Here are a list of some of our Frequently Asked Questions. If your question is not on the list below, please contact one of our team on 01494 879500.
Yes. All of our owner occupied and buy to let mortgage products allow overpayments of up to 10% of the capital each year, without incurring an Early Repayment Charge. If there is no Early Repayment Charge on your mortgage product, or you have passed your Early Repayment Charge period, you can overpay with no limit.
Yes, but if you are within an Early Repayment Charge period, there will be a charge for this, which may be substantial. Contact the mortgage team for details.
We have products for existing customers to switch to. These vary from time to time and you should contact our mortgage department for current deals. Early Repayment Charges may apply if you are still within this period, and if you are in arrears on your existing mortgage deal we will not be able to switch you to another product.
We have products for existing customers to switch to. We will normally write to you 2-3 months prior to the end of your Early Repayment Charge period to let you know what we have on offer. You can contact the mortgage department before this. If you are in arrears on your existing mortgage deal we will not be able to switch you to another product.
Certainly, although borrowing more money is considered to be a new mortgage deal under the Regulations. You will need to prove you can afford the additional amount and undertake the full advised interview process with a mortgage broker, even though you are already our customer. We will require a new valuation on your property and the reason you need the extra amount.
The Society uses income and expenditure analysis instead of income multiples to asess affordability.
However as a simple guide, if you are taking out a mortgage by yourself, we will lend you up to 4.5 x your salary on the majority of our products. If two of you are taking out a joint mortgage, we will lend up to either 4.5 x the higher salary and 3.5 x the lower, or 4 x the joint salaries. If there are more than 2 people on the mortgage, we will lend up to 3.5 x the joint income. Some types of products are subject to different limits.
This is possible in certain circumstances, and based on individual reasons. Contact the mortgage team on 01494 879517 for information.
Yes. For information on how to do this please contact the Mortgage Team.
Yes. For information on how to do this please contact the Mortgage Team.
Yes. In general our mortgages are portable, meaning you can take them with you if you move house, subject to our lending criteria at that time. If you need to borrow more for your move, you will need to go through the advised process and confirm you can afford the extra loan amount.
Yes. We understand there are many reasons why you may find meeting your mortgage payments difficult at times and we will help you to come to an arrangement wherever possible. Contact the mortgage team as soon as you are aware you are in difficulties to avoid going into arrears on your mortgage.
Simply contact the mortgage team and they will arrange this for you.
We understand that this will be a difficult time for you and you should contact the mortgage department by phone, as we can help you immediately with any questions you may have. We will ask you for a certified copy of the death certificate and inform you when changes have been made to the mortgage account. Under a Joint Tenancy, the property automatically passes to the surviving tenant. You will need to appoint a solicitor to take care of any legal implications, and your solicitor will deal with probate, insurance or any other matters for you.
We understand that this will be a difficult time for you and you should contact the mortgage department by phone, as we can help you immediately with any questions you may have. We will ask you for a certified copy of the Power of Attorney document – this will be either a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) or an Enduring Power of Attorney (EPA). This must be certified on each page and marked as Registered by the Office of the Public Guardian. We also need to identify all attorneys. We will use an Electronic Verification system to do this, however we may ask you for documentary evidence as well. We will change the correspondence address on the mortgage account if you advise us to do so.
We are delighted to be able of offer our new Direct Advice service, allowing us to help members achieve financial security and homeownership. Direct Advice will offer the same range of great mortgage products that are available now through intermediaries. Intermediaries will continue to play a major part in our offering.
An independent mortgage adviser who will cover all your requirements in an advised interview including length of term, type of mortgage and your own circumstances to make sure they get the deal that is best for you.
You will need proof of your income which will be in the form of a P60 and 3 months’ payslips or for self employed borrowers, your last 2 years accounts and SA302. For contractors and other borrowers with complex income, contact the mortgage team directly for a comprehensive list.
We have specific products for people with some credit issues. Contact your mortgage broker or one of our in-house advisers who can give you the correct advice for your circumstances. Your credit history will need to fit our strict guidelines, we do not lend to borrowers with certain circumstances of impaired credit such as undischarged bankrupts or those whose homes have been repossessed at any time.
We have a specific product range if you are a contractor or have more complex income. This only applies to certain industries, please contact your mortgage broker or our in-house adviser.
You can take money out of your account in cash at our branch, by cheque or by bank transfer. Branch cash limits apply to all withdrawals. You may withdraw £500 in one day or you can order up to £3,000 with 3 days notice from an easy access account. Amounts larger than £3,000 may not be withdrawn in cash and will need to be by cheque or bank transfer.
There are different conditions and notice periods on our savings accounts and you should refer to your original terms and conditions, or on the website.
You must present your passbook / passcard to withdraw money from your account. If you post it to us, we will retain it until we send your cheque or bank transfer, then we will return it to you.
