Our lending decisions are based upon a full affordability assessment whereby we will assess if the loan is affordable based on the applicant’s income, loan/credit card commitments and regular and essential household expenditure.
Please ensure you use our online affordability calculator before submitting a Decision in Principle.
We require a Monthly Essential and Regular Expenditure Form for some customers who have low levels of outgoings in relation to their circumstances. An automated prompt on the Online Affordability Calculator will tell you when to fill this in for your client.
Providing the income and expenditure information input is accurate the calculator will provide you and your clients with an accurate illustrative borrowing figure.
To help you complete this process more easily, forms can now be e-mailed to expenditureform@northernrock.co.uk. If you are unable to email the form you can fax or post as usual.
Please note that although products will be booked at the time of application, the valuation will not be instructed and the application will not be progressed until we receive all relevant supporting documentation, including the expenditure form where applicable.
If supporting documentation is not received in a timely manner, we reserve the right to cancel the original application including the product requested.
The table below provides details of the documents we will require to verify income. Please ensure that all paperwork, including fees, are in order and forms are signed and dated by submission. This will help us process the application quickly.
| Income Type | Income verification requirements |
|---|---|
| Employed (Standard Income) | Last two monthly payslips and last P60, or last four weekly payslips and last P60. |
| Employed (Variable Income) | Last two monthly payslips and last P60, or last four weekly payslips and last P60. |
| Self Employed | Last two years' accounts or accountants certificate, or last two years' HM Revenue & Customs SA302 forms. |
| Pension Income | Last annual pension statement (must be dated within the last 12 months), or last two monthly pension slips, or last two months' bank statements showing pension credits, or latest P60 or last HM Revenue & Customs SA302 form. |
For customers employed for less than six months, an employer's reference will be required.
Fast Track is not available for any application which has a decision in principle dated on or after 19 March 2012. Income must be verified for all applications received with a decision on or after this date.
Some residential mortgage applications with a decision in principle dated prior to 19th March 2012 may be eligible for the Fast Track service. In these instances, income details declared by the customer may be accepted without obtaining standard documentary verification. The eligibility criteria customers must satisfy to qualify for Fast Track are as follows:
For cases previously agreed on a Fast Track basis Northern Rock reserves the right to ask for evidence of income and these cases will still be subject to our random sampling process where income verification will be requested.
| Valuation or purchase price whichever is lower | Maximum Home Purchase/Re-mortgage |
|---|---|
| £0 - £500k | 85% |
| £501k+ | 80% |
Your client may be able to borrow up to 90% LTV, subject to availability.
The maximum Loan for Right-to-Buy, Sitting Tenants and Remortgages is based on valuation.
The maximum LTV for Buy To Let loans is 70%
The maximum LTV for loans on an interest only basis is 75%
There is a maximum loan size of £1m.
If, for any reason, the application does not proceed on the original property the applicants must reapply for a new product available at that time.
The property offered as security must be in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland, residential, owner occupied and of traditional construction. Leasehold properties must have an unexpired term of at least 30 years at the end of the mortgage term.
Northern Rock requires a first legal charge over the property offered as security.
If you wish to request a product switch after submission, please contact us on 0845 600 1516*.
Please note that once you have submitted an application for a particular product, we will reserve funding for your client’s mortgage at the interest rate you have selected. After this point, you will only be allowed to change products if the subsequent choice comes from the same range of products.
Once a product range is replaced, your client will not be allowed to switch to a product from a later range.
Applications received after a product withdrawal date will not receive the former product rate unless the case has been received and then referred following Decision In Principle process for further underwriting consideration.
* Lines are open Monday-Friday 8.30am-6.00pm. Calls are charged at your service provider's prevailing rate and may be monitored and recorded
All residential purchase and all BTL applications are subject to a non-refundable £99 application fee, payable upfront.
| Purchase Price | Valuation Report Fee | Homebuyer's Fee |
|---|---|---|
| up to £60,000 | £112 | £270 |
| £60,001 - £100,000 | £132 | £311 |
| £100,001 - £150,000 | £163 | £352 |
| £150,001 - £200,000 | £188 | £398 |
| £200,001 - £250,000 | £214 | £444 |
| £250,001 - £500,000 | £275 | £510 |
| £500,001 - £750,000 | £331 | £561 |
| £750,001 - £1,000,000 | £377 | £612 |
| £1,000,001 - £1,500,000 | £510 | £817 |
| £1,500,001 - £2,000,000 | £663 | £1,021 |
| £2,000,001 - £2,500,000 | £817 | £1,225 |
| £2,500,001 - £3,000,000 | £970 | £1,531 |
| Over £3,000,000 | By Negotiation | By Negotiation |
The Basic Valuation Report fee includes the VAT charged to Northern Rock by the valuer.
