All Buy-to-Let FAQs

Read more about the differences between Shariah and conventional finance

No. Shariah compliant products and services are available to all and suitable for both Muslims and non-Muslims. In fact, many non-Muslims actively choose Shariah compliant products and services because they view them as ethical, fairer, more socially responsible and transparent, and because of the competitive range of products.

There are some key differences between Shariah finance and conventional finance:

• Finance and investments must not be used to support industries or activities that are against the Shariah principles. These include alcohol, tobacco, pork and non-halal meat production, gambling, adult entertainment, and arms.

• Money must be put to a good use to generate profit supported by a genuine trade or business related activity. The giving or receiving of interest (making ‘money from money’) is prohibited.

Read more about the differences between Shariah and conventional finance

We have a Shariah Supervisory Board (SSB) made up of individual Shariah experts who are independent from the bank, but are active in overseeing our operations. The SSB is formally appointed by the Board of Directors, but reports directly to the bank’s shareholders. The SSB has an oversight of the bank’s activities, including transaction documentation and other contractual obligations we may enter into.

Meet the Shariah Supervisory Board

No, many British banks offer Shariah compliant finance products to UK customers. Gatehouse Bank is a regulated UK bank, founded in 2007 and headquartered in London - we’re not a subsidiary or branch of an overseas bank.

Payment and receipt of interest isn’t permitted under Shariah principles - it’s thought that money shouldn’t be generated from money. It’s also thought that money shouldn’t be left idle, but put to good use through trade that’s consistent with Shariah principles. So, we put your savings to work to earn a profit. To date, we have always paid our customers the expected profit rate.

To comply with Shariah principles, we don’t make investments involving excessive uncertainty, gambling or speculation - criteria that many responsible investors adopt regardless of religious convictions.

Our Shariah-compliant status also means that deposits and investments we receive are never used to support non-compliant activities or sectors: this includes alcohol, tobacco, pork and non-halal meat production, gambling, adult entertainment, and arms.

Examples of eligible investments include construction projects, certain real estate investments and sukuk (sometimes known as Islamic bonds).

Operationally, your savings account with us works similar to a conventional savings account, with one important difference – because we’re Shariah-compliant, we don’t offer you interest. Instead, we invest your funds to earn you a profit.

Payment and receipt of interest isn’t permitted under Shariah principles - it’s thought that money shouldn’t be generated from money. It’s also thought that money shouldn’t be left idle, but put to good use through trade that’s consistent with Shariah principles. So, we put your savings to work to earn a profit. To date, we have always generated and paid our customers the expected profit rate.

The expected profit rate is the rate of profit we expect to deliver to you from the returns generated by investing the funds you deposit with us. The profit we share with you is the expected profit rate we offer at the time you open your account. We monitor your account on a daily basis to make sure the expected profit rate will be achieved. To date, we have always generated and paid our customers the expected profit rate.

If we don’t think the expected profit rate will be achieved, we’ll get in touch to give you notice of the new expected profit rate. Then you have the option to keep your account with us at the new rate, or close your account and withdraw your original deposit along with all the profit earned so far. To date, we have always generated and paid our customers the expected profit rate.

To comply with Shariah principles, we don’t make investments involving excessive uncertainty, gambling or speculation - criteria that many responsible investors adopt regardless of religious convictions.

Our Shariah-compliant status also means that deposits and investments we receive are never used to support non-compliant activities or sectors: this includes alcohol, tobacco, pork and non-halal meat production, gambling, adult entertainment, and arms.

Examples of eligible investments include construction projects, certain real estate investments and sukuk (sometimes known as Islamic bonds).

Fixed term deposits

With fixed term deposits, you can’t withdraw funds during the term of your chosen product. Withdrawals before maturity (the end of the product term) are only allowed in exceptional circumstances, which are specified in the product terms and conditions.

Notice accounts

With notice accounts, you can withdraw funds subject to the product’s notice period – for a 31-day notice account, you need to give us notice 31 days before you want to withdraw money.

Your eligible deposits are protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), the UK’s deposit protection scheme. The FSCS can pay compensation if a bank is unable to meet its financial obligations. Each account holder is entitled to claim up to the current FSCS limit in respect of the total value of all accounts you hold with us. Currently, this is up to £85,000 per person and £170,000 for joint accounts. Any deposits you hold above these limits are not covered. Please visit www.fscs.org.uk for further information.

No. All profit will be paid gross, without any tax being deducted.

As a Shariah-compliant bank, we take deposits and invest the funds in a portfolio of assets that comply with Shariah principles, with the aim of generating the expected profit rate.

