News

John Legg Mortgages & Insurance

5 days ago

Self-employment guidance

Self-employment Income Support Scheme
Use this scheme if you're self-employed or a member of a partnership and have lost income due to coronavirus.

This scheme will allow you to claim a taxable grant worth 80% of your trading profits up to a maximum of £2,500 per month for the next 3 months. This may be extended if needed.

Who can apply
You can apply if you’re a self-employed individual or a member of a partnership and you:

have submitted your Income Tax Self Assessment tax return for the tax year 2018-19
traded in the tax year 2019-20
are trading when you apply, or would be except for COVID-19
intend to continue to trade in the tax year 2020-21
have lost trading/partnership trading profits due to COVID-19
Your self-employed trading profits must also be less than £50,000 and more than half of your income come from self-employment. This is determined by at least one of the following conditions being true:

having trading profits/partnership trading profits in 2018-19 of less than £50,000 and these profits constitute more than half of your total taxable income
having average trading profits in 2016-17, 2017-18, and 2018-19 of less than £50,000 and these profits constitute more than half of your average taxable income in the same period
If you started trading between 2016-19, HMRC will only use those years for which you filed a Self-Assessment tax return.

If you have not submitted your Income Tax Self-Assessment tax return for the tax year 2018-19, you must do this by 23 April 2020.

HMRC will use data on 2018-19 returns already submitted to identify those eligible and will risk assess any late returns filed before the 23 April 2020 deadline in the usual way.

How much you’ll get
You’ll get a taxable grant which will be 80% of the average profits from the tax years (where applicable):

2016 to 2017
2017 to 2018
2018 to 2019
To work out the average HMRC will add together the total trading profit for the 3 tax years (where applicable) then divide by 3 (where applicable), and use this to calculate a monthly amount.

It will be up to a maximum of £2,500 per month for 3 months.

The grant will be paid directly into your bank account, in one instalment.

How to apply
You cannot apply for this scheme yet.

HMRC will contact you if you are eligible for the scheme and invite you to apply online.

Individuals do not need to contact HMRC now and doing so will only delay the urgent work being undertaken to introduce the scheme.

You will access this scheme only through GOV.UK. If someone texts, calls or emails claiming to be from HMRC, saying that you can claim financial help or are owed a tax refund, and asks you to click on a link or to give information such as your name, credit card or bank details, it is a scam.

After you’ve applied
Once HMRC has received your claim and you are eligible for the grant, they will contact you to tell you how much you will get and the payment details.

If you claim tax credits you’ll need to include the grant in your claim as income.

Other help you can get
The government is also providing the following additional help for the self-employed:

deferral of Self Assessment income tax payments due in July 2020 and VAT payments due from 20 March 2020 until 30 June 2020
grants for businesses that pay little or no business rates
increased amounts of Universal Credit
Business Interruption Loan Scheme
If you’re a director of your own company and paid through PAYE you may be able to get support using the Job Retention Scheme. ... See MoreSee Less

John Legg Mortgages & Insurance

2 weeks ago

I have put together some links for the Lenders and their processes for the 3 month Mortgage Payment holiday. For some, you still need to make a phone call but for others, there are short online forms to complete which will save you being on hold for hours.

Accord pos.li/2farpb
AIB/First Trust pos.li/2farp8
Barclays pos.li/2farpc
Birmingham Midshires pos.li/2farp7
Bank of Ireland pos.li/2farp9
Danske pos.li/2farpf
Halifax pos.li/2farpa
HSBC pos.li/2farpg
Leeds Building Society pos.li/2farpd
M&S pos.li/2farpe
Nationwide Building Society pos.li/2farph
Natwest pos.li/2farpi
Platform pos.li/2farpj
Sainsburys Bank pos.li/2farpk
Santander pos.li/2farpo
Ulster Bank pos.li/2farpp
Virgin Money pos.li/2farpn

Note, that for many providers, the qualifying criteria for the 3 month mortgage holiday is that your income has been directly effected by the coronavirus and you wont necessarily be prompted by the call handler regarding this.

Again I would say that if you are able to meet your mortgage payments as usual then that would be the best practice, however the mortgage holiday affords you some breathing space should you need it. ... See MoreSee Less

John Legg Mortgages & Insurance

2 weeks ago

⚠️ UPDATE ⚠️

We are receiving numerous emails from Lenders confirming they are suspending all physical property inspections in line with the changing government guidelines.

I suspect all Lenders will adopt this strategy which will mean there is likely to be a significant delay on the majority of mortgage and co-ownership applications

Some lenders have confirmed they are looking at alternative valuation solutions whilst valuers are unable to complete internal property inspections. This will primarily consist of desktop valuations which may help with the back log.

We will keep you updated. ... See MoreSee Less

John Legg Mortgages & Insurance

2 weeks ago

The FCA have announced that they will extend the current 3 month mortgage holiday if required.

They’ve stated that there will be:

✔️ No additional fees or charges (other than added interest) as a result of this holiday
✔️ Amended guidance will be issued if required
✔️ Repossession is not always in the best interests of customers

Note that these measures should be treated as short term solutions that could have potential long term repercussions, so make sure you choose the decision that’s right for you. Please contact us if you have any questions. ... See MoreSee Less

John Legg Mortgages & Insurance

3 weeks ago

If you need a payment holiday form one of the below lenders here is the number you need to call.

If you need to remortgage or your deal is coming up PM me and I will discuss your options.

Hope this helps 👍

Nationwide – 03457302011
Danske – 02890046100 or 03456005775
Bank of Ireland – 0800 169 9722
BM Solutions – 0345 850 5000
HSBC - 03458500633
Santander - 08007839738
Leeds Building Society – 0113 225 7972
Halifax – 0345 850 3705
Barclays - 0800 022 4022
Virgin Money – 03456028301
Natwest - 0800 400 9999
Co -ownership - 02890327276 ... See MoreSee Less

John Legg Mortgages & Insurance is feeling happy.

9 months ago

Happy Tuesday, everyone! Remember, as expert and impartial mortgage brokers, we have access to the most comprehensive range of products on the market. We aren’t restricted to offering one particular lender’s products - we are able to search the market and find our clients the best deal for their mortgage again and again ... See MoreSee Less