UKC

Hi,

A non-climbing question for the UKC crowd.

Put an offer in to buy a house but told I have to go into the branch to complete a credit check before we can go any further. I am getting my mortgage from barclays and not the instore mortgage broker so not sure why they need to credit check me when surely barclays have completed this..?

They have turned from being my best mate to being difficult and not answering questions fully and really living up to being an awkward estate agent.

Just wondering if this is the correct process or am I being tricked into using their instore mortgage broker which they have been very keen on me using despite being told we have that sorted with barclays.

Any help or advice would be good as an internet search suggests I don't need this instore credit check.

Thanks!
Sam

In reply to sam.sam.sam.ferguson:

I'd tell them to go **** themselves. Do you have access to the vendors? might be worth having a word. I'm assuming your finance is 100% in order.

In reply to sam.sam.sam.ferguson:

I have never heard of that but some time ago i had some bother with estate agents and your suspicion is probably right...i'd tell them to sod off and inform the seller also...

In reply to sam.sam.sam.ferguson:

Is it Anti Money Laundering, or Affordability that they're on about, not a 'Credit Check' - I'm not sure if Brokers are governed by these....

In reply to abr1966:

I recently purchased a property without a mortgage and nobody required any form of credit check. If I didn't need 1 then why should you with a mortgage offer in principle? The ES is up to something... as I said speak to the vendors or at least threaten the ES with pulling out and then telling the vendors.

In reply to Kipper:

None of this is to do with the ES only the finance people.

In reply to sam.sam.sam.ferguson:

Thanks, sounded as I thought.

Yeah money all in order and able to afford the property just wasn't sure if this was normal or not. They have been desperate for me to go through their instore broker as I guess they get some sort of commission for this, we have the credit check meeting friday so will be prepared for a tough conversation.

We have no access to the vendor but haven't asked. Not sure how they would feel about a knock on the door.

In reply to sam.sam.sam.ferguson:

Who's doing you conveyancing? If you're using an online one particularly if recommended by your estate agent then you usually go into them for the ID (not credit) check to be completed.

By the way, don't forget the estate agent works for the seller not the buyer. They will be nice when trying to sell you something, but then they will work for their client. You're their route to getting paid, if they aren't sure you'll complete they would be better looking elsewhere.

We had a good estate agent, he sold ours and sold the one we bought. He was good in that it was possible to manipulate him, not as in he was honest.

In reply to sam.sam.sam.ferguson:


I suspect they are still hoping to persuade you to use them for finance. If your finance with Barclays is agreed and secured, I'd refuse to give them any of your financial details, other than details of your arrangement with Barclays. Whilst your having finance is obviously important to them closing the deal, I don't think your general finances are any of their business...

Unless, as suggested earlier, it's some new, anti-money-laundering check. Funny no-one else seems to have been asked for it...

In reply to captain paranoia:

I think it is to persuade me for finance since I have just received an email "We would like to confirm your appointment with the mortgage consultant from our associated company Countrywide Mortgage Services...."

They will be getting another phone call tomorrow. Bit annoying since I've told him many times the mortgage is sorted.

In reply to sam.sam.sam.ferguson:

Yes indeed, they are clearly "at it" in some way or another. It may be a genuine concern about whether your finances are sorted but a credit check is intrusive, can affect your credit rating and is a matter between you and your mortgage provider. It would be worth showing them your mortgage offer to prove that you are a serious buyer with finances in place.

I would state very clearly (and as politely as you can manage) that you will absolutely not be going with their mortgage broker and will not be going through their credit check. I would also insist on a clear answer as to whether they have actually passed on your offer to the vendor. As far as I know they are legally obliged to do this, so insist politely but firmly that they do so.

These people are like jackals - if they get the merest whiff that you are unsure about the house buying process or not absolutely decisive they will start trying on all sorts!

In reply to sam.sam.sam.ferguson:

In reply to abr1966:

Actually it appears that Estate Agents are regulated by HMRC (not the FCA) for AML purposes so they have some responsibilities for checking. As for brokers, they're probably free to do what they want

In reply to sam.sam.sam.ferguson:



You have a mortgage the EA can f--k right off with this. They are wasting your time. I would not phone them. I would talk to my solicitor, explain concisely how the EA is wasting my time, and ask my solicitor to contact the vendors solicitor to inform them how the EA is wasting the vendors time and your time by cocking about instead of doing their job.

