50% deposit required

These work by the homebuyer getting someone else – often parents or grandparents – to use their own property or savings as security to cover the deposit percentage. When you get a mortgage deposit of 20%, you really start to get attractive mortgages.

How much deposit do I need for a mortgage?

Deposit. It strikes fear into home buyers. It’s one of the most talked about parts of buying a house, and the years it takes to save it up are arguably the most difficult part of homebuying. And the biggest deposit question is: how much deposit do I need? Let’s take a look.

0% deposit mortgages

Over a decade ago, you could get a variety of mortgages with absolutely no deposit at all. Right now though, these are few and far between.

The 0% deposit mortgages that do exist are usually guarantor mortgages.

These work by the homebuyer getting someone else – often parents or grandparents – to use their own property or savings as security to cover the deposit percentage.

Lenders have different rules around who can and cannot become a guarantor. Friends and even aunts or uncles for example are often not allowed.

Guarantor mortgages are quite risky, especially for the guarantors themselves. This is because if you can’t pay the mortgage, the guarantors are liable to pay it instead. It could lead to losing the home and the guarantors getting into serious financial problems.

Deposit amount needed for a mortgage

The amount of deposit you need for your mortgage is worked out as a percentage of the value of the house you’re buying. The mortgage is then based off what’s left – the amount you’re borrowing.

So, the largest mortgages you can get are 95% mortgages. This means you would need a deposit of 5% of the cost of the house you’re buying.

You can work this out by grabbing your smartphone and firing up the calculator. Get the house price, and multiply it by 0.05.

The average UK house price in june 2018 was £228,000 according to HM land registry.

This would mean the minimum deposit amount you would need for the average house in the UK is £11,400, because £228,000 x 0.05 = £11,400.

Find out more about saving up in our saving money for a mortgage deposit guide

Recommended deposit for a mortgage

Because your mortgage is a loan, it attracts interest. Less interest means your mortgage is more manageable, keeping repayments under control and meaning you’ll have to spend on buying your house overall.

The mortgages with the best – the lowest – interest rates are only available when you have a large deposit. So, a 20% deposit will normally get you a mortgage with a lower interest than a mortgage that lets you have a 10% deposit.

Also, keep this in mind. A deposit of 15% and a deposit for 17% give you access to the same deals. You only get better deals by going up 5% more to 20%. There are no little steps – you open up better deals every time you hit these milestones, 10%, 15%, 20% and so on.

When you get a mortgage deposit of 20%, you really start to get attractive mortgages.

This means that the recommended minimum deposit size is 20% of the price of your new home. For the average home of £228,000, that’s £45,600. That’s because to work out a 20% deposit on a house, you multiply the price by 0.2.

Loan to value (LTV) explained

You’ll see the phrase ‘loan to value’ or the letters ‘LTV’ bandied around a lot in the mortgage world.

It’s a way of working out how much you’re borrowing compared to the total cost of the house. You should be aiming for a low LTV, around 80%

It’s worked out using percentages. It might sound complex, but it’s very similar to working out a deposit.

All you need is your house price, deposit amount, and the amount your mortgage is for. You can work your mortgage out by just subtracting your deposit from the house price. Then, divide your mortgage by your house price, and multiply by 100.

For example, taking our average house price of £228,000 and our recommended deposit for this house price of £45,600, you’ll have:

Mortgage is £228,000 - £45,600 = £182,400
mortgage divided by house price is £182,400 / £228,000 = 0.8
then just multiply by 100 to get the final percentage 0.8 x 100 = 80% LTV.

Remember, lower ltvs mean better interest rates, but also higher deposits.

You’ll need to know about ltvs when you remortgage your house as well, so it’s not just something for first-time buyers.

Help to buy scheme deposits

With the help to buy scheme, you need a minimum of a 5% deposit. So, on the average house price of £228,000 that’s £11,400.

Help to buy works differently to getting a normal mortgage.

Firstly, it’s only available on houses priced below £400,000 in england, below £600,000 in london, below £300,000 in wales and below £230,000 in scotland. There’s no scheme in northern ireland.

It’s also only available on new build properties.

The mortgage you get is for 75% of the LTV of the house. 20% is taken from an equity loan, with the final 5% taken from your deposit.

In london, the 20% equity loan be as high as 40%, so you’d get a 55% mortgage.

The equity loan is the special part of the help to buy scheme.

You don’t pay any interest or fees on it for the first five years. In the sixth year, you’ll be charged 1.75%.

After that, the fee rises by inflation based on the retail prices index (RPI) plus 1% each year.

