written by TalonFitzsimmons473 on 08/11/2017
I am a FTB, the bank I am with turned me down. Went to HSBC after one month to be exact, my mortage was approved . For me it was a very good experience cause I had one to one with the mortage advisor that I spoke with in the beginning and carried on until it was approved. Can’t complain , but I find you have to have with them which might be baecause if there good rate they have a lot of people coming there way
written by KadeHancock168 on 21/11/2014
We had a previous mortgage with HSBC so thought we would use them again and decided to use the online application rather than going into branch. The application was very simple. Admittedly there were a few hiccups but it is in its early stages and they were sorted out fairly quickly. With our application complete and documents sent it took about 5 days for a decision, the valuation was carried out a week after and offer produced the day after the valuation. All went smoothly. Unfortunately, the purchase fell through but we soon found another property. All we had to do was go on line and amend our mortgage application and another valuation and offer were produced very quickly. Despite some bad reviews i would recommend HSBC and the online application. Very satisfied with the process.
written by Monkhorsefish on 08/04/2013
Like the previous reviewer I felt compelled to write after seeing all the negative reviews. I was remortgaging and got an excellent rate. It took quite a while- which may have caused an issue if I were purchasing a new house- but wasn't too much of a problem as I was just switching my home loan. I found the staff always helpful and professional throughout and all went smoothly (though it took quite a while -3 & a half months in total).
written by nicnac141 on 23/03/2013
I contacted HSBC to obtain an 80% LTV mortgage as a FTB using their 24hr phoneline. The Operator who answered the phone provided me with good information and on that basis, I proceeded with the loan. I received my mortgage and completed my purchase 8 weeks after that initial phonecall. HSBC informed me that I could use their surveyor which would be a cheaper option for me. After shopping around, the HSBC surveyor offer was the best option and therefore, I managed to buy my new home with little stress. HSBC provided me with a good service.
written by MrsLwd on 28/11/2012
I applied for a HSBC mortgage then came on here and read all the negative reviews. I was absoultely horrified and panicking that everything was going to go wrong. However, I was worrying about nothing. Everything for us went through smoothly. We applied for an interest only mortgage which was accepted within a few days no problem, we were given surveyor details who were contacted and inspected the property within a couple of weeks. I was a bit worried about not having one of their approved solicitors, but to be honest the liason between my solicitor and HSBC's was satisfactory. The process that took the longest was the searches etc, but once all the information was provided it took around 6 weeks to complete. One thing I would say is make sure you provide every bit of information they ask for, otherwise you could be going back and forth which will slow down the process and if need be, ring the customer service department if your worried or unsure about anything or if something is taking longer than usual as they will clarify whats happening if they can. Alternatively, keep pestering your solicitor. All in all, I have no complaints whatsoever. I'm sure there are other happy customers out there, but you only ever get to read the bad reviews which is why I thought I would put a positive one. :-D
written by on 07/09/2012
I was worried about the mortgage process with HSBC after reading reviews from this site, however, most of the reviews are relating to the solicitors and not the mortgage/HSBC themselves. Like many others I was tempted by the great deal HSBC offers. We went into branch to submit our application, our advisor was great and answered all our queries. We got a call a week later to ask us a few more questions but a few days later the mortgage was approved. We chose a fee free product and our valuation was free, I opted to get a homebuyers survey which because of the fee free product was very cheap (after comparing prices for alternatives) We opted to use countywide solicitors so not to have to pay additional fees. The conveyencing took 3 months in total which felt like ages, but some delays were due to the vendors solicitors. I was able to send messages through the countrywide website, and I think in all but one ocassion the solicitors responded in the same day. No post was lost or misplaced and I never once phoned the bank or solicitors; I just chased things up using the online services. I received calls from the solicitors on exchange of contracts and completion. We have now completed on our house and I can see the HSBC mortgage section is now setup on the online banking with DD already setup, Great!
written by on 22/06/2012
Just wanted to add a good review to give some balance and contrast to all the unhappy reviews of HSBC mortgages on this site. People often forget to praise good service! We are buying and due to complete in early July. The whole process has been fairly painless. Of course we agonised about the mortgage and read all the reviews on this site. HSBC have managed to generate a huge amount of negative feeling with their bizarre decision to only use a small panel of solicitors and many rejections which upset loyal, creditworthy customers. We were advised not to use them, but decided that because their published mortgage deals are so much better than the competition, we would risk some delay and stress to ourselves as it would be worth it in the long run. Applied for the mortgage (about 40%LTV) in April and had it offered about 2 weeks later. We paid the extra to have our own local solicitor act for us and everything has gone smoothly. I think it has helped that we were not in a rush to move. I applied over the phone, but took documents into the local branch for copying. Everyone we have dealt with has been really helpful. The interest only mortgage we have is a product which suits us very well as we can overpay immediately without penalty and as it is a lifetime tracker we will not need to re-mortgage the property in a couple of years, with all the hassle and expense that entails. Glad we decided to go with HSBC and would have given 5 stars if we had not had to pay extra to use our own solicitor.
