Ideally, before you make an offer. High value purchases often come with extra moving parts: larger loan sizes, stepped LTV limits, more detailed affordability checks, and sometimes property types that fall outside standard criteria. Speaking early helps you avoid the classic problem of finding the right property and then discovering late that the lender route doesn’t fit your income structure or the property’s characteristics.
Early advice can help you: confirm realistic borrowing, choose the right lender route for your income (bonus, dividends, partnership income, multiple entities, overseas), prepare documentation so underwriting doesn’t stall, and identify any issues that could slow the process (deposit source complexity, adverse credit, probation periods, unusual property features). It also helps you move faster when you need to — because you’re not starting the mortgage conversation from scratch after offer acceptance.
If you want interest-only or part-and-part, speaking early is even more important, because repayment strategy evidence and lender selection need to be aligned from the start. The same applies if you’re raising capital, refinancing multiple properties, or buying through more complex ownership structures.
In short: a short upfront review can remove uncertainty, reduce avoidable delays, and give you more control in a chain. That’s usually worth doing before you’re under time pressure.
Hearthstone Mortgages is a trading name of Hearthstone Advisory Limited (Company Number 10563329) and is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA Reference Number 945282).
Registered office: Europa House, Marsham Way, Gerrards Cross, Buckinghamshire, SL9 8BQ.
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THINK CAREFULLY BEFORE SECURING DEBTS AGAINST YOUR HOME OR PROPERTY.
Your home or property may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.
We are a credit broker, not a lender. We may receive commissions that will vary depending on the lender, product or other permissible factors. The nature of any commission model will be confirmed to you before you proceed.