If you're considering taking out a new mortgage with us, you should read this important information about our mortgages and how they work.
Please be aware that in the current housing market property prices are falling in many areas of the country. This is likely to affect the value of your property when you come to apply for a mortgage, and potentially your choice of mortgage product.
We obtain a mortgage valuation (or property assessment figure) for all house purchase and remortgage applications, in order to calculate the proportion of your loan compared to the value of your property (this is known as the Loan to Value or LTV) and the suitability of the property as security for a mortgage. As such, the mortgage valuation will not necessarily reflect the value an estate agent feels someone would be prepared to pay for the property
This could result in your property being valued at less than you told us and may also mean that you no longer qualify for a product with a specific LTV. If this happens you will have to switch to another product with a higher LTV, or it may mean that we are unable to offer you a mortgage.
If we are unable to offer you a mortgage after your mortgage valuation, any product application or valuation fees would not be refunded, so it is essential you are as accurate as possible when providing us with an estimated value of your property.
There are various websites that provide estimates of current property valuations and house prices and we would encourage you to look at these prior to telling us your valuation of the property. This will help to ensure the figure that you provide to us is as accurate as possible and increase the chance that the product that you select on application is the one that you will be able to proceed with following the application.
The majority of our mortgage products refer to the fact that the interest rate is applicable until a specified date, the product end date.
This means that although the product may be referred to as a '2 year fixed' for example, the rate of interest may last slightly more or slightly less than 2 years. This depends on when your mortgage (or mortgage product transfer or additional loan) completes.
For example:
A '2 year fixed rate with a product end date of 30/09/12' is chosen.
This is where interest is charged on the balance outstanding at the end of each day. An immediate benefit is gained from any payments of capital but interest is compounded daily. This means that if you miss or are late with payments, more interest will be charged.
With some - but not all - of our mortgage products, if you repay (redeem) your loan in full, repay in excess of any overpayment limits, or transfer (in full or part) to a different product or to our Standard Variable Rate, we will require payment of an early repayment charge.
The early repayment charge on these products will be calculated at the rate applicable for the year in which the repayment of the mortgage, repayment in excess of any overpayment limit, or transfer occurs.
The basis of the early repayment charge can vary depending on the product chosen, and will be based on either the amount repaid/transferred or the amount originally borrowed. If the early repayment charge is based on the total amount you borrow, this will disregard any payments (including usual monthly payments) you make during any fixed, capped, discounted or tracker rate period which may reduce the total amount borrowed. Please refer to the specific product for details of how the early repayment charge is calculated.
For repayment in excess of any overpayment limit the early repayment charge will be calculated on the amount paid over the limit.
Some of our products are portable so that if you move house within the fixed, capped, discounted or tracker rate period and keep the same amount of loan with us on the same product we will pay back the early repayment charges you incur for repaying your loan early. This refund is subject to conditions as will be explained in any mortgage offer issued to you.
The early repayment charge that you will have to pay depends upon the product you choose and the size of your mortgage. Details of the mortgages that have early repayment charges and the level of the charge is detailed in our current mortgage range section.
Applications subject to standard lending criteria and all loans subject to status.
Depending on the product chosen, you could significantly reduce the total amount of interest you pay and potentially knock years off your loan by paying more than your usual monthly payment, or by making occasional lump sum payments on top of your usual monthly payment.
Any additional payments you make will immediately reduce your mortgage balance and so reduce the amount of interest we are charging you. This can help reduce future payments. If you want to pay your mortgage off quicker, you must contact us. Otherwise, at annual review, your payments will be adjusted every year rather than reducing the term of your mortgage.
If you have previously overpaid, you can underpay or even take a break from making your monthly payments up to the amount you have previously overpaid. Underpayments or payment holidays have to be agreed with us in advance and will increase the amount of interest we charge you. Interest continues to be charged during payment holidays.
These features are normally available with our mortgage products, however there may be limits on the amount of overpayments. See current mortgage range section for detailed descriptions of each particular mortgage. These will also highlight any product fees or early repayment charges which may be payable.
