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You pay us nothing for the advice, the mortgage application or any of the work in between.
The fact that the mortgage lender pays us has no bearing on the rate or deal we recommend. Our job is to find you the right mortgage. That’s what we’re paid to do.
No advice fee. No application fee. No fee on completion. We’re paid by the lender and we’re FCA regulated, so the advice is held to the highest professional standards.
Hemel Hempstead has several distinct property markets sitting side by side, and which one you buy into has a direct bearing on which mortgage lenders will consider your case.
Boxmoor is the most sought-after part of town, largely because Hemel Hempstead station is technically in Boxmoor, not the town centre, making it the natural base for London commuters. Prices reflect that premium, and family semis here push well above the town average.
Leverstock Green attracts families drawn by a quieter, community-led feel and proximity to well-regarded schools. It contributes to Hemel’s reputation as the happiest place to live in the East of England, according to Rightmove’s Happy at Home Index.
Woodhall Farm and Adeyfield offer the most affordable entry points in the market and carry a higher proportion of ex-local authority stock. That matters for lender selection, which is worth understanding before you apply.
Flats are the most accessible price point in Hemel but carry the most lender complexity. Any flat in a building above six storeys is likely to trigger requests for an EWS1 cladding certificate from most lenders. Santander states it will consider applications regardless of building height where correct evidence is in place. Nationwide requires a clear remediation pathway with costs identified and a responsible party named for certain EWS1 ratings. HSBC will consider lending in some cases where a building has failed EWS1 assessment. These are materially different positions, and lender selection on taller blocks is not interchangeable. Where cladding issues remain unresolved, some lenders require deposits of 15 to 25% rather than the standard 5 to 10%.
Ex-local authority flats in Woodhall Farm and Adeyfield add a further layer of scrutiny. Most lenders accept ex-LA houses with no significant restriction, but ex-LA flats face tighter LTV caps or exclusions from some lender panels entirely. Getting this right at the outset saves applications from being declined mid-process.
In the Old Town area, listed buildings arise more often than anywhere else in Hemel. Not all mainstream lenders are comfortable with Grade II listed properties, and the field narrows further for Grade I or II* listings. Specialist buildings insurance is recommended rather than assumed, and depending on the age and condition of the property, a fuller structural survey is often worth considering.
A one-bedroom flat typically falls between £175,000 and £240,000. A three-bedroom semi-detached house, the bread-and-butter family purchase in areas like Leverstock Green and Nash Mills, runs from around £420,000 to £560,000. The overall average sold price sits at approximately £443,733 (Rightmove and Land Registry, mid-2025).
Affordability is a real constraint here. The price-to-earnings ratio in Dacorum district sits at around 10.8x, meaning standard income multiples of 4 to 4.5x will not stretch far enough for many buyers without a sizeable deposit or a joint application. Some lenders will consider 5x income or higher for professional borrowers, which can open up more of the market. This is a practical conversation worth having early, not after an offer has been accepted.
Getting your lender match right before you start searching makes a measurable difference in a market like Hemel Hempstead.
★★★★★ 1,600+ verified reviews
We’re used by clients across Hertfordshire and the wider UK, with 1,600+ verified 5★ Trustpilot reviews. You can read our independent reviews from people we’ve arranged mortgages for, which gives a good sense of how we work.
We compare around 14,000 mortgage products from more than 99 mortgage lenders, including high street banks and specialist lenders. Hertfordshire has its own mix of property types — commuter-belt semis, new build estates, period cottages and listed buildings are all assessed differently by lenders.
It’s not just about finding a rate. It’s about placing your mortgage with the right lender first time.