We also have an obligation as trustee. We’re accountable to depositors under Islamic principles of finance in the event of any negligent actions.

The eligibility criteria are simple. You need to be a UK resident, aged 18 or older, and holding a current account with a UK bank or building society.

All you need is the sort code and account number of your UK bank or building society account. To start your application, click the "Apply now" button and follow the instructions.

Your nominated account is the UK bank or building society account you use to fund your Gatehouse savings account. Your nominated account must be with a UK bank or building society. We’ll ask you for your nominated account details when you open your savings account with us. We transfer your annual or monthly profit payments - and at maturity, all your funds - to your nominated account.

Yes, you can open one account for each of our products, from a minimum of £1,000 for fixed term deposits and for notice accounts up to a maximum of £1m per account, and subject to the product terms and conditions.

Please note that you’re only covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) up to £85,000 per person and £170,000 for money held in joint names. For more information please visit http://www.fscs.org.uk/

Yes, you can have up to two account holders per account. We work on the assumption that you both have equal share of the money in the account and you are both jointly responsible for the account. We usually act on a sole instruction from either one of you, unless you tell us about a dispute over the account.

To tell us about a dispute, please get in touch by phone or in writing in the first instance. From that point onwards, until you tell us otherwise, you’ll only be able to operate the account by post and include the signatures of both account holders.

As with all UK savings accounts, we check your identity and address before you open an account. To make this as easy as possible for you, we do this by checking a number of electronic databases. In some cases we may need to ask you to send identification by post. We’ll tell you about this before we open your account.

All our savings accounts have a 14 day cooling off period. If you change your mind within 14 calendar days of opening your account, please write to us and we’ll cancel your account. No notice period or charges will apply.

For POA on new and existing accounts, please call the team on 0345 600 3350 to ask for an application form. Complete and send it to us along with proof of power of attorney and any other supporting documents we’ve asked for. You also need to download or ask for a copy of our terms and conditions and the key product information for the product, and keep these for your record.

As long as you send us your deposit by bank transfer or cheque within 14 days of applying, we’ll apply the profit rate that was shown on our website at the time you applied (or a higher rate if we have increased it).

If we don’t receive your deposit as cleared funds within 45 days of your application, we won’t open the account, and you’ll need to re-apply.

Once you have successfully completed your online application we’ll send you an email confirming you’ve passed our online checks and explaining how to pay money into your account. We’ll also send you those instructions in the post.

Your account is officially open once we receive your cleared funds. The date this happens will be your account opening date, which we’ll use to calculate your profit payments and your account’s maturity date.

You can fund your new account by bank transfer from your nominated account or by sending us a cheque issued on UK bank or building society account.

We need to receive your initial deposit within 14 days of your application. If we don’t receive your deposit as cleared funds within 45 days of your application, we won’t open the account, and you’ll need to re-apply.

If your bank has recently changed the sort code and account number associated with your nominated account, deposits you send to your Gatehouse Bank account may be rejected. In this case, please log in to your account to update your nominated account details.

Fixed term deposits

For fixed term deposits, if you make your initial deposit by bank transfer, you can send it in instalments as long as we receive them all within a 5 working day period, and as long as we have the full deposit within 45 days of your application.

If you send your initial deposit by cheque, we can’t accept instalments, so we need the full amount in one cheque. We can’t accept a combination of cheque and bank transfer.

Once the full initial deposit is in your account (either in one go or installments) you can’t make any more deposits for the term of the account.

Notice accounts

For notice accounts, you can make extra deposits at any time. The minimum initial deposit is £1.

To view your account information at any time, use your user ID and password to log into your account at www.gatehousebank.com.

No. Whilst your account is open you can view your account balance and transactions at any time by logging in to your account. You will however receive a closing statement for your account once your account is closed. If you’d rather receive a paper copy, please write to us to request one.

Shortly after 6th April each year, you will be able to view and print a Section 975 (S975) tax certificate. If you’d rather receive a paper copy, please write to us to request one. Please note: if you request a paper copy of your S975, we’ll send you one every year, and you won’t be able to download and print one online any more.

You can reset your password by following the ‘forgotten password’ link on our login page. You can also call the team on 0345 600 3350, Monday to Friday 9.00am – 5.00pm.

Yes. You can change your nominated account to another UK bank or building society account any time you like.

Log into your savings account online and follow the instructions. Changing your nominated account won’t update any other accounts which pay profit into the same account.

Please update your profit instructions by logging in and going to Account Options > Account Details > Amend.

