Secured Loans

Secured loans to
help your cash flow		 To find out more call us on
0800 612 3167

Borrow at competitive rates without affecting your mortgage deal.

Our secured loans (often called second-charge loans or home-owner loans) are only available to home owners and are arranged through brokers.

People use secured loans to finance improvements to the home, reduce their monthly interest by consolidating existing finance into a more affordable payment or pay for special one-off items like a wedding or a long-planned holiday.

We only work with a small number of secured loan providers who meet our strict requirements, and specialise in secured loans.

These loans are secured on your home

This means that the lender will take a legal charge on your home, in a similar way that your mortgage company has a charge on your home. A ‘charge on your home’ means that if the worst comes to the worst and you can’t pay your mortgage or homeowner loan, a bank can repossess your home.

  • Find out more about secured loans in the below FAQs.
  • If you’d like to know more call us on 0800 612 3167
  • You can borrow between £3,000 and £200,000. Payment terms are flexible to suit your needs.
  • Secured loans give home-owners a way to borrow at competitive rates without affecting their mortgage deal.
  • Secured loans are a useful way to consolidate existing finance (monthly payments are usually lower than payments on multiple loans or credit cards), or pay for a wedding or a special holiday.
    These loans are secured on your home. If the worst comes to the worst and you can’t pay your homeowner loan, the lender can – as a last resort – repossess your home.
  • These loans have a variable interest rate (like many mortgage deals) and interest rates can go up as well as down.
  • Some secured loans may start with a fixed rate, but go onto a variable rate after an introductory period (typically three years). Make sure you study the payment illustrations in your secured-loan agreement carefully.

Personal borrowing questions that need answers?

We hope you’ll find the answer in these Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).

Secured loan questions that need answers?

  • What is a secured loan?

A secured loan requires you to provide your home as security. This means the lender will take a legal charge over your property, in the same way a mortgage provider would, which we will remove once the loan is fully repaid. When you take a secured loan, you still own your property. We are a responsible broker and want to make sure you can afford the repayments on your secured loan, but this security means, as a last resort, should you be unable to repay the loan the lender would repossess your property to recover their loss.

Borrowing money is a serious matter. You need to think carefully about whether you can afford the payments over the full term of the loan (not just during any introductory period when you may pay a lower rate of interest). 

  • How will Charleston Financial treat me as a secured loan customer?

Our teams, have experience of all kinds of personal lending.

We are a responsible broker and only deal with responsible lending institures, and we will check that you can afford the loan before we agree to it. This will include a detailed review of your income and expenditure.

We promise that we will:

  • Act fairly and reasonably in our dealings with you.
  • Help you understand the financial implications of your secured loan.
  • Give you high quality service.

 

  • What will Charleston Financial do for me?

We are responsible for arranging the loan. We will explain the terms and conditions to you, and explain what the various documents mean.

You should ask for an explanation if you don’t understand any part of your secured-loan agreement, including the terms and conditions.

If, after talking to us, you are still in any doubt you should seek independent legal and/or financial advice.

  • How much can I borrow on a secured-loan as a percentage of my property value?

Currently our maximum loan-to-value is 95%.

But the amount that we can lend you will depend on several things, including:

  • The value and sale ability of your property.
  • Your income and any other credit and loan commitments that you have.
  • Your credit history and how long you have lived in your property.

 

  • What is the minimum and maximum that I can borrow with a secured-loan?

Minimum: £3,000

Maximum: £200,000.

  • How long can I have to pay back the secured-loan?

Minimum term: 3 Years.

Maximum term: 25 Years.

  • Is there a minimum property value that you need for a secured-loan?

Yes, £75,000.

  • What percentage of the property’s value will you lend against?   

We will consider lending from 50% to 95% of the property’s value, depending on your requirements and situation.

  • I am self-employed – can I get a secured-loan from you?

Yes. We do lend to self-employed people if they’ve been self-employed for at least six months and can show us the following proof of income:

  • Sole trader – your three most recent bank statements (either business or personal).
  • Limited company – an accountant’s certificate, an SA302 (HM Revenue and Custom’s calculation of your tax), or payslips.

 

  • Is the interest rate on my secured-loan a variable rate?

Your secured-loan will have a variable interest rate, and that rate can go up or down (see third bullet below).

  • Your secured loan may have a fixed interest rate for an introductory period. But once this introductory period is over (typically three years), the loan goes onto a variable interest rate.
  • We may vary the Rate of Interest from time to time to take account of, in a reasonable and proportionate way,
    • any change in the Royal Bank of Scotland Plc. base rate,
    • any change in the costs of funds we use in our lending business (or we reasonably expect that a change in funding costs is about to occur),
    • a change in the value of our security because of the way in which the Property is used or occupied,
    • to take account of a change in law, decisions, determinations or guidance of any regulatory authority which regulates our lending business or any codes of practice with which we intend to comply.

 

  •  Can I settle my secured loan early?

You can settle your secured loan at any time.

You can request a settlement figure, and this figure will be valid for 28 days.

We will not charge you any additional settlement interest after this date, provided you settle the loan within this 28 day period.

The settlement figure will include a discharge fee of £195. This fee pays for a solicitor to remove our legal charge on your home, and it’s mentioned in your secured-loan agreement.

Your secured-loan agreement includes early-repayment illustrations. These illustrations show how much you’d have to pay to repay the loan when you’re:

  • one quarter of the way through the term of the secured loan.
  • halfway through the term.
  • three-quarters of the way through the term.

Please note that we have to make assumptions when we prepare these illustrations. These assumptions include:

  • A single rate of interest for the whole loan-term (although the rate may actually change over the term of your loan).
  • That you have paid all your loan payments on time.

 

  • Will each of my secured-loan payments go towards the capital as well as the interest?

Your secured loan is a capital and interest loan. In other words, each monthly payment covers the monthly interest on the loan and a proportion towards reducing the loan itself. This means that each monthly payment reduces the capital amount that you owe (your loan balance). So your loan balance reduces over the term of the loan, and is repaid at the end of the loan term.

This assumes that you don’t miss any payments during the term of your loan.

  • Can I make overpayments on my secured-loan?

Yes. You can make overpayments of any amount, as often as you like at any time during the term of your loan without penalty. Your monthly payment will not change but the term of your loan will reduce accordingly.

You should read the terms of your secured-loan agreement very carefully before you sign the agreement. Ask your broker to explain any terms or points that you don’t understand.

  • Who do I contact if I have questions about my secured-loan?

Our customer services team can help with any question about your secured-loan account. You can call them on 0800 612 3167 (weekdays only 9.00am to 6.00pm).

  •  Where can I get general help and advice on borrowing and secured loans?

These non-profit organisations can give you free, confidential, and impartial advice:

 

  • Could you lend me more money on an existing secured-loan account?

We may be able to increase the amount of your loan (we call it a further advance), please contact us on 01442 215 527 to discuss your options. 

  • What can I do to make sure that my secured-loan application is processed smoothly?

Make sure that all the details on your application are accurate.

We rely on what you tell us in the loan application so any details that turn out to be wrong will delay your application.

If your circumstances change after you’ve filled in your application, you must tell your us immediately.

THE OVERALL COST FOR COMPARISON IS 15.8% APR. THE ACTUAL RATE AVAILABLE WILL DEPEND UPON YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES. ASK FOR A PERSONALISED ILLUSTRATION. THINK CAREFULLY BEFORE SECURING OTHER DEBTS AGAINST YOUR HOME. YOUR HOME MAY BE REPOSSESSED IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP REPAYMENTS ON YOUR MORTGAGE OR ANY OTHER DEBT SECURED ON IT.

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