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50% bonus on each deposit

1. Open an account

2. Make a deposit in your account

3. Increase your deposit by half with our bonus

4. Withdraw bonus funds

your deposit amount	$400
50% bonus we provide	$200
divide your bonus by half	$200/2
number of lots to trade	100 lots

Trade more and get more profit with our bonus

Without bonus

Get more profit using 50% bonus 50% bonus

Manage your bonuses wisely

Know when to apply the bonus: you can activate it for your deposit at any time.

Decide upon the bonus amount you want to apply.

If you cancel the bonus, mind that it will be deducted from your free margin at full.

When your bonus progress hits 100% you can use this money for other accounts and go on investing.

What you can do with a deposit bonus

Every day

Apply for a 50% bonus.

Set a maximum leverage.

Open positions of up to 750 times greater than your initial investment.

On special occasions

Make a deposit and track our offers.

Seize the best trading conditions during our events.

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How much deposit do I need for a mortgage, 50% deposit required.

Promotion rules

Deposit bonus can only be claimed by a verified customer.

The bonus amount available is 10% to 50% for each deposit amount. You can also claim 100% bonus during certain special offer periods.

Bonuses are available in multiples of 10%, so you can claim 10%, 30%, 50% or 100% on a deposit, but not 11%, 25%, or 47%, for example.

The bonus cannot be added to internal transfer deposits and to deposits from contests/promotions, etc. Unless stated otherwise.

Deposit bonus shall not be credited in case account free margin is less than your bonus amount.

Ctrader deposit bonus can only be claimed by a verified customer.

The client can claim a deposit bonus on each deposit he makes. The bonus amount available is 10% to 50% for each deposit amount. You can also claim 100% bonus during certain special offer periods.

Bonuses are available in multiples of 10%, so you can claim 10%, 30%, 50% or 100% on a deposit, but not 11%, 25%, or 47%, for example.

"total bonus" denotes the total amount of bonus in a client’s account. Total bonus comprises all the bonuses claimed by the client for the trading account. Total bonus is affected when a part of the total bonus is withdrawn or cancelled or when additional bonuses are credited to the client’s account.

"active bonus" denotes the amount of bonus which can be used to open positions by adding it to the account’s equity. The amount of active bonus cannot exceed 100% of the account’s unrealized profit & loss + balance, therefore this value will fluctuate according to live conditions.

Ctrader deposit bonus can’t be used instead of, separately or before the account’s balance. If the account’s balance is zero, so will be the amount of active bonus.

It is required to trade (bonus amount)/2 (bonus amount divided by two) standard lots to be able to withdraw a bonus.

The deposit bonus cannot be added to internal transfer deposits and to deposits from contests/promotions, etc., unless stated otherwise.

The deposit bonus shall be added to the total bonus in your account and remain there until the volume requirements are met or the bonus is canceled. After the required volume is traded the bonus will be withdrawn from the total bonus in your account and an equal amount of money will be added to your account’s balance.

The bonus for each deposit is considered a separate bonus and will have its own volume requirements.

Volume calculation starts from the first bonus and continues consecutively. This means that you can't withdraw later bonuses before you trade the required volume for the first bonus, and so on. The volume calculation starts from the moment the bonus is credited to the client’s account. The required volume for each deposit is calculated separately.

The bonus can be withdrawn ONLY if by the moment of lots calculation, the bonus is still present in the account. If a client had traded the required volume, but the bonus has already been canceled, it would not be added or compensated.

If the trader's own funds are withdrawn after the bonus has been credited, the bonus will be canceled.

A client can cancel deposit bonus at any time. Once deposit bonus is cancelled, it cannot be reinstated.

Octafx may reject client's bonus application(s) at any time without prior notification or providing reasons for such decision.

Octafx may cancel a client's bonus at any time without prior notification.

Any situation not described in these rules shall be subject to the company's decision.

Octafx reserves the right to change, update or cancel this promotion with notification in the company news.

Bonuses explained in examples:
ex.1: you make a 1000 USD deposit and get a 500 USD bonus. Your account balance will be 1000 USD, equity 1000+500=1500 USD, total bonus 500 USD. To be able to withdraw this bonus you will need to trade 500/2=250 standard lots, without time limit. Later you make another 800 USD deposit to your account and get a 400 USD bonus. Your balance will be 1800 (1000 + 800) USD, equity will be 2700 (1000+500+800+400) USD, total bonus will be 900 (500+400) USD. To be able to withdraw the second bonus you will need to trade another 400/2 standard lots.

