Our client was a professional footballer in the Scottish Premiership looking to purchase a new residential property. However, he was experiencing several issues due to a combination of recent credit blips, his status as a sports contractor and the slightly unusual composition of the property he was interested in buying.
He approached us to see if we could iron out all the issues and secure a solution.
We secured a residential offset mortgage with a market-leading high street lender. We were able to secure an exception out with standard policy in relation to the credit blips and the lender was able to lend 85% loan-to-value (LTV) on the property which was considered a new build despite being a renovation of an old building.
The lender was also happy to allow a 5% new build incentive from the developer.
There were several hurdles to overcome before we could secure a mortgage offer for the client. On the surface, you may assume arranging a mortgage for a professional footballer on a high income would be straightforward but every lender has a different policy on how the assess professional sportspeople.
First and foremost, footballers tend to retire around the age of 35 so securing a standard 25-year mortgage term is very difficult unless the applicant can evidence post-retirement income plans.
Our client had recently launched a side business venture but had not yet completed his first year’s financial accounts so could not be used to evidence post-retirement income. As he had just turned 27 years old, this meant that the standard maximum term offered would be 8 years by most banks.
Additionally, the purchase property was substantially renovated by a developer so would technically be classed as a new build flat thus reducing the max LTV with most lenders. Finally, the client had some recent credit blips due to unpaid utility bills owing to a mix up with his energy provider.
Key to securing a competitive high street term was our robust relationships with the high street banks. Through our Premier Relationship Manager at one such lender, we were able to overcome all issues secure an offer at 85% LTV. The bank was happy to overlook the historical credit blips and could even offer a higher term than alternative options.
The mortgage product was fixed for two years meaning we can revisit upon expiry and increase the applicant’s term once his side business has become more established.
The lender was also able to offer a term of 8 years and 11 months which is a little unusual but due to the size of the loan, the extra 11 months brought the payment down making it more manageable for the client.
His offset account is also available and as a higher rate taxpayer, this facility will allow the client to make savings on his mortgage payments.
While the client won’t earn any interest on the funds in his offset account, he won’t be charged any interested on the same amount of money on his mortgage.
We look forward to assisting with the refinance in a couple of years.
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