First-Time Buyers

Are you looking to purchase your first home? At MPFS, we can help you iron out all the technical details and prepare appropriately so that you can buy the property of your dreams as quickly and as easily as possible.

When applying for a bank loan, you must meet certain conditions set by the Central Bank to ensure you have enough capital to finance the mortgage. These are known as loan-to-value (LTV) and loan-to-income (LTI) limits. As a first time buyer, you can access loans of up to 90% of the total market value of your property (meaning that you must provide a 10% deposit) and borrow up to a maximum of 4x your gross annual income. These limits can be exceeded by up to 15% in the case of first-time buyers.

Below we have set out a sample guideline which seeks to clearly illustrate the step-by-step process of the mortgage application process:

1. Do your research and apply: Prior to applying for a mortgage, ensure you have taken into consideration the size of your budget and the additional costs associated with purchasing a property (stamp duty, legal fees, moving costs etc). Additionally, you must account for the day-to-day expenses you will incur once you move into your new home (utilities, TV, insurance etc). You can use our free mortgage calculator to get a preliminary estimation of how much you can borrow. Once this is done, it will be easier for you to work out the size of the mortgage you require. You can then come to us and we will assist you in submitting your application once all due diligence is carried out (selecting the most favourable interest rate for you, analysing all conditions and clauses set out by the lender, comparing different incentives offered etc).
2. Provide supporting documentation: The lender will need evidence that you can meet your mortgage repayments so you will have to give them access to your bank statements and end-of-year income tax returns. This will assist them in deciding on the outcome of your application.
3. Obtain Approval in Principle: Once you have secured your deposit, the lender will provide you with an Approval in Principle if they deem your application successful. Essentially, this an indication of how much you can borrow. It stays valid for 6 months, period during which you should have enough time to go house hunting.
4. Provide requested documentation and receive offer: The letter of Approval in Principle will list certain documents that you need to provide your lender with so that they can proceed with your application. Once they are satisfied everything is in order, they will issue you with a loan offer letter that you should review with us and your solicitor. You and your solicitor must sign this letter and send it back to the lender.
5. Go house-hunting: Once you have your offer in the bag, you can then start searching for your dream property. When you have found it, make an offer and let your lender know if it is accepted. You will then need to conduct a valuation of the property, something which we can assist you in doing.
6. Pay deposit and exchange contracts: You can now pay your deposit and exchange contracts. You must also take out home and mortgage protection insurance at this stage. Note that you cannot access your mortgage funds unless you have secured the necessary insurance policies. Again, we can offer you help in doing this as quickly as possible.
7. Begin drawing down on your mortgage: Assuming you have provided the lender with all the documentation outlined in the letter of offer and all other necessary steps are completed, you can begin accessing your mortgage funds and make preparations for your exciting move-in!

As a first-time buyer, you should be aware of some of the supports available to you as you go through the process of purchasing your first property. Go to our Grants and Funding page to discover the full suite of financial supports on offer.