How do I remortgage for home improvements?

So, how does remortgaging for home improvements work? There are generally two solutions to getting this lump sum of money. You can take out a secured loan or remortgage to release equity for home improvements.

Secured loan

A personal secured loan can give you the chance to borrow large amounts of money. As with a regular mortgage, the guarantee against non-payment is your home. Therefore your property is still used as the security.
It is essential that you look at the repayment amount to ensure that you will be able to pay. If you fail to maintain your payments, your credit rating could be affected, or you could potentially still lose your home.
There are plenty of loan comparison websites available, but it is also advisable to speak to an expert for guidance. Especially to ensure that you understand the full costs of the loan and can comfortably afford the repayments.

Home improvement remortgage

A remortgage for home improvements is the other main option. The home improvement remortgage process involves remortgaging your property to release the equity in it, i.e., the difference between the property value and the current mortgage balance.

For example, if your home’s value is £200,000 and your current mortgage balance is £150,000, you have £50,000 of equity. Do note that lenders don’t usually permit you to take all of the equity out of your home. Furthermore, they will typically work off the value of your home at the time of the application.

What home improvements can I make?

There are a range of house improvements that can be made. Here are some of the most common improvements:

Remember, if you’re ever unsure about the improvements you want to make, reach out and we can help answer your questions.

Calculating home improvement costs

Rather than moving, some property experts suggest that it’s more effective to improve your current home.

Unfortunately, like many things in life, these home improvements come at a cost. Depending on what work that you are planning on having done, this can be a significant amount of money.
Once you have decided that you want to make improvements, you’ll first need to work out the proposed cost. This might involve getting a number of quotes. Depending on the scale of your improvements or alterations, some of the pricing aspects that should be considered include:

• Architect’s plans and services
• Planning permission
• The cost of builders
• Materials
• Building regulation inspections
• VAT
• Having some money put aside just in case things do not go to plan

Once you know exactly how much money you need, start investigating your options of how to get it.