Edinburgh · Scotland · UK-wide
Getting a mortgage through Prime Mortgages runs in five stages: a free initial consultation to understand your circumstances, an agreement in principle usually within 24 to 48 hours, a full application with your documents packaged for the lender, the formal mortgage offer — which is the point our fee becomes payable — and finally completion, where your solicitor draws down the funds. Most residential cases run from first conversation to formal offer in three to four weeks.
Twenty to thirty minutes, by phone, video or in person. We go through your income, outgoings, deposit, credit history and what you are trying to do. At the end of it you will know what is realistically achievable and roughly what it will cost. No fee, no obligation, and we will say so if we cannot help.
We identify the lenders whose criteria fit you and obtain an agreement in principle, usually within 24 to 48 hours. In Edinburgh this is what lets you offer on a property — agents will rarely take an offer seriously without one. It does not commit you to that lender.
Once you have an accepted offer we submit the full application and package your documents so the underwriter has everything at once. Cases fail far more often on missing paperwork than on affordability, so we are deliberately thorough here. We chase the lender and keep you updated rather than leaving you to ring them.
The lender issues its formal offer to you and your solicitor. This is the point at which the balance of our advice fee is payable. If your case does not reach offer, no balance is due.
Your solicitor concludes missives, funds are drawn down on the date of entry and you get the keys. We diarise your rate end date and come back to you around six months before it, so you never drift onto a standard variable rate.
Having these ready before the full application is the single biggest thing you can do to speed the process up.
Two ways, and we disclose both. First, our advice fee: £495 for a standard residential case, or 1%–2% of the loan, subject to a minimum of £495 on commercial, bridging, portfolio and complex work. Half is payable on engagement and the balance on production of your formal mortgage offer. Second, commission from the lender on completion — we tell you the amount as part of the recommendation.
There is no fee for protection advice. If you take life cover, critical illness or income protection through us, we are paid by the insurer only.
One thing to be clear about: if we charge a fee and your loan does not proceed after the offer is produced, that fee is not refunded. It is set out in your Initial Disclosure Document and we will talk it through before you commit.
Common questions
An agreement in principle takes 24 to 48 hours. From full application to formal mortgage offer is usually two to three weeks. In Scotland, the time from accepted offer to keys is commonly six to ten weeks in total, with the solicitor's work running alongside the mortgage.
In two parts. Half becomes payable when you ask us to begin work, and the balance on production of your formal mortgage offer. Nothing is payable for the initial consultation. The engagement half is non-refundable, and once a fee has been charged it is not refunded if the loan subsequently does not proceed.
It is a lender's provisional confirmation of how much it would lend you, based on a credit check and the figures you give. Some lenders use a soft search that leaves no visible footprint; others use a hard search. We will tell you which before we run it, and we will not run several at once.
No. Most of our clients are advised by phone or video and sign documents electronically. If you would rather meet, we can do that too.
Tell us straight away. A job change, a new credit commitment or a change in deposit can all affect the offer, and a lender that finds out at the final check will usually withdraw. Told early, it is almost always manageable — sometimes with the same lender, sometimes by moving.
No fee for the initial conversation, and no obligation. We usually reply the same working day.
A twenty-minute conversation will tell you what you can realistically borrow, what it will cost and whether it is worth doing. It is free, and we will tell you honestly if the answer is no.