In this example after you trade first 250 standard lots and complete the volume requirements for the first deposit bonus in your account, the bonus amount (500 USD) will be withdrawn from the total bonus, leaving its value at 400 (900 -500) USD. At the same time the equal amount of money (500 USD) will be added to your account’s balance.

Ex.2: you make 200 USD deposit and get 100 USD bonus. The balance in your account will be 200 USD, equity 300 USD, total bonus 100 USD, active bonus 100 USD. Then you close 1 unfortunate trade with a loss of 110 USD. Account balance will be 90 USD, total bonus will still be 100 USD, but active bonus will be also 90 USD now, therefore equity will be 180 USD.

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Open party charters

1. 50% deposit required to secure your spot. Deposit is non-refundable unless you get someone to fill your spot who pays the deposit in your place. Due dates will be included in the post describing the trip.

2. Final balance must be paid in full 30 days before the trip

3. All participants are required to fill out a COVID waiver form before boarding the boat. Refusal or failure to fill out the COVID waiver form will result in your forfeiture of your spot on the boat and no refunds will be provided.

4. Respect is required. Not an option. We are all going out fishing to have a good time. Respect one another. Treat others as you would like others to treat you. Failure to do so can result in your removal from the boat and you being banned from future trips. No refunds will be issued.

5. Usually fishing licenses, visas, bracelets, fish cleaning, galley items and crew gratuities are not included in the price. But if any of those items will be included then that will be disclosed to everyone ahead of time.

6. Not all trips will have raffles but I will do my best to have as many as possible.

7. Passports are required on all trips. We may or may not actually need them but sometimes we will need to change the intended fishing grounds due to actual fish location. We will not be able to go to the islands after a hot yellowtail bite if people don't have a passport on them.

8. Bunk selections (if applicable) wiil be made in advance. Priorty will be given to those who pay in full. If you pay in full when securing your spot then you get priority over those who just pay a deposit. First one to pay selects bunk assignment first and so on.

9. The rules may be changed, deleted or added to at any time as the chartermaster sees fit.

10. The chartermaster fishes free. The chartermaster will do the planning, booking, securing the deposits, collecting funds, making final payments, be the liason between the passengers and the boat captain and collect funds from everyone to cover the crew gratuities. The chartermaster will also shop for, purchase and properly distribute raffle prizes, as well as, any care bags for the people going on each trip.

11. Everyone is responsible for adhering to all of the boat owners rules, particulary, maintaining a drug free environment. The boat is private property and if the boat owner says that drugs (including marijuana) are not allowed, then leave that stuff at home.

12. HAVE A GOOD TIME. A bad day fishing is still better than a good day at work.

The shutterwhale

Luxury travel | miles chasing

Luxury traveller | miles chaser

Marriott bonvoy to deposit 50% of elite night credits required for status retention - double points and nights global promotion to start on 16 february

In recognition of the global situation and the travel climate, marriott bonvoy will be depositing 50% of the elite night credits (encs) based on 2020 earned elite status - this will give you a head start and make it easier to keep your status through the next membership year. Additionally, they will also be launching a global promotion on 16 february 2021 that will allow members to earn double points and encs - registration link to be updated soon.

Photo credit: the westin singapore

50% of elite night credits to be awarded

To make requalification of elite status easier, marriott bonvoy will deposit 50% of encs based on your 2020 earned status. If you are a marriott bonvoy platinum elite member, you will receive 25 encs and will only need another 25 nights in 2021 to keep your status through 01 february 2023. These encs will be deposited into respective members' accounts by 5 february 2021:

Ambassador elite will receive 50 elite night credits

Titanium elite will receive 38 elite night credits

Platinum elite will receive 25 elite night credits

Gold elite will receive 13 elite night credits

Silver elite will receive 5 elite night credits

Photo credit: JW marriott hotel singapore south beach

Reduced spend threshold for ambassador elite status

Marriott bonvoy members can also qualify for top-tier ambassador elite status with just USD 14,000 (instead of the usual USD 20,000) in 2021 - this 30% reduction in annual qualifying spend might not make the status accessible to everyone but it certainly helps those who are hoping to achieve top-tier status in the year ahead.