For more information or if you need help, you can email us on info@gatehousebanksavings.com, call the team on 0345 600 3350, or write to us at Gatehouse Bank, PO Box 861, Wallsend, NE28 5BP.

Use your user ID and password, log into your account at www.gatehousebank.com and select Change Details. Click on Personal Details, then select the option you need and follow the instructions.

(Fixed term deposits only). We will contact you 25 days before your account is due to mature to let you know what your maturity options are. Once you’ve decided, you can tell us what you want to do by logging into your account and selecting your maturity option.

It’s simple to open a new fixed term deposit account, or withdraw your full deposit. If you don’t tell us what you want to do by your maturity date, we’ll transfer your deposit into a an easy access account, where you can get to it any time you like. Follow the link for more information and account terms and conditions www.gatehousebank.com/personal/savings/easy-access-account.

To make a complaint about your savings account?, please email us at info@gatehousebanksavings.com or call the team on 0345 600 3350, Monday to Friday 9.00am – 5.00pm. You can also write to us at Gatehouse Bank, PO Box 861, Wallsend, NE28 5BP.

We will try to resolve your complaint as quickly and fairly as possible. Please see our complaints policy for more information. If you’re still unhappy, you can contact the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) at complaint.info@financial-ombudsman.org.uk.

Please get in touch immediately. Call us on 0345 600 3350 Monday to Friday 9.00am – 5.00pm, or alternatively email us on info@gatehousebanksavings.com

Please get in touch at your earliest convenience. Call us on 0345 600 3350 Monday to Friday 9.00am – 5.00pm, or email us on info@gatehousebanksavings.com

A home purchase plan is a Shariah-compliant mortgage alternative. You can use it just like a conventional mortgage to buy or refinance your home.

Your home purchase plan works in a similar way to a mortgage. Fixed and variable rates may be available, except they are not rates of interest but rental rates.

With a Shariah compliant home purchase plan, you buy the property jointly with us. Your deposit is your stake, we hold the remaining stake and the property is registered in our name. We instruct a solicitor, who works alongside yours during the purchase process.

Your monthly payment is made up of either rent if you have a rent-only agreement, or rent and acquisition if you have an acquisition and rent agreement. Rental rates are calculated to reflect the shares you and we own in the property.

• Acquisition and Rent product - This is the Shariah compliant alternative to a conventional repayment (capital & interest) mortgage. Over the agreed finance term, you make a monthly payment consisting of a rental payment (for use of our share of the property) and an acquisition payments (to increase your share in the property). With each acquisition payment, your share increases, and ours diminishes. The makeup of your monthly payment changes over time. As our share of the property gets smaller, so does the rental portion of your payment, so more and more of the monthly payment goes towards the acquisition of our share. When all the payments are made, the property transfers into your name.
• Rent Only product - This is the Shariah compliant alternative to a conventional interest-only mortgage. Over the agreed finance term, you make monthly rental payments (for use of our share of the property), but no acquisition payments, so your share doesn’t go up just by making your monthly payments. You undertake to acquire our share of the property at the end of the finance term. If you have a rent-only product, it’s your responsibility to look after any financial arrangements that you expect will provide a lump sum big enough for you to buy our share at the end of the product. When our entire share is acquired, the property transfers into your name

With both types of products, you can sell the property at any time, just like you can with a conventional mortgage. There are no early payment charges, but there is an account settlement fee. When you sell, you only have to pay the original cost of the property contributed by the bank, less any acquisition payments you may have made. Any increase in the property value benefits you, not us, but just like with a conventional mortgage, a decrease in value also affects you.

We advertise percentage rental rates so customers can compare our rates with those charged by other banks and building societies for similar products.

A rent-only product is a Shariah compliant alternative to a conventional interest-only mortgage.

An acquisition and rent product is a Shariah compliant alternative to a conventional repayment (capital & interest) mortgage.

You can sell the property at any time, just like you can with a conventional mortgage. There are no early payment charges. When you sell, you will purchase the bank’s outstanding share at the original cost of the property contributed by the bank (less any acquisition payments you may have made), because we commit to selling our share of your property at a set price: the amount that we contributed at the start of the agreement.

No. Our products are designed so that any increase in value benefits you, not us. We commit to selling our share of your property at a set price: the amount that we contributed at the start of the agreement less any acquisition payments you may have made. But just like with a conventional mortgage, a decrease in value also affects you. This is because you have given us an undertaking to purchase our share at the original cost of the property contributed by the bank.

Yes. You can buy us out sooner than agreed without any early payment charge. There is an account settlement fee, as set out in our Home Purchase Plan Tariff of Charges. Please contact us for more information.

