Arrangement Fee

A one off fee that guarantees we can reserve funds for you in your chosen product. This can usually be added to your loan rather than paid in one go.

Buildings Insurance

A policy covering the structure of a house or other building against a number of different risks.

Buy to Let

A mortgage taken out to buy a property for investment, for the sole purpose of letting. Rental income is received from tenants, which is used to repay the mortgage and can provide additional income.

Credit Scoring

Credit scoring helps the West Brom takes account of your personal circumstances to establish the appropriate level of credit we can offer. We do this by taking into account the information you provide as part of your application as well as information we obtain from an external Credit Reference Agency. They hold details of who is on the electoral roll, court judgements, credit account performances and information about the number of credit inquiries and bankruptcies. 

The Society has produced a leaflet explaining how credit scoring works. If you would like a copy of this or have any questions, please contact one of our advisors.

Early Repayment Charge

A charge made for repaying your mortgage early, particularly during a fixed or discount rate period.

Estimated Monthly Mortgage Repayment

This shows the estimated initial monthly repayment for each mortgage product. For stepped products, this only shows the initial repayment and takes no account of any subsequent changes, except those that are linked with the Bank of England Base Rate. Note that in practice, most products revert to the Society's standard variable base rate after the initial incentive period.

Please note you will receive a full Key Facts Illustration, showing the full costs of your mortgage before you complete our online application form.

"Fees Assisted" Legals

On many products, the Society offers "Fees Assisted" legals for customers who are remortgaging. This means we will pay the legal costs involved in a straightforward remortgage of registered land. In most cases this means there will be no cost to you. You will however have to pay for any non-standard work that the conveyancer has to carry out, such as mining or other unusual search fees.

Higher Lending Charge (often called Mortgage Indemnity Guarantee or MIG)

A form of insurance that protects the Society if the borrower fails to meet repayments and enables us to lend to borrowers with smaller deposits. The insurance is applied to mortgages with LTVs which are greater than 75%, although typically the Society will pay this for cases up to and including 85% LTV. Usually, this fee can be added to your loan rather than paid in one go.

Interest Type

• Annual 

Each year the Society calculates the interest charge for the next year based on the balance outstanding at the end of the previous financial year. 

• Daily

The interest charge is calculated daily and debited to your account at the end of each month. This means that, should you overpay your mortgage, you will immediately benefit from these overpayments. Conversely, if you underpay, interest will accrue immediately on the outstanding amount.

Key Facts Illustration (KFI)

All lenders are required to provide you with a Key Facts Illustration before you can apply for a mortgage. This is a standard illustration which shows all the payments and costs associated with your mortgage so that you can easily compare different types of mortgage and mortgages from different lenders

Loan Protection Insurance

An insurance policy that covers your mortgage payments in the event of Accident, Sickness or Unemployment. The Society usually offers this free to all borrowers for the first 6 months of their mortgage (residential mortgages only)

Maximum Loan

Maximum amount the Society will lend is 500,000 although this may be lower for selected products

LTV (Loan to Value)

This is the size of the mortgage required in comparison to the value of the property. The LTV is shown as a percentage. For example, if you wanted to borrow £85,000 on a house values at £100,000 this would mean a LTV of 85%.

Minimum Loan

The minimum amount we will lend.

Overall Cost for Comparision (APR)

This refers to Annual Percentage Rate and is a means to compare the cost of credit. The APR takes into account all fees (up front, on going, and end costs) involved in taking out a mortgage and is designed so that customers can easily compare different deals from different lenders.

Start Rate

This shows the initial rate of the mortgage taking into account any fixed or discounted rates which apply at the start of the mortgage. Note that most products revert to the Society's standard variable base rate after the initial start rate, except those that are linked to the Bank of England Base Rate.

Valuation Fee

We will need a surveyor to value your property before we can agree to lend funds secured against it. We offer three different types of valuation service: Standard, Homebuyer's Survey and Building Survey. The cost of the valuation depends on the level of valuation chosen and the purchase price of the property.