Better two-gether global promotion (16 february to 27 april 2021)

The latest marriott bonvoy global promotion will run from 16 february 2021 to 27 april 2021 and registered members will be able to earn double points as well as double elite-qualifying nights on all eligible stays (minimum of 2-nights). As always, only the base points will be doubled under the aforementioned promotion so elite members can expect to earn the following points per USD of qualifying spend:

Ambassador elite and titanium elite: 27.5 points per USD

Platinum elite: 25 points per USD

Gold elite: 22.5 points per USD

Silver elite: 21 points per USD

Photo credit: marriott bonvoy

Up to 40% off redemption (off-peak rates)

Planning to use up some of your marriott bonvoy points? Save up to 40% on the standard redemption pricing by booking off-peak rates by 21 february 2021. To get the most value for your points, you will get the 'cheapest' night free when you redeem a stay of 5 nights using points - this will also trigger the double encs promotion if you are staying during the promotional period (which translates into 10 encs).

Marcus $100 bonus for new & existing savings customers with $10,000 deposit (.50% APY)

Offer at a glance

Max bonus amount: $100

Direct deposit required: no

Additional requirements: $10,000 deposit (new funds)

Hard/soft pull:soft pull

Credit card funding: none

Monthly fees: none

Availability: nationwide, new or existing users

Expiration date: enroll by february 12, 2021 and fund within 10 days

Insured: FDIC

The offer

New or existing marcus by goldman sachs customers can enroll to be eligible for $100 bonus when depositing $10,000 in new funds within 10 days of enrollment and maintaining those funds plus your current balance for 90 days. You must enroll first.

The fine print

Offer valid from 1/15/21 to 2/12/21. To qualify for the $100 savings bonus, you must first enroll in this offer at http://www.Marcus.Com/us/en/savings/osa-savingsbonus-1 or by calling marcus at 1-855-730-SAVE (1-855-730-7283) by 11:59 PM EST on 2/12/21. Upon successful enrollment you will receive a confirmation of your enrollment via email or U.S. Mail.

After enrollment, you must deposit $10,000 or more in new funds (internal transfers won’t count) into your marcus online savings account within 10 days of enrollment and maintain at least $10,000 of those new funds in that account in addtion to the account to the account balance at the time of enrollment for 90 consecutive days from the date of reaching the required dollar amount. Multiple deposits are allowed to reach the required dollar amount and can be made by joint owners for a joint account.

Offer available to new and existing customers. Each customer is limited to one bonus offer, which can only be applied to a single account. For eligibility purposes, each joint owner will be treated as a separate customer. For example, if you apply the bonus offer to a joint account, the remaining joint owner(s) may apply this offer to another account they own if they have not done so already.

The bonus will be deposited into your account within 14 days after fulfilling the above requirements. To receive your bonus, your account must be open and in good standing at the time the bonus is deposited in your account. The bonus will be treated as interest for tax reporting purposes.

We reserve the right to modify or revoke this offer at any time without notice. If we determine that you have engaged in or plan to engage in abuse or gaming in connection with this offer, you will not be eligible for this offer.

Our verdict

Marcus offered a similar deal in march 2019, then in january 2020, and now in january 2021; they also offered a $500 deal in july 2019. It’s worth holding a marcus account as the bonuses all seem to be for new or existing customers.

Locking up $10,000 for 90 days and getting $100 is a APY of roughly 4%, added to their regular .50% interest rate (see best savings rates) for a total 4.50% return. Pretty nice offer, especially if you already have a marcus account open. I plan on doing this one.

You can always get an extra .10% APY from marcus if you are an AARP member, and new marcus members can sign up with a referral link and get an extra .20% APY for 3 months which stacks nicely with the $100 bonus (both deals can stack for a bonus .30%). Do not leave your referral link in the comments below, you can find and leave links in this dedicated post.

[update] marcus bank referral program adds .20% APY to savings rate of referrer & new member

BB&T up to $1,000 checking & savings promotion [AL, DC, FL, GA, IN, KY, MD, NC, OH, SC, TN, TX, VA, WV]

[CT, MA] american eagle financial credit union $150 checking bonus

Swagbucks: get $15 when signing up for public investing app + $5 in stocks

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So, I applied back in jan 21st (1-3 days beforehand, I withdraw around 14k), and than enrolled on the 21st and put in the 12k on the 22nd. It shows that I completed the requirement for funding on the 22nd (I saw it on the 23rd).

But today, that “active offer” line disappear, and I was able to activate the $100 saving bonus again & everything on it reset (completed enrollment on jan 25th, etc) it looks like if you withdraw some amount (unknown how much, maybe the 10k) before doing this bonus, and put it in again as ‘new’ money, it’ll automatically unroll you? I didn’t get any email or etc, I just check today and notice it. At least they do it to let you know they don’t appreciate it, but still give you a chance to do it right and put in actual 10k in ‘new’ money. Maybe. Hopefully will bonus after I put in new money.

