Independent · 120+ lenders · FCA regulated
Three keys open
every front door.
Deposit, income, record. A lender turns all three before it says yes - and you usually find out which one sticks after an agent has taken your offer. We check all three against 120+ lenders first, and tell you the truth.
One panel. 120+ lenders. Some you cannot reach directly.
Find out which key does not turn. Before a lender does.
Five questions, ninety seconds. You get a score out of 100, a grade on each of the three keys, an honest borrowing figure and a short list of what to fix first.
No credit check. No hard search. No email needed to see the result - and if the answer is that you are not ready, it says so.
-
Key one
Deposit
Decides which rates you can even see. The step from 90% to 85% loan to value is worth more than any amount of haggling.
-
Key two
Income
Not what you earn - what a lender will count. Bonus, dividends and retained profit are each read differently, and the spread is enormous.
-
Key three
Record
Your credit file, your account conduct, your commitments. Recency matters far more than severity, which surprises almost everybody.
Where are you standing?
Six doors. Six different products.
A mortgage is not one thing. What a lender wants from a first-time buyer and what it wants from a landlord barely overlap. Pick your door and get the honest version.
Buying your first home
Deposit, Lifetime ISAs, gifted money and the everyday habits that quietly sink first applications.
- Deposit from5%
- Stamp duty free to£300k
Moving home
Port the old deal or break it? Chains, timing and how to buy before you have sold.
- Typical chain8-16 wks
- Porting savesERC fees
Remortgaging
Coming off a fix, raising money, or escaping the standard variable rate you were rolled onto.
- Start looking6 mths out
- SVR premiumOften 2%+
Investing in property
Buy to let, limited company, HMO and holiday let. Judged on rent, not on your salary.
- Deposit from25%
- Rent must cover125-145%
Self-employed
Sole traders, directors and day-rate contractors. The right reading of your accounts is worth six figures.
- Accounts needed1-2 yrs
- Retained profitSome count it
Credit issues
Missed payments, defaults, CCJs, a plan still running. Age matters more than severity.
- Stays on file6 years
- Deposit from10-25%
The comparison people get wrong
A home and an investment
are not the same loan.
Two properties on the same street can need completely different mortgages. The lender is not asking the same questions, and neither is HMRC.
| Living in it | Letting it out | |
|---|---|---|
| What decides the loan size | Your income | The rent the property earns |
| Typical deposit | 5-10% | 25% |
| Stamp duty | Standard rates, relief if you are a first-time buyer | Standard rates plus a 5% surcharge |
| Usual repayment method | Capital and interest | Often interest only |
| FCA regulated | Yes | Usually not |
| Tax on the income | None, it is your home | Income tax, with mortgage interest relief capped at 20% |
Work it out yourself
Six tools. No email wall.
Everything here runs in your browser and nothing asks for your details first. If the numbers work you will want to talk to us. If they do not, you have saved yourself a wasted month.
Am I ready to apply?
A score out of 100, a grade on all three keys and a personalised list of what to fix first.
BorrowingWhat could I borrow?
Income multiples, commitments and the loan-to-value ceiling, showing which one is actually limiting you.
RepaymentsWhat will it cost a month?
Capital and interest or interest only, plus what happens if rates rise a full point.
Stamp dutyWhat tax will I pay?
2026/27 SDLT for England and Northern Ireland, with first-time buyer relief and the 5% surcharge.
Buy to letWill the rent stack up?
The interest cover ratio a lender runs, at your tax band, with the maximum loan the rent supports.
GlossaryWhat does that word mean?
Every piece of mortgage jargon you will meet, defined in one sentence of plain English.
How it goes
Five stages, and you always know which one you are in.
The most stressful part of a mortgage is not the money. It is the silence. We tell you what is happening, what we are waiting for and who we are waiting on.
Most cases run two to four weeks from full application to formal offer once the documents are in. Chains take longer, and that part is not in anyone's hands.
A conversation, not a sales pitch
Fifteen minutes on the phone, WhatsApp or video. What you want, what you earn, what is on your file. You find out quickly whether this works.
