A Holland Park couple faced a problem that doesn’t resolve itself: their 25-year interest only mortgage was six months from its terminal date. With no viable product transfer available and no regular income to evidence, they needed a Holland Park remortgage solution that would prevent their mortgage term expiring while also releasing funds for long-overdue renovation work on their £1 million home.
What was the situation?
The couple had lived in their Holland Park property for over two decades on an interest only mortgage. As the term approached its end, the financial landscape had shifted significantly. One partner was now involved in a startup business with irregular income. The other had stable employment but wasn’t on the property deeds.
They had been putting off essential renovation work because of income uncertainty. Now time was running out on two fronts: the mortgage term was expiring, and the property needed work.
What was the challenge?
An interest only mortgage with six months until maturity is not a small administrative problem. It’s a deadline with serious consequences if missed. A product transfer wasn’t viable — the original term was ending entirely.
The client’s irregular income ruled out most straightforward remortgage routes. Despite equity in a £1 million property, evidencing affordability would be difficult. They also wanted to borrow additional funds for renovations, which would stretch affordability further.
The property deeds needed updating to include the partner with stable income. That meant coordinating legal work alongside the remortgage application, adding another layer of complexity to an already time-sensitive case.
What did we do?
We started with the legal foundations. Before any lender would consider the application, the partner with stable employment needed to be added to the property deeds. We coordinated a deed of transfer alongside the remortgage process.
With the ownership structure resolved, we focused on lender selection. Most lenders include service charges in their affordability calculations, which would have limited borrowing capacity significantly in a period mansion block property. We identified a lender that omits service charges from their affordability model entirely. That single technical difference unlocked an additional £45,000 of borrowing.
The couple wanted to remortgage their existing balance and raise £90,000 for home improvements. We structured the case to request the full amount from the outset, making clear how the additional funds would be used.
Crucially, we moved them from interest only to repayment over a 29-year term. This wasn’t just about meeting the lender’s requirements — it meant that when this mortgage term ends, the property will be mortgage-free. No deferred problem. No scramble to refinance or sell.
What was the outcome?
We secured the full loan amount of £447,000 on a two-year fixed rate at 5.04%. From submission to offer took 25 working days.
The couple avoided their mortgage term expiring without a solution in place. They raised the funds needed for renovations. And they converted from interest only to repayment, which means the mortgage will be fully cleared by the end of the term.
Affordability was tight, but the lender’s approach to service charges made the difference between a declined application and a completed case. The partner with stable income was on the deeds, the property could finally be renovated, and the mortgage structure now works towards full ownership rather than an indefinite interest only arrangement.
If your mortgage term is approaching its end and your circumstances have changed since you first borrowed, the options are narrower than they once were. But narrow doesn’t mean non-existent. We work with lenders whose underwriting criteria and affordability models differ in ways that matter when standard routes aren’t available.