The Homebuyers Report fee is made up of two elements:
When the valuer is not instructed by Northern Rock, for example in Scotland, the £99 application fee will be debited to the mortgage account on completion. This policy applies across residential and BTL applications.
Please note that the Valuation Fee(s) above are based on the actual property valuation.
If the instructed valuer values the property at a figure which differs from the purchase price/estimated value stated on your mortgage application form, the fee payable may change in accordance with the table above.
In the event the property is valued at a figure higher than that stated on the mortgage application form, the difference between the Valuation Fee payable and the actual amount paid prior to the valuation will be payable prior to the issue of an Offer of Loan.
In the event the property is valued at a figure lower than the figure stated on the mortgage application form, the difference will be refunded to you.
A credit check will be made on all applicants and the loan will be declined where an adverse credit history is revealed, for example if a County Court Judgement is registered. In addition, statistical techniques (credit scoring) will be used as part of the decision making process.
Monthly mortgage payments must be made by Direct Debit otherwise an annual charge of £25 will be made to the mortgage account. The applicant will be responsible for all legal and valuation fees, whether or not the loan completes.
Please note the maximum LTV available for New Build properties is as follows and is based on the lower of valuation or purchase price:
All residential products:
| New Build houses | - valuation/purchase price up to and including £500,000 maximum LTV 85% |
| - valuation/purchase price over £500,000 - maximum LTV 80% |
All Buy To Let products:
Any incentives offered by the housebuilder will be deducted from the purchase price before the maximum LTV limit is applied.
The product fee can be added to the loan, and is allowed to take the maximum LTV above that which is determined by Northern Rock's lending policy.
Purchases by way of sub-sale agreement are not usually acceptable. Refer to Northern Rock if further guidance is required. We do not accept builders incentives.
To obtain a redemption statement for your client please contact us on 0845 604 4898 or 0191 522 3989. Lines are open Monday to Friday 8.30 am - 6.00pm. Calls are charged at your service providers prevailing rate and may be monitored and recorded.
Alternatively, get in touch with your local Business Development Manager.
For further information please telephone 0845 602 8323. Lines are open Monday to Friday 8.30am - 6.00pm.
All loans must be repaid by Direct Debit or be subject to an annual charge (currently £25). If applicable, the first charge will be debited to the mortgage account on completion of the loan and subsequently on the anniversary of completion.
This charge will also apply where a Direct Debit is subsequently cancelled and replaced with another payment method.
Full details of how the applicant intends to repay the mortgage must be given on the application form. Where this information is not provided or is insufficient, we will be unable to process the application until we receive satisfactory evidence and, as such the application will be delayed.
Northern Rock accepts the following repayment vehicles for Residential and BTL mortgages: investment plan, ISA, personal pension plan, endowment, share portfolio, sale of main property and sale of second property. The acceptance of sale of main property as a repayment vehicle will be limited to applications with a maximum LTV of 60% and minimum equity of £150,000 (maximum 70% for BTL with no minimum equity).
Northern Rock does not accept the following repayment vehicles: inheritance, dividends, regular overpayments, remuneration and intention to convert to repayment at a future date.
When making a full application for an interest-only or part and part mortgage the following information must be provided:
Northern Rock will not accept an application where the current/projected value of the repayment vehicle is less than the interest-only loan at the end of the agreed mortgage term. In these circumstances, details of a further repayment vehicle must be provided or the application can only proceed on either a repayment or part and part basis.
In circumstances where the customer’s repayment vehicle is sale of their main property, a second property or share portfolio their current value must cover the interest-only loan at the end of the agreed mortgage term.
The maximum age limit for our applicant(s) is 75 years at the end of the mortgage term.
The maximum age to which Northern Rock will accept employed income is 70.
If the term of the loan extends beyond the applicant's declared retirement age or age 70, we will require evidence of pension arrangements, irrespective of their current age.
The applicant's ability to afford the mortgage over the full term will be assessed.
For example:-
Please note:-