I did not call them to ask about it, I just assume since it disappear and that I could enroll again that they just reset my offer for trying to game it.

TLDR: if you withdraw some money before activating the bonus, CHECK IF YOUR BONUS OFFER IS STILL ON YOUR ACCOUNT.

I’m just going to put in 10k, and keep it now.

50% deposit upfront

I had three bathrooms needed re-fitting, so found a reputed plumber, he said he will supply the materials which i found reasonable. So the contract said 50% cost upfront. Of the 14k quote including electrical and plastering of 3 bathrooms, i agreed to pay 5K upfront and i have paid 5K on commencement of the work.

Now he has done some work of refitting unvented heating cylinder (part of the job) and cleaned up all the bathrooms and got it plastered and disappeared since, its been 2 days now ..Should i worry?

Thanks for the help in advance.

4 answers from mybuilder bathroom fitters

Best answer

London • member since 21 jan 2015 • 3 jobs, 100% positive feedback

Dear rockall81, first of all before ,,disappearing,, fro any amount of day client always need to be informed. Deposit of 50% is a bit risky unless you know this tradesman. However its normal if you dealing with limited company and have contract signed and there is payment schedule. My advise to you to buy yourself all finish fitting such us boiler, cylinder, tiles etc. It will help trader to start the work with small amount of first payment and rest of the payment will be done by progress of the job.
Best regards
lusine christy ltd

St leonards on sea • member since 23 oct 2014 • 18 jobs, 100% positive feedback

Hi
as a trader, I would never leave a job without explanation so even if his motives are pure, his conduct is short of professional.
On large jobs, I cost the materials separately and ask for those monies up-front but the labour gets paid when the works are complete and the customer is happy.
Try your local trading standards office and ask if he's been reported for this kind of thing before - many have.
Good luck
simon la roche
professional property services

Rhyl • member since 23 nov 2011 • 11 jobs, 100% positive feedback

I don't think you should worry unduly after 2 days. Maybe alarm bells should ring quietly if you cant get hold of him. Remember easters coming and everything shuts down! I do wonder why people insist on a deposit. We never do. Did you pay it on a credit card? Thats a good move as you may be covered. Good luck with it.

Aberdeen • member since 2 mar 2015 • 141 jobs, 94% positive feedback

Firstly make contact via phone call, text, email and ask what's going on. He should be keeping contact throughout. If you fail to hear from him send a letter to his address stating what's left to do, what monies have been paid and threaten to contact trading standards.

He's probably started another job in between!

I am having a roof replaced with fibre glass and having four external walls re-rendered and painted on a block of 4 flats and have.

I have been quoted £3,000 for some landscaping work and the company are asking for £1500 upfront for materials. Is this normal.

Hi, quick query, wanted to have my 2nd floor bathroom updated and saw your site online. My query is, if I pay THE FITTER a deposit.

A builder / gardener came over to our house and viewed the work that required doing. After the assessment, he insisted on paying.

Is it usual to request for a 50% deposit before any work has been completed, especially when the company is not vat registered ?

I am having a roof replaced with fibre glass and having four external walls re-rendered and painted on a block of 4 flats and have been quoted c£20,000 for this work. Is this nornal procedure to ask for such a large deposit upfront ? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

10 answers from mybuilder roofers

Best answer

Chippingf norton • member since 8 jan 2009 • 2 jobs, 100% positive feedback

Yes, it's called cash flow. Could you afford to do a £20,000 job then wait for the payment?.

Bristol • member since 13 jun 2008 • 41 jobs, 98% positive feedback

You should agree a 20% deposit and 3 stage payments as the works progress. Also work to a schedule
regards
mike cleverley

Hamilton • member since 1 oct 2010 • 192 jobs, 99% positive feedback

Hi there
larger company's can cope with large outlays but if it is a small company they may ask for a deposit . But asking for 50% to me is a lot and would start alarm bells ringing. If I was doing the job 25% would be the most I would ask for. Hope this helps.

Maidenhead • member since 14 feb 2011 • 5 jobs, 100% positive feedback

Its not really the done thing and i would be a little wary of anyone who asks for 50% up front.

I usually ask for 10% deposit and then work the balance out in equal stage payments over the course of the work.

