Bright Life

The purchase of your first property is one of life’s milestones and we want it to go smoothly. It’s not just about simply applying for a mortgage – our advisers have all bought property before and know the process inside out.

We can advise and reassure every step of the way; if you have an estate agent demanding an Agreement in Principle we can do this at short notice and give them a call to calm their difficulties. If there are issues with the survey, we can advise – we are totally independent and not employed by any agents – and would not be afraid to advise pulling out if that was in your best interests.

Solicitors play a big part in the transaction but will often use legal jargon amidst an unfamiliar process, which can even be confusing for those who have been through it before. We can recommend trusted solicitors to use and can help with the conveyancing process if needed, liaising between the parties concerned.

It’s rare to be in a situation where you are better off on your lenders Standard Variable Rate (SVR) rather than being on a deal. However, if you don’t get a new deal before yours runs out that’s what happens, and you could be left seriously out of pocket.

Don’t let this happen. We track all our customer’s mortgages; we understand if and when to remortgage. As a minimum you should review your mortgage deal 3 months before it is due to end. This provides the opportunity to get the right deal arranged so you can get a great deal without having to go through hoops and pay more than you need to.

Buy to Lets can be a lucrative investment, potentially providing short term returns from the rent and long-term growth through house price inflation. To make the most from your buy to let investment, you need to ensure you get the right mortgage and right advice.

We provide expert advice on all aspects of your buy to let, and at any point in the life cycle.
For most lenders, a deposit of 25% of the property value would be the required amount needed to secure a buy to let property. The lender would also want to ensure that the rent will cover the mortgage too. As a rule, you should aim to receive at least 25% more rent than the mortgage payment, to cover costs and make some profit.

You may want to consider whether you want to pay your buy to let property off over a period of time, which is likely to absorb most of the rent. Or would prefer to take the more popular interest only route which provides you a much larger regular income from your property, and you still can take a lump when you come to sell. Though, you may want to remortgage the property as its value grows purchase more buy to let properties and begin your own property empire.

Consumer Buy to Let (also known as Family Buy to Let) is where someone rents a property to a family member. Because consumer buy to lets tend not to be about profit; these types of buy to lets are regulated (whereas normal buy to lets are non-regulated).

They tend also to have slightly different rules than normal Buy to Lets. Thought the lenders still look towards a 25% deposit, the monthly payments do no need to be covered by the rent. Rather, the lender will consider the purchaser’s income to ensure that mortgage can always be covered.

In reality there is no such thing as a self-employed mortgage. A mortgage is a mortgage, the difference is how you how you earn your income and intend to repay the mortgage.

For the self-employed, tight regulation and mortgage lender stress tests has had a massive impact on their ability to acquire the right mortgage.

Bright Life works with you and your accountant to help achieve your mortgage dreams. We ask the questions that you might not have thought of, like: would it be better to take an interest only mortgage and make lump sump payments when you have the capital?

Mortgage protection is the minimum protection you should consider if you have a mortgaged property. Simply put, this will pay your mortgage should you be unable to pay it yourself. This may be through illness, loss of employment or some other means that stops you being able to pay your mortgage.

If you are unable to pay your mortgage, and don’t have mortgage protection, you may be able to take a payment holiday for a short period, which will then increase your monthly payment once out of the holiday. This may also impact your credit score and prevent you acquiring new mortgages or remortgaging to in the future.

Life Insurance policies pay out if you die within a specified period. This is usually the cheapest way to provide financial protection for your family in the event of your death.

Coming to terms with the loss of a loved one is never an easy thing to do and adding financial burden to the grief can make coping increasingly difficult. Life insurance on its own is a relatively cheap way to overcome this problem and receiving a lump sum of money can help to support your family or even a business partner after you die. Some of the reasons to take out life insurance could include:

Repaying the mortgage or any lending commitments
Providing additional cover to protect the family
Provide cover for education expenses
Whatever the reason it is important to ensure your family can maintain the standard of living to which they were accustomed.

Critical Illness cover pays out a lump sum on the diagnosis of a critical illness as defined by the provider. These may include such conditions as a Heart Attack, Stroke or various forms of Cancer.​

A critical illness policy pays out a lump sum should you be diagnosed with a serious illness that may prevent you from working again. This would ensure that any financial commitments could be repaid, or it could help fund the cost of specialist treatment or medication to help the condition. For single people with no dependants, critical illness cover that pays off the mortgage is more important than having life cover, as it means you have fewer bills or a lump sum to play with if you are very unwell. It is also advisable if you are part of a couple as it will provide a welcome financial boost at a time of emotional stress and financial hardship. The majority of critical illness providers will also include children’s critical illness cover at no additional cost to provide additional cover for all of the family.