written by on 08/06/2012
I was extremely happy today when i could ring up and make extra repayments on my home loan over the phone. Gone are the days when you wait for the forms in the mail and then fill them out and post then back. The Customer service was fantastic. If you fix your loan you can make up to $10,000 in payments each yr. If you leave it variable you can make extra repayments up to as much as you like. I love HSBC as we have been with them for over 8yrs now. Communication and politness, is the key to having a great relationship with your bank.
written by on 23/02/2012
Reading all the reviews you wonder "are all these banks hopeless". Well my experience could not have been more straight forward with HSBC. I am a FTB with a 10% deposit. Applied directly to HSBC for my mortgage. As my partner and I have good track records we had no problem with our application. Found the entire process extremely easy. HSBC provides a standard survey for free and we opted for a buildings survey and only had to pay the difference. After the survey we decided not to proceed, we contacted HSBC and they put our application on hold. Having found another property we informed them and started processing the paper work for our new property. I am happy to say we have exchange contracts and will be completing soon. Overall great service, the only thing to point out is that you may need to chase them at times but otherwise all good. I wish everyone all the best with their application.
written by on 30/06/2011
We went through HSBC's mortgage application process a few weeks ago. When we first applied I was feeling reasonably confident of being accepted, until I made the mistake of starting to read internet reviews! After that I genuinely didn't sleep for a week and convinced myself we'd be declined. If there's one piece of advice i'd give it's 'don't look at the internet!' But i guess it's a bit late for that if you're reading this. So here's a few tips for the process. We applied for a £120,000 mortgage at 80% LTV. We are first time buyers in full time employment. I have a reasonable credit history (several credit cards in the past with 2 late payments, all now payed off bar one), my partner has very little credit history with no cards/loans, and has just started a new job. We have a combined salary of £41000 and have just had our application approved. 1. it took them 8 working days after receipt to contact us. In the meantime I was calling the 0800 number on the pack which puts you through to a foreign call centre. they are hopeless, but they can tell you whether your application has been assigned to an underwriter. they are useless beyond that, they just read out preprepared responses to deflect angry callers. 2. after 7 days we got our original docs back and a new number to call. These guys are switched on and helpful, i wonder if you can call them earlier in the process? you can try on 08456030171 3.we were called by the underwriter and approved over the phone 4. try not to worry too much, there's usually something less than perfect about anyone's situation and if you believe all the other reviews you'll convince yourself you'll be declined. Just rest assured that your application will be reviewed fairly against tough but not insurmountable lending criteria. 5. if you want to set your mind at ease then just google ANY other mortgage provider, and you'll get another list of scathing reviews. Good luck, and remember that HSBC are approving hundreds of mortgages every day, and it's generally only people who've had a bad experience who write the reviews!
Written on: 19/08/2011
Hi there, I have found this review freakishly similar to the situation me and my partner are going through right now, almost word for word of what you have written. We to are first time buyers asking for £120 with 40% deposit total price of the property £160 with a total income of 41k. Anyway i have been searching the internet since we were agreed in principal last Monday for some form of comfort as we feel we did not quite prepare well enough when it came to our personal bank accounts as we are anticipating having to show 3 months worth of bank statements and i am quite far into my overdraft each month it's only £500 but i cant help thinking they will decline for that reason. My partner does not have a overdraft but is also always spent up each month like every normal person i suppose. I just can't stop thinking about it. I have found some comfort in this review though especially knowing you were excepted. Congratulations and all the best with the new house. How much deposit did you guys have if you don't mind me asking? Thanks
written by Frankie2010 on 11/08/2010
With the Midland bank, or now known as H.S.B.C uk, you get what it says on the tin. Lets not kid ourselves Banking services are more Product like than we normally think. As RBS were not my cup of tea, I opted for the HSBC earlier this year, for my Personal Mortgage. They offered the best rate, nicest local branch, and some money back offers.
written by Helen Farrugia. on 28/09/2002
After living abroad for 10 years, but still remaining a good customer of HSBC, they were the only organisation (and we tried shopping around) who would even consider giving us a mortgage - as first time buyers (even though we owned a property abroad) We had no past credit history in the UK - but we did have savings in the bank. We ended up getting an excellent deal paying daily interest on our mortgage and have already saved thousands and knocked a few years off our mortgage by being able to 'overpay' as and when it suits us.
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As rated by our community of reviewers
Rigsby1's Response to MrsLwd's Review
Written on: 02/02/2013
I thought you had to jump through hoops to get an interest only mortgage. I have asked HSBC for one and they say 'almost impossible in todays market'.