Cheltenham • member since 29 oct 2008 • 34 jobs, 100% positive feedback

I would have thought that if the company was carrying out works to that value, then they must be near the vat threshold, unless they only do 3 jobs to that value during the tax year.
As for asking for 50% of the payment, have they completed at least 50% of the works.
You should really have had some form of payment schedule drawn up before any works was started, agreed and signed by both parties.
Do you know the company, recomendations and seen any of their work, also how long have they been trading.
I understand the builder wanting money to cover material outlay and labour/running costs, but 50% up front is a bit worrying.
I would say if your happy with the works done to date then, get something in writing, regarding the payments.
I am not saying the builder could be dodgy, he could well have done 50% of the work, but most of the clients on cowboy builders have given large deposits and poor old dom has had to track them down.

Wellingborough • member since 25 feb 2009 • 39 jobs, 100% positive feedback

Any reputable building company will not usually ask for a deposit. We normally get materials on account at a builders merchant and dont have to pay for it until 30 days later, but its usual practise to ask for payment in stages. For example, once materials are on site a payment may be required for the builders piece of mind, then at set intervals. In your case I would ask for £5000 upon receipt of materials and then 3 more payments of £5000 as works progress. The final amount is normally paid upon satisfactory completion of the work.

Some of the larger companies ask for deposits due to busy schedules and the fear of timewasters but there are not many of those!! Even they would only ask for a maximum of 25% deposit to book a slot!!

Beware those that are asking for sucha big deposit and please make sure you have references or have seen previous work of theirs.

How much deposit do you need for a mortgage?

Find out how much deposit you need for a mortgage, use our mortgage deposit calculator, and see how much deposit first-time buyers in your area are paying with our interactive map.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) mortgages update

The current deadline for mortgage payment holiday applications, which allow homeowners to defer payments for up to six months, is 31 january 2021. You can find out more with the following articles:

For the latest updates and advice, visit the which? Coronavirus information hub.

How much deposit do you need for a mortgage?

It's technically possible to get a mortgage with a deposit of 5% of a property's value. In the current market, however, you might find you need as much as 10% or even 15%, as many lenders have withdrawn their low-deposit deals due to economic issues caused by COVID-19.

Here's how much cash you'd need to put down on a £200,000 property, based on different deposit sizes:

5% deposit: £10,000

10% deposit: £20,000

15% deposit: £30,000

How to improve your mortgage chances

In the video below, property expert and TV presenter jonnie irwin explains why it's sometimes worth saving more than the minimum deposit.

How much deposit will you need in cash terms?

To calculate how much you’ll need to save for your mortgage deposit in cash terms, there are two things you should consider:

Typical property prices in your area

You can get a rough idea of local house prices from property portals such as rightmove or zoopla, and by speaking to local estate agents.

Bear in mind that the figures you'll see on portals and agent websites are asking prices, so they may be a little higher than what the properties are really worth.

For more concrete information, you can check how much homes in the area have sold for using the land registry's price paid tool.

How much can you afford in repayments each month?

Mortgage rates are changing all the time, and the right deal for you might not be the one with the cheapest rate.

Instead, you'll need to factor in things such as upfront fees, early repayment charges, and minimum and maximum terms.

You can find typical mortgage rates using the which? Money compare mortgage tables, then understand how much your monthly payments would be based on different interest rates using our mortgage repayment calculator.

If you can't afford the repayments for a low-deposit mortgage, you will either need to save a bigger deposit (see below) or investigate schemes such as help to buy.

A deposit isn't the only thing you'll need to save for. Find out more about the costs of buying a house.

Reasons to save a bigger mortgage deposit

While 5% might be the minimum you'll need, there are plenty of reasons to save more if you can.

Cheaper monthly repayments: it might sound obvious, but the bigger your mortgage deposit, the smaller your loan will be. The smaller your loan is, the cheaper your monthly repayments will be.

Better mortgage deals: a larger deposit will also make you less risky for mortgage lenders and, as a result, they'll generally offer you lower interest rates. For example, 90% mortgages are generally priced around 0.7%-1% cheaper than 95% deals.

Improved chance of being accepted: all lenders conduct affordability checks to work out whether you can afford the mortgage repayments, based on your income and outgoings. If you only put down a small deposit it’s more likely you will fail these checks because you'll need to spend more on your mortgage each month.

Bigger buying budget: lenders typically offer a loan of up to four-and-a-half times your annual salary, so if your salary is relatively low and you can't borrow enough, you may need a larger deposit just to make up the value of the property.

Less risky: if you own more of your home outright you are less likely to fall into ‘negative equity’, where you owe more on your mortgage than your property is worth. Being in negative equity can make moving house or switching mortgage very difficult.

Mortgage deposit calculator

Saving for a deposit can seem like a never-ending journey. We've created a deposit calculator to give you an idea of when you'll have saved enough deposit to buy a home in your area.

