Timber Frame Mortgages

As a professional mortgage broker Fox Davidson are able to secure mortgages for timber frame houses. With access across the market we have access to high street banks, building societies and broker only lenders. many of the lenders on the market lend on timber framed buildings.

What is Timber Frame Construction?

When looking at a house it is usually not possible to tell if a property is timber framed. Most timber frame properties will have an outer ‘skin’ of brick or concrete cladding and therefore the timber frame is hidden.

Many modern houses are timber framed as they are quicker to erect and importantly they are cheaper to manufacture. There are some very affordable modern timber framed kit houses that can be ordered delivered and erected within a few days.

Why Do Some Lenders Not Lend On Timber Framed Construction?

The issue some mortgage lenders have with timber framed houses is that they are classed as ‘non-standard construction’. The same can be said for concrete construction houses such as Laing Easiform construction houses. The issue lenders have with these types of properties is the resale-ability should they have to repossess the property. Any mortgage lender needs to assess a property for risk in the same way they assess an individual by looking at their credit file and income and expenditure. In the event that a lender has to repossess a property they want to be able to sell it on to recover their losses without issue.

Timber framed houses are now much more common place and more and more lenders will accept these types of construction and you should not be put off buying one. With access across the market and therefore to hundreds of mortgage lenders Fox Davidson and its expert team of brokers are able to secure finance from lenders that will lend on nonstandard construction property including timber framed houses.

If you require a mortgage on a timber framed property, then please get in touch and speak to one of the team who will offer you quality independent mortgage advice.

Note:

Timber frame properties are acceptable for mortgage purposes, except where the cavity between the frame and the cladding has been retrospectively filled with an insulation material.

Hardwood Timber Framed Period Houses -These will usually date from 1300 to 1800 and are built from substantially sized framing members such as oak or elm with the sections between the frame in filled with brick or wattle and daub.

Softwood Timber Framed Houses of Period Design and Character -These can be considered where the valuer is able to state that a good resale market exists for the property and that the property is in satisfactory condition.

Older Softwood Timber Framed Houses -Older softwood timber framed constructions or timber constructions without a masonry external cladding – e.g. mid-war bungalows or thin walled local authority timber framed houses, Colt or Guildway types will be considered on the individual merit of the property.

Modern Softwood Timber Framed Houses and Flats Built since 1965 – The external cladding to the timber frame must be either brick, reconstituted stone or rendered block work.

Note: All timber framed properties that do not have a brick or “block and rendered” outer skin are not acceptable (including Swedish timber)