Once the sale is agreed the chain of communication should be vendor - vendor's solicitor - buyers' solicitor - buyer. The EAs role is complete, other than cashing a large check for their disservice.

If the EA has initiated a credit check against you I would go ballistic at them.

Edit: if they have not put the offer to the vendor, if you have met or exceeded the asking price then, in the absence of specific instruction otherwise, they are legally obliged to forwards your offer to the vendor. If you do not yet have solicitors engaged and my earlier advice doesn't apply, tell the EA that you have made your offer, that you will not meet to discuss credit/borrowing, supply proof of your mortgage approval and inform them that if they do not pass your offer on to the vendor forthwith that you will report them to the property ombudsman immediately and that you will instruct your solicitors to pursue the matter. I'd also contact the vendors and explain that the EA is putting their sale at risk by trying to force you to mortgage via their stooge.

In reply to sam.sam.sam.ferguson:

Someone else has already got in before me with the rather apt response of 'tell them to go and f*ck themselves' which I fully concur with.

Basically, estate agents these days earn more commission from mortgage referrals then they do for flogging a house. Online agents have pushed down fees to such an extent that its not uncommon for an agent to be charging less than 1% for their services (it used to be on average about 3-3.5% twenty years ago)

If your finances are in order and you have a mortgage sorted via Barclays the last thing you need is another credit search (assuming the bank has carried one out already) as that will just put a dent in your credit score.

Personally, if the house you viewed was occupied by the vendors I would pop around and have a quiet word with them about what their agents are up to, I dare say that they will be less than impressed that they are employing a mob whose tactics seem to include strong arming potential buyers into using financial services they don’t need as a condition of moving forward with an offer.

In reply to sam.sam.sam.ferguson:

As above, none of their business really, personally if you can go I would do so and waste their time like they are you and have it out with them.

In reply to sam.sam.sam.ferguson:

First time I've heard of that.

Maybe they are getting too many purchasers who tell them that their finance is all ok in principle only find out several months down the line that it isn't? It does happen surprisingly often, and it wastes everyone's time and loses valuable marketing time when other better purchasers might have been found.

In reply to sam.sam.sam.ferguson:
Not an expert, but some of the more gung-ho advice here may leave you without a house. It is the agent's job to secure the seller a good deal, and to do that they need to find out if you are a credible buyer, to decide whether to recommend the seller accepts. There are a lot of frivolous offers out there. You want the agent to consider you a top quality buyer. Having said that, it is a sneaky old trick to try to tie this to you using their mortgage broker. I would politely cooperate (is it really a full credit check or a 'chat with an advisor'?) and then politely refuse any mortgage services.

In reply to thomm:

A lot of EA bashing going on on this thread. Yes, there are a lot of dishonest EAs, but for every dishonest EA there are probably as many dishonest (maybe over enthusiastic is a better word) buyers who will say anything to secure a property including lying about their financial capability to proceed.

You've hit the nail on the head by pointing out that it's a good agent's job to sift out financially shaky buyers early in the process.

In reply to thomm: I'm not clear if your offer has been accepted. or not? They will want to see a mortgage agreement in principle in writing from whoever you intend to borrow off, possibly before your offer would be accepted (this isn't the same as the final mortgage offer). They will probably also want to check id at some stage. Beyond that, as others have said, tell them politely to take a hike. Perhaps they want you to use their broker, or perhaps they are trying to keep you in the process as a fall back plan while working up a higher offer from elsewhere. Either way, unless you are desperate for this house (and there will always be another, probably better, one if it doesn't work out), or in the middle of London property madness, you have the power to walk away...but they will be wanting their commission.

In reply to sam.sam.sam.ferguson:
It is perfectly reasonable for the agent to ask you to provide proof of funding. This might be a mortgage offer in full though most likely and offer in principle.

If you've already done this (and assuming your mortgage posiion is fine) then they should advise their client. If the client says yes then we move on to the lawyers.

You should not be required to meet with their mortgage representative. If they tell you it is a condition of the offer being accepted then they are on very shakey ground. Check to see if they are members of the RICS - if they are then they're on lusciously wonderfully shakey ground and I recommend a phone call to Great George Street - it's a striking off offence.

I would cancel the appointment with their mortgage broker. It smells of a conflict of interest. If they push back then I'd go to the vendor. I'd also let them know that they may be making a misrepresentation, and that Act carries criminal liability - Trading Standards are your friend here........