Simply answer the questions below to see how long it might take you to get on to the property ladder.

Map: how much deposit are first-time buyers in your area putting down?

You can use the interactive map below to find out how much deposit first-time buyers put down in your area. Simply hover your cursor over a local authority (or touch your screen) to see the average deposit paid and what percentage of the property price it covers.

The map shows that people buying properties in london and the south-east of england pay significantly higher deposits than most other areas of the UK.

This is partly because house prices are generally much higher in these areas, and therefore even a 5% deposit can require a savings pot of around £20,000.

Find out more:how to buy a house

Exchange deposits

When you come to the point of exchanging contracts on a property, you'll usually pay a deposit to show you're serious about going through with the purchase.

The standard amount for an exchange deposit is 10% of the property price – but if you're planning on buying with a 5% deposit, that can usually be negotiated by your solicitor or conveyancer. Let them know as early in the buying process as possible so they can warn the seller's conveyancer about it.

The exchange deposit has been a sticking point with some people who've wanted to use the bonus earned on their help to buy isa at this stage of buying their first home. As the bonus is only paid on completion, you can't use it as an exchange deposit, and will therefore need to have money from an alternative source.

If this is going to be difficult for you, your conveyancer may be able to negotiate a further reduction to the exchange deposit.

Loan-to-value calculator

You'll often see mortgages described as being a certain 'LTV'. This stands for 'loan to value', and basically means the percentage of the property price that will be covered by the mortgage.

For example, if you provided a 5% deposit, you'd need a mortgage with a 95% LTV.

To find out your LTV, simply enter your deposit amount and the property price below.

Your options if you're struggling to save

Help is at hand if you're struggling to save up a big enough deposit for your first home. Here are some options to consider:

Help to buy equity loan: you put in a deposit of 5%, the government lends you up to 20% in england and wales, 40% in london or 15% in scotland, and you get a mortgage to cover the rest.

Shared ownership: you buy a share of the property and pay rent on the rest.

Buy a house with your friends: it's not without its risks, but works well for some.

Get help from your parents or family members: they don't necessarily need to gift you cash towards your deposit. Instead, they can use their savings or property as collateral against your mortgage.

Lifetime isa: a savings account account offering a 25% bonus from the government. You need to be aged under 40 when you open it, and can't access your savings or the bonus until you've had the account for at least a year.

100% mortgages

A 100% mortgage is a mortgage for the full cost of the house, meaning you don't need to put in any deposit at all.

Currently, the only kind of 100% mortgage you can get is a guarantor mortgage, where a family member takes on some of the risk of your loan by offering up their home or savings as security in the event that you don't make your mortgage repayments.

There are very few of these deals on the market, and they carry a significant risk of negative equity – when you owe more on your mortgage than your property is worth – so you and your family should take professional advice before applying.

Buy-to-let deposits

To get a buy-to-let mortgage you'll usually need a deposit of at least 20-25% of the property's value. But as with residential mortgages, the higher the deposit, the better the deal you're likely to get.

Lenders ask for a higher deposit because buy-to-let properties are deemed a riskier investment: as you won't be living there yourself and will likely need rent from tenants in order to keep up with your own repayments, there are more things that could go wrong.

Mortgage deposit faqs

Click below for answers to some of the most frequently asked questions when it comes to property deposits.

Will I get my mortgage deposit back?

While other kinds of deposits – such as a damage deposit for a holiday home – may be returned back to you, this is not how property deposits work. With a deposit on a property you're paying a small portion of the overall price, and the mortgage lender is loaning you the rest. Then, over time, you gradually pay the mortgage lender its money back.

You won't be refunded the deposit back once you've bought the house, or if you move, but as you've used it to buy a percentage of the house you essentially keep it as equity.

Who do I pay a mortgage deposit to?

While you do need to prove to your mortgage lender that you have the funds saved, you actually pay the deposit to your conveyancer at the point of exchanging contracts.

Once the contracts have been signed and the mortgage has completed, your deposit will go to the seller, along with the money from your lender covering the rest of the property value.

Can I pay for my mortgage deposit with a loan?

This often depends on the type of loan, your lender, and how much you want to borrow.

Lenders will ask how you've come up with the money for your deposit, and will usually state that it needs to be from a 'non-refundable' source – ie your own savings or a gift from a family member – rather than a loan or anything you'll have to pay back.

However, loans repayable upon the sale of the property are OK with some lenders. This might be the case if your parents or a friend has loaned you some money for your deposit.