Because there are two buyers involved: you and the Bank. We have separate solicitors so that we are independently represented without conflicts of interest that could arise if the same solicitor acted for both parties.

FTV or finance to value is the amount of finance expressed as a percentage of property valuation. For example, if a finance product has a maximum FTV of 80%, that means we will contribute up to 80% of the property valuation, and you will need to contribute at least 20% as your deposit. The maximum FTV for each product is stated on the product pages. In conventional finance this might be referred to as LTV or Loan to Value

Go to home finance products

You will have a number of options available.

• You will be offered a product from the range available to new or existing customers
• You can revert to our Standard Variable Rate (SVR)
• You can refinance to another provider, although we hope that our service provided and products available will mean that you don’t feel the need to do this.

We provide a full advice service for direct customers and we don’t charge fees for advice. We only advise on Gatehouse Bank products.

• Call us on 08000 353 050, Monday to Friday 9.00am – 5.00pm
• Email us at directadvisers@gatehousebank.com
• Complete our online form

Please get in touch with the team to start your application

• Call us on 08000 353 050, Monday to Friday 9.00am – 5.00pm
• Email us at directadvisers@gatehousebank.com
• Complete our online form

• You speak to a qualified adviser on the phone to find out in principle how much finance we can provide for you. If required, we can provide a Decision in Principle (DIP) to give you and the seller/estate agent some comfort that you can obtain the finance required to purchase your dream property.
• You find a property you like and agree a price with the seller.
• You call us to complete the full application and supply the supporting documents we ask for.
• Once your application and your supporting documents are in order, there will be a property valuation that you will need to pay for in advance.
• Once we have satisfactory property valuation, we make you an offer of finance.
• We each instruct our solicitors, who work together to complete the conveyancing process.
• Legal completion takes place, and then you can pick up keys to the property.

It’s usually 3-5 weeks from the initial application to an offer of finance, as long as you send us the documents we need promptly, and we get an acceptable property valuation.

It’s usually another 3-5 weeks from the offer of finance to legal completion as long as all the right documents are submitted to the solicitors and satisfactory legal reports are received.

It depends on your individual circumstances. We need to do a calculation, taking into account your income and any financial commitments you already have. Our qualified advisers can tell you in principle how much finance we could provide, or you can get an estimate for yourself with our handy online calculator.

Calculator: How much finance can I have?

It depends on the amount of finance you have and how long it takes you to purchase our share. Our advisers can discuss the cost in more detail, or your can get an idea for yourself with our handy online calculator.

Calculator: How much will it cost me?

If you choose a fixed term product, no additional payments can be made during the fixed term period. However, following the fixed term period you may make additional acquisition payments subject to a minimum payment of £2,000 and an administration fee of £25. Please note that:

• Acquisition payments must be made during the first week of every calendar quarter in which a rental review date falls, i.e. January, April, July and October.
• When an acquisition payment is made, this will reduce the amount of finance outstanding and therefore the remaining term of your HPP.
• Once you have made an acquisition payment the payment will be applied to your HPP account immediately.

Yes, we can consider your application if you have at least 1 year’s accounts, subject to affordability.

For UK residents, the minimum is £40,000 and the maximum £2.5m, subject to affordability.

For non-UK residents, the minimum is £75,000 and the maximum £2.5m, subject to affordability.

£50,000 for UK residents and £100,000 for non-UK residents.

Yes, we can consider applications for refinancing. Please speak to one of our advisers.

• Call us on 08000 353 050, Monday to Friday 9.00am – 5.00pm
• Email us at directadvisers@gatehousebank.com
• Complete our online form
  

Sorry, we don’t currently offer finance for Right to Buy purchases.

We can consider certain types of ex-local authority properties. Please speak to one of our advisers.

• Call us on 08000 353 050, Monday to Friday 9.00am – 5.00pm
• Email us at directadvisers@gatehousebank.com
• Complete our online form

We can provide a decision in principle (DIP) which shows how much finance the Bank would be willing to provide in principle, based on the how much finance you’re looking for and how much you are willing to contribute to the purchase.

No. There are no early payment charges on any home purchase plans, including fixed term products. There is an account settlement fee to cover our associated costs, as set out in our Home Purchase Plan Tariff of Charges. Please contact us for more information.

We have to obtain report on the value of the property you want to buy. We use a Standard Valuation Report for the sole purpose of assessing whether the property is adequate as security for the finance arrangement we’re proposing to enter into with you. It’s designed to give us the information we need to decide whether to finance the property.