Unless stated otherwise in the individual product features, the following points apply to all our mortgages:
Mortgage offer and completion
To qualify for one of our mortgages, any mortgage offer that we may make has to be issued within three months of the date of your application and your mortgage must be completed within three months of the date of the offer.
Loan term
The normal minimum term is 5 years, maximum term 25 years. However other terms may be available, subject to criteria.
Minimum loan
The minimum loan size for house purchase or re-mortgage is £25,001.
Maximum loan
We calculate the amount you are able to borrow as a percentage of purchase price, or valuation of the property, whichever is the lower. This is usually called Loan to Value (LTV) see our current LTV table.
Where a product fee is charged, part of it is payable with your application and is strictly non-refundable. Payment of this fee at this stage does not commit us to issuing you a mortgage offer. We cannot deal with an application until we receive your completed application form and fee (if applicable).
Any additional fee due will be debited to your mortgage account on completion, but can be paid by you anytime.
Because we calculate interest on your mortgage daily, the earlier any fees, such as the product fee are paid, the less interest you will pay.
Any unpaid fees will be recovered through your usual monthly payments over the remaining term of your mortgage. Interest, on a daily basis, will be charged on any fees that you do not pay upon completion. Details of any product fee we charge for each of our mortgage products is contained in our Current mortgage range section.
We strongly recommend that you protect your mortgage repayments in case you become ill, have an accident or lose your job and then have problems keeping up your payments. We can arrange Mortgage Payment Insurance to meet your needs and give you peace of mind if the worst happens.
See our Mortgage Payment Insurance page for more information.
Yorkshire Building Society is a mutual organisation. As such, it is run for the sole benefit of its existing and future members and does not have a separate group of equity shareholders. We are committed to bringing the benefits of membership to an increasing number of people through competitive saving accounts and mortgage interest rates, and a high level of customer service. This commitment is underpinned by the security offered by our exceptional financial strength, built up over 130 years.
We wish to avoid disruption to our business caused by speculators and allow customers access to our competitive savings accounts and mortgages.
Therefore all new customers opening a savings account or applying for a mortgage, which confers membership of the Society, are required to agree to assign any windfall conversion benefits to which they might become entitled to the Yorkshire Building Society Charitable Foundation.
In certain circumstances the Society may not apply this requirement. For example, on the death of an investor (who was not subject to the charitable assignment) where the money is transferred into a new customer account opened by a beneficiary.
This agreement will continue for a period of 5 years from the date you become a member irrespective of the number of investment and mortgage accounts you open in that 5 year period. At the end of the 5 year period, you will be entitled to keep any windfall conversion benefits which may arise after that date.
If you were an existing member on 8 April 1998 and have remained a member (either as a shareholder or borrower), you may open new accounts without being subject to the charitable assignment provision.
The Yorkshire Building Society Charitable Foundation is a registered charity which provides financial assistance to local charities and good causes, and acts as a focus for our charitable giving.
We are also pleased to support the work of Yorkshire Building Society Charitable Foundation through our Small Change, Big Difference scheme. An annual donation (maximum of 99 pence) - calculated by rounding up the interest payable to the nearest pound - will be made through the scheme to the Foundation.
The donation will be collected annually on 31 December each year and will be shown on your annual mortgage statement. This applies unless you tell us otherwise. If you wish to stop your donation at any time simply contact us.
A mortgage is subject to the mortgage conditions and mortgage loan terms copies of which will be given to all applicants when a mortgage offer is issued. These terms and conditions take precedence over information contained on this web site and any other information given to you. You must ensure that you have suitable arrangements to repay the loan in full at the end of your mortgage term. Premiums will be payable direct to the provider of any repayment vehicle.
Applications subject to standard lending criteria and all loans subject to status.
We continue to design award-winning mortgages so you can be assured that your mortgage is with the right lender. And we will do what we've always done - provide competitive deals and excellent customer service to suit your current needs.
Visit our Existing mortgage customers section to find out more about our special products and services for existing mortgage customers.
Yorkshire Building Society is one of the largest building societies in the UK. We offer a range of financial products and services including: savings & investment accounts, insurance products, loans, mortgages and more.
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Yorkshire Building Society is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority (FSA).