Faster payment transfers are available up to £100,000 at no charge. Amounts over £100,000 will be sent either by 3 day payment at no charge, or next day by CHAPS for which we charge £25. If you are writing in to us, please indicate the transfer option you require and confirm your bank sort code and account number of where you would like the funds to be transferred to. This account must be in the name of the account holder (or Power of Attorney if applicable).
You can pay into your account with cash in person at our branch, by cheque or by bank transfer up to the maximum balance of the account. Please do not send cash by post as it could be lost.
Cheques must be payable to the name of the account holder. If you wish to make a bank transfer, quote the following details:
Sort Code: 20-01-72
Account no: 20224448
Reference: Quote the 10 digit account number in your passbook. Please do not include any dashes or spaces
You can also set up a standing order to pay money in directly, using the information above.
Please note that some of our accounts (mainly fixed term bonds) do not permit further investments once the issue has been closed.
Yes. This is a great way to save a small amount each month and build up your savings. You can set up a standing order into your savings account provided the terms of the account permit this up to the maximum balance. We cannot accept standing order payments into fixed term bonds.
You can contact us for a standing order form, or set it up with your bank quoting the following details:
Sort Code: 20-01-72
Account no: 20224448
Reference: Quote the 10 digit account number in your passbook. Please do not include any dashes or spaces
Sorry, but we are unable to accept direct debit payments into our savings accounts.
Depending on the type of account, interest is either paid annually to 31st December, monthly, or on maturity of a bond.
No. Gross interest is the rate payable to you. We will not take tax off the interest you earn. It is your responsibility to declare any interest you earn over your personal savings allowance directly to HMRC.
Basic rate taxpayers can earn up to £1,000 interest on savings tax free.
Higher rate taxpayers can earn up to £500 interest on savings tax free.
Additional rate taxpayers will pay tax on all savings interest earned.
Cash Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) pay interest tax-free provided all terms and conditions of the account are met.
Yes, once you have selected the savings account that you want download this form and complete and return with a certified copy of the Power of Attorney document. See our information on Power of Attorney for more details.
You can see a list of our identification requirements here.
Yes - you will need to send in two copies of documentary evidence that includes documents with your signature, which we keep on file to ensure we comply with rules to prevent any fraudulent activity on your account. You may provide normal photocopies of the documents as proof of your identity. Please do not send original documents in the post.
We also use an electronic verification system to enhance our security when verifying customers.
Yes, provided you can answer our security questions. We cannot give information about another person’s account over the phone unless a specific signed mandate or Power of Attorney is in place. We cannot accept any transaction requests over the phone, but we are happy to answer your questions.
Please inform us as soon as possible, on the phone is fine. We will send you out a lost passbook form for you to sign and return to us. We will cancel the lost passbook, which means that if you find it later, you will not be able to use it to make withdrawals, and you should send it to us so we can destroy it. This is for your own security. We will send you out a new passbook to use. If there are any security issues around the loss of the book or you are worried it could have been stolen, we will close your account and open a new one with a new account number to avoid anyone fraudulently taking your money out. We reserve the right to make a £10 charge for lost passbooks.
When savings interest rates reduce we will personally tell you about it at least 14 days before we make the change. Please refer to the ‘Terms and Conditions for Savers' for a more detailed explanation. If there is an increase to savings interest rates, we will update our website and banking hall within 3 days of the change. We may decide to inform you personally after the change is made.
AER stands for Annual Equivalent Rate and illustrates what the interest rate would be if interest was paid and added each year, and has been rounded to two decimal places.
Gross interest is the rate payable to you. We will not take tax off the interest you earn. It is your responsibility to declare any interest you earn over your personal savings allowance directly to HMRC.
Basic rate taxpayers can earn up to £1,000 interest on savings tax free.
Higher rate taxpayers can earn up to £500 interest on savings tax free.
Additional rate taxpayers will pay tax on all savings interest earned.
You can contact us at any time to receive a tax certificate. If you would like to receive a tax certificate every year, please let us know the account numbers and we will send this to you at the beginning of each new tax year. We may make a charge for duplicate tax certificates.
This is dependent on the type of account you have. Maximum investment for personal accounts is normally £500,000, although some types of account are subject to a lower limit and some have an upper limit of £750,000. Maximum investment in Junior Saver accounts will depend on the terms of each account. Maximum investment for organisations depends on the terms of each account. Maximum annual limits for ISAs are set by the Government. See the ISA pages for details.
Monthly interest cannot be compounded back into a Cash ISA.
Cash Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) pay interest tax-free provided all terms and conditions of the account are met.
Annual limits for cash ISAs are set by HMRC. For the current tax year, the following limits apply:
Cash ISA £20,000
Junior ISA £9,000
Other restrictions apply to ISAs. Please check the relevant product page for full details.