It’s important to know that a Standard Valuation Report may not reveal defects in the property, and it’s important that you don’t rely on it in any way when deciding whether to go ahead with the purchase. We recommend you get a more detailed report, so you can decide if the property is suitable for you. There are two main types of more in-depth inspection - a Homebuyers Report and a Building Survey Report. You can learn more about them on this government website www.moneyadviceservice.org.uk.

Yes, it’s a condition of the finance we provide that you have suitable buildings insurance in place.

Stamp duty may be applicable to your purchase. For more information, please refer to www.gov.uk/stamp-duty-land-tax/residential-property-rates

We understand that circumstances can change for many different reasons, sometimes causing financial hardship. All we ask is that you talk to us as soon as possible if you find yourself in financial difficulty. Talking about payment problems early on often makes them easier to resolve.

Under Shariah finance principles, money must be put to a good use to generate profit supported by genuine trade or a business related activity. As such, the giving or receiving of interest (making ‘money from money’) is prohibited. For commercial property finance we use a shariah compliant financial arrangement which is known as ‘Commodity Murabaha’. The Bank organises all the necessary paperwork involved with the transaction, which is overseen by Solicitors. As part of the arrangement, profit is generated, which is the agreed margin that the Bank makes on the transaction.

Similar to the conventional way of buying a commercial property, there are two forms of product – ‘Profit Only’ is where you only pay the profit element of the finance (the agreed margin) during the finance term and the remainder (the capital element) at the end of the finance term. ‘Amortising’ is where you pay both the capital and profit elements during the finance term.

This is due to the finance structure to ensure that the customer and bank are independently represented without any conflicts of interest that might arise if the same solicitor acted for both the bank and customer.

We advertise percentage (‘%’) profit rates so customers can compare our rates and charges with those charged by other banks and finance providers for similar products

Just like conventional finance, customers are free to sell their property at any time.

FTV or finance-to-value is the finance amount expressed as a percentage of the property valuation. For example, if a finance product has a maximum FTV of 70%, the Bank will only finance up to 70% of the property value. Please refer to the product criteria for the maximum FTV applicable to individual products.

• Customers will initially discuss their finance requirements over the telephone in order to determine whether the proposal meets the Bank’s funding requirements and if so, how much finance may be available.
• Complete full application and supply all relevant supporting documentation.
• Subject to the above being satisfactory and the valuation fee being received, a property valuation will then take place.
• Once a satisfactory property valuation is received and formal finance approval granted, the finance offer is issued to the customer.
• Solicitors are then instructed for the Bank and customer, who work together to complete the conveyancing and finance process.
• Legal completion takes place.

The initial application to an offer of finance being issued usually takes 2-3 weeks (dependent on business volumes) provided all satisfactory documentation is received at the outset and an acceptable property valuation is also received.

From the offer of finance being issued to legal completion usually takes a further 3-5 weeks provided all the necessary documentation is submitted to the solicitors and satisfactory legal reports are received.

Yes. Founded in 2007, Gatehouse Bank is a UK regulated bank headquartered in London, with a full banking license offering retail and corporate savings products and finance for UK commercial and residential property, as well as sourcing and advising on UK real estate investments. We are authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and regulated by the PRA and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Our Financial Services Register number is 475346.

This depends on your individual circumstances. We will need to take into account the rental income for investment property and Net Operating Income for Commercial Owner Occupied. We will be able to discuss this in more detail once we have an understanding of the proposal.

This depends on the amount of finance, the product, the product type and finance term. We are happy to talk to you about the options available - Please contact us for more information.

No early settlement charges are payable but you will also not benefit from a discount on the amount payable if you settle your finance before any agreed break points. The agreed break points may differ from product to product. Full details can be provided for your chosen product.

Yes, at any time. However, any over payments will not be credited to your account until the maturity date of the then current transaction, in line with the finance arrangement.

We will, prior to the issue of the offer of finance, obtain a Commercial Red Book Valuation Report on the property. The cost of the valuation is paid by you and payment must be received prior to instruction. The Valuation Report is used for the sole purpose of assessing the adequacy of the property as security for the proposed finance. It is designed to give us enough information to enable us to decide whether to provide finance for the property.

Yes, it is a condition of any finance provided that suitable buildings insurance is in place on completion.

As well as individuals, our commercial property finance is open to sole proprietors, partnerships, limited companies, LLPs and on & off-shore SPV (Special Purpose Vehicle) structures.

Yes. Having both an inclusive and flexible approach, we have specific products to help meet the needs of both UK Expats and International residents based overseas.