Even if you're taking out a loan that's repayable on a monthly basis, some lenders may accept it, but they'll factor it in to how much they will lend. So, if you've taken out a loan for your deposit, it's likely you'll be able to borrow less than if you paid from your own savings.

Can parents contribute towards my mortgage deposit?

Yes, but there are certain procedures that need to be followed, such as providing a letter that the money won't need to be repaid.

Some lenders may also limit the percentage of your deposit that can come from a family member.

Will I need a bigger deposit if I have bad credit?

Quite possibly. When you're applying for a mortgage, lenders will take your deposit and salary into account, but they'll also use your credit history as part of their assessment of whether you are likely to be able to pay back a large loan. If your credit history shows that you've failed to keep up with other loan repayments, defaulted on bills or faced county court judgements (ccjs), some lenders won't lend to you.

Other lenders will still consider you for a mortgage, but it's likely that you'll have to prove that you've kept up with repayments for a certain amount of time, and the most competitive rates and higher ltvs may not be an option.

Find out more: bad credit mortgages

Shared ownership mortgages

Written by tom martin, content editor

Can shared ownership mortgages be your best chance of getting a foot on the property ladder?

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As the overall trend is for house prices to keep rising, opportunities for first time buyers to get a leg up on the property ladder can be harder to come by.

In this article we consider

What is a shared ownership or part ownership mortgage? - A shared ownership mortgage is a government scheme to help lower income households onto the property ladder

How shared ownership and part ownership mortgages work - you split the purchase with your local housing association

Pros and cons of a shared ownership mortgage - you can buy a share of a home with a smaller deposit, but if property values increase you may find it difficult to buy the whole home

What is a mortgage for shared ownership or a part ownership mortgage?

The shared ownership scheme, which was introduced by the government, is designed to help families on lower incomes to become homeowners.

However, in recent times more and more people from all backgrounds are taking up shared ownership or using the government's help to buy equity loan scheme to get on the property ladder.

How shared ownership or part ownership mortgages work

Shared ownership homes are provided through a housing association. They work by offering first-time buyers a share of the property ownership.

You can buy a share of between 25% and 75%, and then pay rent (less than the rate charged on the open market) on the remaining share.

The shared ownership scheme is open only to first-time buyers, or to those who used to own a home but can't afford one anymore.

Further to this, the scheme is open only to those on salaries lower than £80,000 per year, or £90,000 a year in london.

You'll need a mortgage to help buy the share of the property, but much like the government's help to buy scheme, you can get one with a smaller than average deposit.

Instead of forking out a 10-20% deposit, shared ownership mortgages will usually require only 5% of the property's value.

If you part-buy a property from a housing association, make sure you know if it has any further specific requirements.

Pros and cons of a shared ownership mortgage

Essentially, the shared ownership scheme can be one of the cheapest ways to get your first step on the property ladder.

The 5% deposit means you'll only need £7,500 for a property valued at £150,000, and considering you'll be buying a share, rather than the whole property you can get away with putting up less.

For example, for a 50% share in a property valued at £150,000, you'll need a deposit of £3,750.

If you can afford to put up more and keep up with the monthly mortgage repayments then it might be worth going for a 75% share, but you'll need to factor in the cost of rent for the remaining share.

To upgrade your share of the home, you'll need to have the property valued again. If the price of properties in your area has gone up then it could mean that you'll be paying more than what you did for the initial share. You'll also have to pay the valuer's fee each time you wish to upgrade.

If you have part ownership of the home, and depending on your local housing association's rules, you may find difficulty renting out your property should you decide to move on. This could make the idea of moving home tricky, especially if you can't afford to upgrade your share to 100%.

With prices in the housing market regularly rising, a 100% share may be too difficult to attain, so it could leave you forced to stay in the same home for a long time.

However, if you're confident that you'll increase your earnings or savings enough to buy the whole of the property, then the shared ownership scheme can be particularly useful.

It's also worth bearing in mind that the local housing association will have first refusal if you decide to sell the property, and their right to buy the property back first will last for a term of 21 years from the date of 100% ownership.

Shared ownership mortgage brokers

A shared ownership mortgage broker should have an expert knowledge of the shared ownership landscape and be able to match you up with the right deal.

If you do decide to use a broker, ask them if they have the experience of dealing specifically with shared ownership mortgages.

Compare first time buyer mortgages

Compare a huge range of first time buyer mortgages on our comparison tables

so, let's see, what we have: the deposit for buying a house is the first hard step to overcome. Here's how much deposit you need to get a mortgage. At 50% deposit required