standard construction property then you may find that it takes longer to get a remortgage.

This could also be the case if you have bad credit. You may need a specialist bad credit mortgage broker to assist you in finding a mortgage lender willing to offer you a remortgage.

If you are remortgaging from Santander to another mortgage lender then you will need a Santander redemption statement.

How much can you borrow from Santander?

The amount you may be able to borrow from Santander is completely dependent on your mortgage affordability but Santander may offer a mortgage multiple of up to 5.

What happens after your fixed-rate Santander mortgage deal is over?

During our Santander mortgage review, we discovered that as with most mortgage lenders when your fixed-rate mortgage deal ends you will be moved over to the mortgage lenders standard variable rate deal. This is usually more expensive than the fixed-rate deal.

To avoid this you can remortgage at the end of your fixed-rate mortgage deal to a better mortgage than the standard variable rate deal you would have automatically been moved on to.

Santander mortgage calculator

In our Santander mortgage review, we found that Santander had a mortgage calculator which you can use to get an idea of how much Santander may be willing to lend to you.

You can find this calculator here.

Santander mortgage deals

In our Santander mortgage review, we considered the types of deals that Santander had but we didn’t feel it necessary to include them here as the mortgage deals or remortgage deals offered by Santander were subject to change at any time and the best way to see what mortgage or remortgage deals are currently available is to check with the respective mortgage lenders or your mortgage broker.

Can you get a Santander mortgage with Bad Credit?

In our Santander mortgage review, we considered if you could get a Santander mortgage with bad credit.

In reality, it is very hard to answer this question as it depends heavily on the type of bad credit you may have.

Santander mortgages will consider this and let you know if you are eligible for their mortgage products.

Bad credit could include:

A CCJ

An IVA

A debt management plan

A default

A bankruptcy

A home repossession

Using a mortgage broker for your Santander mortgage

You may want to use an independent mortgage broker to help you get a mortgage on your new home.

Mortgage brokers are important as they can access mortgage products from across the whole of the market in some cases.

This could be over 11,000 mortgage products. This may have some advantages rather than going directly to a mortgage lender.

A mortgage broker will look to understand your financial circumstances and then provide recommendations on which mortgage products may be suitable for you based on your mortgage affordability.

After giving you these mortgage recommendations, most mortgage brokers will seek your consent to apply for a mortgage in principle. 

This will allow you to shop for your home as more estate agents and sellers may take you seriously and it will also give you confidence that your mortgage is indeed a possibility before you make a full mortgage application. 

Once you have found a home you want to buy and are satisfied with the mortgage offer for your mortgage then the mortgage broker will then look to get you a mortgage offer.

This will come with a key facts illustration document that details the features of your mortgage including how much you will pay per month.

It will also contain information on if there are any limits such as early repayment fees, or annual overpayment limits.

If you are happy with everything you can then go on to secure your mortgage with the help of a conveyancer.

Your conveyancer will manage the legal searches on the property to ensure there aren’t any issues with it.

They will oversee the sales agreement to ensure it is in your best interest, they will manage the transfer of mortgage funds, exchange contracts with the seller or their conveyancer, and set a completion date with the seller or their conveyancer.

This will then bring an end to the conveyancing process, at which point you will receive the keys to the house and move in.

If you need financial advice and you live in the UK then you could contact the Money Advice service over the phone or via chat for impartial advice.

You can also contact the debt charity “Step Change” if you are in debt and need help.