If you are an existing customer and you are looking for interest rates for savings accounts that are no longer available to new savers then you need to look at the relevant document on the Essential Information and Downloads page.
Please let us know in writing as soon as you change your address. You can also inform us by secure messaging if you are set up on mybbsaccounts. We may need to ask you for identification including proof of your new address, if you have recently moved, as this may not show up on our electronic verification system. This is for your own security to avoid identity fraud.
We usually send statements annually.
if you are planning on setting up a payment to us, or are a new customer, please use the details below:
Our bank details:
Sort Code: 20-01-72
Account no: 20224448
Reference: Quote the 10 digit account number in your passbook. Please do not include any dashes or spaces.
We are open from 9.15am to 4.45pm on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.
On Wednesday we open at 9.45am due to staff training.
We are open on Saturday from 9.15am to 12.00pm.
We are closed on all English bank holidays, and may be closed on the Saturday where a public holiday surrounds a weekend, e.g. Easter and Christmas. We close at 12.00pm on Christmas Eve.
Below you’ll find some frequently asked questions about our online mortgage transfer service. If you have any questions not answered below, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
Our online mortgage transfer service is an easy way for you to transfer your mortgage to a new Buckinghamshire Building Society product when your current mortgage product with us nears its end date. Keeping your mortgage with us means there is no lengthy application forms to complete, no paperwork to sign, no property valuation required, no income checks needed and no application fees to pay.
If you are eligible to use our online mortgage transfer service, you’ll receive a letter through the post approximately 8 weeks before your current mortgage product ends. The letter will contain instructions on how to access the online service.
You’ll find your Activation Key on the letter you received from us about our online mortgage transfer service. Keep this letter safe as you’ll need to use your Activation Key each time you log on.
If you’ve misplaced the letter containing your Activation Key, don’t worry. Call us on 01494 879500 and we’ll help you access your account.
You can find your mortgage account number on; your last mortgage statement; on mybbs if you have registered; or any correspondence from us regarding your mortgage. It is not included on your mortgage transfer letter for security reasons.
When entering your postcode, please make sure it is for the property the mortgage is in relation to. This may differ from your correspondence address.
If you signed up to receive email notifications from us but haven’t received anything, please make sure you check your junk mail folder. If our email is in your junk mail folder, adding us to your ‘safe sender’ list will help any future notifications find their way to your inbox. If you’ve checked your junk mail folder and you still haven’t received an email from us, please contact us on 01494 879500.
If you signed up to receive email notifications, you’ll receive an email from us when your mortgage illustration offer is ready to view. Once you receive this email, log into your account and the illustration will be ready for you to download. If you didn’t sign up to receive email notifications, keep checking back by logging into your account.
We automatically log you out after 20 minutes of no activity. This is to protect your privacy should you forget to log out.
If you haven’t selected a new Buckinghamshire product, or made arrangements to transfer your mortgage to another provider, you will revert to our Standard Variable Rate (SVR) or Buy to Let Standard Variable Rate (BTLSVR) and your monthly payment will change.
If you would prefer to talk to someone about your mortgage, you can speak to your independent qualified mortgage adviser.
If your circumstances have changed, or you want to make other changes to your mortgage, such as extending your term, or need additional borrowing please call us on 01494 879500.
Please contact us on 01494 879500 and we’ll send information on the existing borrower products available to you by post.
Yes you can log in using Two-Factor Authentication, then amend any personal details such as contact details. At the point you click submit, you will then receive a text or a call with another code to enter. This is to ensure that we maintain the security of your personal information using Secure Customer Authentication (SCA).
Currently no, however following these security enhancements we will be looking to implement further enhancements to the services provided by mybbs and will keep you up-to-date with the progress of this.
The website has been upgraded but there are minimal changes to what you will see. The main change will be our secure customer authentication enhancements, which adds additional security and you will receive a text or a call with a code to enter to log into the site.
Please ensure that you have selected the option within mybbs to receive your code via a landline to ensure you can clearly hear the code.
When you have registered your information with us, you will receive an email from mybbsaccounts@bucksbs.co.uk followed by a letter from the Society within 5 working days. The letter will provide you with your unique code, which will allow you to log into mybbs and be verified.
You will be able to view your accounts and balances that you hold with the Society. You can also select your marketing preferences (this will enable us to keep you up-to-date with our accounts and services) and personal contact details. You are able to edit these details on the site and will be asked to authenticate yourself again to do so. In addition you can send secure messages to us, which can be viewed by our Savings team. Please note these will be processed within 2 working days of receipt, excluding weekends and bank holidays.
Yes, we have recently launched this service for a select range of accounts.
For all other accounts, please either:
We take the security of your information seriously and in order to both protect you as our member and enable us to offer more enhanced on-line services to you in the future we need to implement secure customer authentication, therefore you are unable to opt out.