If you are thinking about purchasing a property it is first important to know how much you can afford to borrow. Mortgage Lenders traditionally used income multiples to work out this amount.

If an applicant was earning 30,000 a year the lender would calculate that they could comfortably afford to borrow 3.5 x their income which is 105,000.

When looking for a mortgage in todays market you are swapped with information, products and deals. This can make the whole process very daunting and confusing. For this reason it is good to be prepared with a set of questions to ask your mortgage broker, so that you do not get ripped off and you know where you stand.

1. What are different types of mortgages and in what way do they work?

There are a mass of different types of mortgage products on the market, so make sure that your broker explains the differences between the different types of mortgages and how they can benefit you.

Many borrowers are looking for cheap loans, but how is a cheap loan defined? For starters a person has to remember that nothing is free and loans cost money. Loans are paid for through interest rates and fees.

Lenders are in the business of trying to make as much money off the loan process as possible. It is up to the borrower to make sure they get a cheap loan because the lender is not going to worry about making it that way for the borrower.

Getting a car loan with bad credit does not have to mean a hassle or incredibly high monthly payments. You do not have to search for one of those high priced buy here, pay here lots. Even with bad credit you can get an affordable car loan. For a lot of people having a car is very important.

It is the only way they can to get where they need to go.

Many people will have the experience of facing financial difficulties at one time or another for a variety of reasons. Being a little short of money can result in you falling behind with bills, bank loans, credit cards, mortgage repayments and alike.

This in turn can lead to having defaults, County Court Judgements (CCJs) and even bankruptcy.

One of the most unpleasant consequences of failing to pay your mortgage is "repossession" of your property. This is a problem that is affecting an increasing number of homeowners throughout the country.

The first notification will be from the lender warning of the consequences should you not keep up your payments on the mortgage. If your mortgage payments are not being kept up to date then the lender may decide to approach the courts to apply for a repossession order.

In the modern world today many people have large debts hanging over their heads and consequently suffer from having a bad credit rating. Because of the shear number individuals with a bad credit history, lenders have been forced to change their lending criteria to accommodate them.

There are a number of issues that will have an affect over your credit record, these range from the obvious to the not so obvious.

Ten years ago if you were self employed you were very limited to the deals that were available to you. Lenders tended not to like it if you couldnt prove you income when apply for a secured loan or mortgage.

Things have changed, because they have had to. With more and more people starting their own business and companies opting to contract staff on a self employed basis, lenders have had to change policies.

People in todays society will have differing attitudes to debt and debt repayment. There will always be those individuals who take a very relaxed attitude to debt and debt repayment, however the vast majority will take the matter very seriously and in the case of property ownership, they will take any realistic action to make their mortgage repayments on time.

When a person is unable to pay his creditors, a civil case can be brought to the County Court in England and Wales, or the Sheriff Court in Scotland. The court can make a judgment (or a decree in Scotland) against the debtor that then remains in force until such a time as the debt is paid.

Although having a CCJ(s) on record will not rule out the ability for an individual to get credit, they have to be considered in the context of the application as a whole.