An Income Protection Policy is one of the most important insurances that you can consider, as without your income, your life style could change dramatically. What would you do if you could not work due to disability or ill health? If you had a reduced income, how would you pay your bills? Could you survive on State Benefit alone?

An Income Protection Policy is designed to protect your income if you are unable to work as a result of disability or ill health. You can choose between plans that have a cover term of 1, 2 , 5 years or full income protection to retirement. Upon a successful claim the plan would pay out a monthly tax-free income after a specified deferment period, for your chosen term, helping you recover and return.

Bright Life offers a building and contents insurance broker service. This means that we will take time to understand your circumstance and match you with an insurer offering the right cover for the right price.

Around half of all insurance products purchased on comparison websites are not fit for purpose, this is because the comparison site uses assumptions to fill in data. When someone comes to claim and find they are under insured, the insurer typically will pay out proportionally. So, if your premium should have been £100, but you paid £80 because the information was incorrect; you could receive 80% of the value of your claim. Though this doesn’t sound too harsh on lower value items; how would you come up with 20% of your home and contents value should the very worst happen?

By making sure every policy is underwritten individually, we make sure this is never a question you need to ask yourself or your family.

The face of Equity Release has changed since its conception. Today’s Equity Release, sometimes referred to as modern Equity Release or a Lifetime Mortgage, is highly regulated and highly competitive. This has led to fantastic deals and protection for those releasing funds.

Equity Release is an increasingly popular option for the over 55’s to clear their mortgages and end their monthly payments, increase their incomes or complete much needed home improvements to help them stay in their home for as long as possible. Some people release funds to fund holidays – with or without the family; or upgrading their vehicle. You can practically do anything with the money you receive from Equity Release.

What is Equity Release?
Equity Release is a term that encompasses both Home Reversion plans and, the massively popular, Lifetime Mortgages. Equity Release allows the over 55’s to release funds from their property without having to make regular repayments. Instead, the interest is added to the release and the whole amount is paid back after the sale of the property.

Just like any form of mortgage or loan, the interest rate is based on you and the property. In general, the more you release the higher the interest rate would be. Every case is underwritten individually, and lenders such as Aviva and Legal and General rely on expert advisors such as Bright Life to ensure clients are well informed and ready to make their release from their homes.

The Equity Release Council
The Equity Release Council represent a consumer centric trade body, providing safeguards and standards designed to develop public confidence in equity release and promote exceptional advice from those recommending equity release. All Equity Release Council members must ensure all equity release plans:

Either have a Fixed interest rate or Capped where a variable rate is preferred.
Clients have the right to remain in the property for life or until they choose to move to long term care.
Clients can move to a new house, as long as the new property meets the lenders lending criteria.
Have a “No Negative Equity Guarantee” meaning if the value of the equity release exceeded the value of the house; the lender will not ask anyone else to make up the difference.

How Equity Release at Bright Life Works
Our aim is to make things as easy and fast as possible for you. Firstly, you will speak to one of our Specialist Equity Release Advisors. This will ensure that your plans are achievable and give you all the detail about equity release you want at this stage.

We will then send a short questionnaire for you to complete. This is a simple form, that can be completed on your laptop, tablet (iPad, android or windows) or phone; which collects “hard facts” – facts about you that are unlikely to change, such as your name, address etc. We only ask questions relevant to your release and your details are never sold on to other companies.

If you prefer, we can help you complete the questionnaire in the way that is most convenient to you.

In most cases we would now be in a position to start developing your Equity Release plan. We are whole of market so; this can take a few days. Once we have the details, we will come back to you and discuss your best options. If you want to proceed, we will make the application for you and if you don’t, you are free to walk away without cost.

Types of appointment
Bright Life offers both face to face (depending on location) and telephone appointments.

Due to the increased risk of Covid-19 to those in their later life, Bright Life recommends that all Equity Release appointments should be done over the phone where possible. We offer a full telephone service where your release can be arranged over the phone, utilising emails, post and web chat where needed.

Book your initial equity release discussion below, find a time and date that suits you best.