Ask the experts

About our experts...

At John Charcol, we are constantly asked for advice by borrowers on what they should do when it comes to mortgages.  As such, we created this section so that you can submit your questions to our experts.  The answers are provided by a number of people who have years of experience in the mortgage market.  The team is led by Peter Woodward who works in our technical department.  Peter spent his formative years as an underwriter with one of the major UK lenders so what he doesn't know, quite frankly, isn't worth knowing...

So please do submit your question and we will do all we can to answer it as quickly as possible

Please be aware that these answers can only be generic and no personal recommendations can be made.


Posted on 11 February 2009

My husband and I are in our 4th year of an IVA and our fixed rate mortgage ended in January so we are now on the variable rate. We bought the house in 2001 for £43,000 but have a secured loan of £36,000 when we had the house...

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Category: Bad credit, Consolidation of debts, Remortgaging, Secured loans


Posted on 24 April 2008

Hi, my partner works for himself as a musician. He is currently paying off a gigantic tax bill that's making his finances very stretched. Also he owes £30,000 on cards and loans. This is the bad news. The good news is that he...

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Category: Consolidation of debts


Posted on 17 March 2008

Hi Katie, my wife and I are looking to buy around September time. The house price is around £150,000-£155,000. If we consolidate our debts we could achieve a £15,000 deposit. Our joint income is £47,000 and the loan repayments...

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Category: Consolidation of debts


Posted on 18 February 2008

Our monthly income is approx £4,000. We have debt accumulated to £23,000. Our current mortgage of £160,000 is with Northern Rock and our current repayment is £1,200 per month. If we consolidate and remortgage for £185,000 over 17...

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Category: Consolidation of debts


Posted on 13 February 2008

I have got a 40% stake in a shared ownership flat. I already have a secured loan on it for £24,000 along with unsecured debt when I was married. The only thing is, I have adverse credit, and no one will touch me with a barge...

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Category: Bad credit, Consolidation of debts


Posted on 8 February 2008

Hi there, my girlfriend and I want to get a mortgage, but we both have about £5,000 of debt. Would it be possible to consolidate this debt into a mortgage without any deposit to lay down. It would be our first mortgage. What...

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Category: Consolidation of debts


Posted on 17 January 2008

I'm looking to borrow more money on our house. Our house is valued at £175,000. Our current mortgage is £50,000 plus £28,000 on a secured loan. We want to consolidate our debt. We have credit cards as well and want to clear...

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Category: Consolidation of debts


Posted on 10 January 2008

Our monthly income is £2,000 yet our total outgoings per month are £2800. Much of this shortfall has been spread across credit cards that now total £15,000 with the 0% offers ending around June this year. We are currently only...

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Category: Consolidation of debts, Current rates & the market, Lower mortgage payments, Remortgaging


Posted on 6 January 2008

I'm looking to remortgage for £130,000 to pay off debt. My house has £60,000 equity in it and I have excellent credit rating, but because of the lending crunch no-one can seem to help. Is there a way of getting the equity out on...

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Category: Consolidation of debts, Remortgaging


Posted on 20 December 2007

I'm looking to borrow more money on our house. Our house is valued at £175,000, our current mortgage £50,000 plus £28,000 on secured loan. I want to consolidate my debt. I have credit cards and want to clear them. What options do...

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Category: Consolidation of debts, Lower mortgage payments, Overpayments, Payment Holdays, underpayments, Borrowback, Unsecured loans


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