A mortgage is a loan that helps you buy a property. You borrow money from a lender, like a bank or building society, and repay it monthly with interest over a set period, usually between 5 and 40 years.

You'll typically need at least 5–10% of the property's value. A larger deposit (e.g. 15–20%) can unlock better interest rates. Usually for each 5% increase in deposit size the interest rate will drop slightly.