Heron Financial arranged a £367,000 home mover mortgage with Godiva Mortgages (Coventry for Intermediaries) for joint applicants buying a £525,000 terraced house in Cheltenham. The clients put down a £157,000 deposit funded entirely by the sale of their previous home, giving them a 70% LTV. Heron recommended a 2-year fixed rate on a capital-and-interest basis, and the case completed in August 2025.
The clients
The clients were a couple in their late thirties to early forties with one child, both in mid-career professional roles (a Product Manager and a Resource Manager). They had previously owned a home and were ready to move up the ladder into a more suitable family house in Cheltenham. With a young family, they wanted certainty over their monthly payments for the next couple of years and a process that didn’t drag.
The case at a glance
- Buyers: Joint applicants, age band 35–44, employed, with one dependant
- Occupations: Product Manager and Resource Manager
- Property type: Terraced house
- Location: Cheltenham
- Purchase price: £525,000
- Deposit: £157,000 from the sale of a previous property (~30%)
- Loan amount: £367,000
- LTV: 70%
- Lender: Godiva Mortgages (Coventry for Intermediaries)
- Product: 2-Year Fixed Rate
- Repayment method: Capital and interest
Why this case mattered
Home mover cases look simple on paper and frequently aren’t. Two property transactions need to dovetail, the deposit only crystallises on the day of sale, and any wobble in the chain can knock the mortgage offer timeline. On top of that, the clients were buying a £525,000 home with a young child in tow, so the margin for error on monthly payments and process stress was small. The case landed in a 70% LTV band, which opens up a wider pool of competitively priced products than higher-LTV tiers, but the right lender still depends on how income, deposit source and chain dynamics are presented.
How Heron Financial approached the recommendation
The Heron adviser worked through affordability against the clients’ recorded household income, confirmed the deposit was fully funded by the sale of their previous property, and matched the borrowing to the purchase price at 70% LTV. With the clients prioritising payment certainty over the short term, Heron recommended a 2-year fixed rate on a capital-and-interest basis, which keeps options open for a remortgage review when their circumstances and the rate environment will both have moved on.
Heron placed the case with Godiva Mortgages, the intermediary lending arm of Coventry Building Society, and managed the application through underwriting, valuation and exchange to completion.
The outcome
The application was submitted May 2025, the formal mortgage offer was issued July 2025, and the purchase completed August 2025. The clients moved into their new Cheltenham home with a fixed monthly payment for the next two years and a clear point in the calendar to revisit their mortgage with Heron Financial ahead of the product end.
What this means for borrowers in a similar position
Home movers funding a deposit from the sale of an existing property sit in a strong negotiating position. At 70% LTV, lenders compete hard, and the choice often comes down to product flexibility, valuation appetite for the specific property type, and how the chain is structured. A broker’s job is to match the case to a lender that will move at the right pace and price the product fairly for the borrower’s profile. For families trading up in markets like Cheltenham, where terraced and period housing dominates parts of the stock, working with a broker who can quickly read affordability and lender criteria saves both money and stress.
FAQs
Can I use the proceeds from selling my current home as a mortgage deposit?
Yes. Equity released from the sale of a previous property is a standard and well-accepted deposit source for home movers. In this Heron Financial case, the clients used £157,000 from a property sale to fund a 30% deposit on a £525,000 home in Cheltenham.
What LTV is realistic for home movers using sale proceeds?
It depends on equity and affordability, but home movers commonly land between 60% and 80% LTV. The 70% LTV band, used in this Heron Financial case, typically opens up a wider choice of competitively priced products than higher-LTV tiers.
How long does a home mover mortgage take from application to completion?
Timelines vary with the chain, the lender and the property. In this Heron Financial case, the application was submitted May 2025, the offer was issued July 2025, and completion took place August 2025.
Why would a broker recommend Godiva Mortgages for a home mover?
Godiva is the intermediary lending arm of Coventry Building Society and is often considered for clean home mover cases at mainstream LTVs. Heron Financial assesses every case on its merits and selects a lender based on affordability, product pricing, criteria fit and service standards at the time of application.
Is a 2-year fixed rate the right product for a home mover?
A 2-year fixed gives short-term payment certainty and an early opportunity to review the mortgage in a different rate environment. Longer fixes spread certainty further but reduce flexibility. Heron Financial recommends the term that fits the clients’ plans, not a default option.