A decision in principle
We choose a lender whose criteria actually fit you, then get an agreement in principle so estate agents take your offer seriously.
The full application
Payslips, bank statements, accounts. You send photos or PDFs, we package the case the way that lender wants to see it.
Valuation and underwriting
The lender values the property and an underwriter reads the file. We answer their questions so you do not have to.
Offer, then completion
A formal offer is issued, your solicitor does the legal work and the keys change hands. We stay on it until they do.
Why people send their friends
Most of our clients arrive as a referral.
That is the number that matters in this trade. Nobody recommends a broker who went quiet for three weeks.
- Not tied to any single lender
- Straight answers, including the ones you did not want
- Evenings and weekends, because you have a job too
- Phone, WhatsApp, Zoom, Teams - whatever suits you
- Digital documents and app-based ID, nothing posted
Three Keys Mortgages is the trading name of Craig Chavez, a registered individual of Capital Finance Brokers Limited, authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority under reference 943805.
In their words
What clients say afterwards
Craig is an excellent advisor. Makes the mortgage maze a LOT easier, doesn't beat about the bush and keeps you informed through the whole process. I would have no hesitation recommending him.
I can't recommend Three Keys highly enough. They have made the whole process of buying and moving house so much less stressful.
The knowledge library
Everything we would tell you on the phone, written down.
No gated PDFs, no "enter your email to continue". If you would rather read it at midnight than book a call, read it at midnight.
How a mortgage application actually works
From first call to keys, what happens at each stage and what is really causing the delay when it drags.
Read the guideDeposit and loan to value, explained
Why the rate falls off a cliff at 90, 85 and 75 percent, and when saving another month beats a pay rise.
Read the guide
What lenders actually check
The six months of bank statements an underwriter reads line by line, and what quietly counts against you.
Read the guideBefore you call
The questions everybody asks
What does it cost to talk to you?
Nothing. The first conversation is free and there is no obligation at the end of it. If we take your case on, we may charge a broker fee depending on how complex it is - and we tell you the exact figure in writing before you commit to anything. We are also paid a commission by the lender, which we disclose to you.
Do I need a big deposit?
For a home you live in, 5% is enough with most lenders and there are lenders who will go further with a guarantor or family support. For a buy to let you should plan on 25%. What the deposit really changes is the rate: the difference between a 90% and a 75% loan to value is usually far bigger than anything you will win by shopping around at the same tier. The deposit guide covers this properly.
I am self-employed. Is that a problem?
No, but it is a place where lender choice matters enormously. Some want two years of accounts, some accept one. Some use net profit, some use salary plus dividends, and a few will use retained profit inside the company. Picking the right lender for your accounts can change what you can borrow by six figures. See how self-employed income is assessed.
My credit is not clean. Should I bother?
Yes, and please talk to us before you apply anywhere. Defaults, CCJs, missed payments and past arrangements all have specialist lenders who price for them. What genuinely damages you is a scattergun of applications, because every hard search leaves a mark. Here is what is usually still possible.
How long does it take?
Two to four weeks from a complete application to a formal mortgage offer is normal. A decision in principle can be same day. What takes the time after that is the legal work and the chain, which is why we push to get the mortgage side done early and out of the way.
Are you only in Milton Keynes?
The office is at Midsummer Court on Midsummer Boulevard, and you are welcome there. In practice we look after clients across the UK by phone, video and WhatsApp, take documents as photos or PDFs and verify ID through an app. It is faster for you and it means where you live never limits which adviser you get.
Can you help with buy to let and limited company purchases?
Yes - standard buy to let, portfolio landlords, limited company SPV structures, HMOs and holiday lets. These are assessed on the rent the property produces rather than your salary, and the lender panel is completely different from the residential high street. Start here.
Start here
Tell us where you are. We will tell you what is possible.
Four fields. No credit check, no hard search, nothing that touches your file. Craig reads every enquiry himself and comes back within one working day.
- The first conversation is free
- No credit check, no hard search
- A reply within one working day
Prefer to talk now? Call 0333 339 7301 or email [email protected].