We don’t favour any one lender. With access to over 99 lenders, we’re spoilt for choice. We match your mortgage application with the lenders whose criteria best fit your circumstances. From your first enquiry through to your mortgage offer, you’ll have a qualified mortgage adviser managing the entire process, not a faceless call centre.
| Feature | YesCanDo Money | Typical Broker |
|---|---|---|
| Broker fees | £0 | £300–£700 |
| Whole-of-market access | ✅ 99+ lenders | Not always — many use a limited panel |
| Mortgage products | ✅ 14,000+ | Restricted to their panel (Typically 10-60 lenders) |
| Dedicated adviser | ✅ Yes | Often passed between staff |
| Application handling | ✅ Fully managed | Varies by firm |
| Updates throughout | ✅ Proactive | Often only when chased |
| Communication | ✅ Phone, Email, Video & WhatsApp | Phone or email only |
| Trustpilot rating | ✅ 5/5 Stars - Rated Excellent | Industry Standard 4.1 out of 5 |
| Fee on completion | ✅ None | Some charge on top of lender commission |
Mortgage rates move regularly and the best deal for you depends on your deposit, the property and your circumstances. The rates below give a live snapshot of what’s available at 80% loan to value, but the headline rate is only ever part of the picture. We’ll compare the true cost across 99+ lenders and match your mortgage application to the one most likely to accept it.
THE SITUATION
A couple in their late twenties, both working in London, came to us wanting to buy a two-bedroom flat in Apsley. They had saved a 10% deposit and had an agreed budget of £275,000, putting them in range of the canal-side apartment blocks that have become popular with commuters using Hemel Hempstead station in Boxmoor.
THE CHALLENGE
The flat they had an offer accepted on was in a block of nine storeys. The building had an EWS1 assessment in progress but no certificate yet in place, and the existing rating flagged potential cladding concerns. Several lenders on their initial shortlist declined to proceed without a completed EWS1 or a named responsible party and confirmed remediation pathway, leaving the purchase in danger of collapsing.
WHAT WE DID
We reviewed the building’s current EWS1 status and matched the case to lenders whose cladding policies would accommodate an in-progress assessment with the documentation available. Santander’s position, which allows applications regardless of building height where correct evidence is in place, made them the right fit here, and we structured the application around their specific requirements.
THE OUTCOME
A formal mortgage offer was issued within three weeks of application. The couple completed on their Apsley flat without losing the purchase, and paid no broker fee throughout.
THE SITUATION
A self-employed graphic designer owned a three-bedroom semi-detached house on St John’s Road in Boxmoor, valued at £540,000 with £298,000 remaining on the mortgage. His fixed rate was ending in three months and his lender had already written to him with a product transfer offer.
THE CHALLENGE
His income had fluctuated over the past two years. Year one showed £52,000 net profit and year two showed £67,000, but his lender was averaging the two figures to assess affordability, which capped what he could borrow on a full switch. The product transfer rate looked competitive on the surface, but it locked him into his existing lender without any real comparison being run against the wider market.
WHAT WE DID
We identified lenders on our panel who would use the most recent year’s figures rather than a two-year average for self-employed applicants, which opened up a broader range of deals than his existing lender could offer. We ran a side-by-side comparison of the product transfer rate against the best available rates on a full remortgage, factoring in any arrangement fees and the remaining ERC period. The full switch came out ahead over the two-year fixed term.
THE OUTCOME
He secured a lower rate with a new lender, saving approximately £142 per month against the product transfer offer. No broker fee charged.
THE SITUATION
A family of four had outgrown their two-bed terraced house in Bennetts End, purchased for £320,000 four years earlier. They had found a three-bed semi-detached in Leverstock Green at £485,000 and wanted to move before the school year started in September.
THE CHALLENGE
Their existing fixed rate had 14 months left to run, meaning an early repayment charge of just over £3,800 if they redeemed it on completion. Porting the mortgage to the new property looked attractive on paper, but their lender’s affordability assessment had tightened since their original application, and there was a real risk the port would not be approved at the top-up amount needed to cover the £165,000 gap between what they owed and the new purchase price.
WHAT WE DID
We modelled both routes side by side. The ERC cost of switching to a new lender was more than offset by the better rate available across the whole loan, and one lender on our panel offered a cashback of £500 on completion, further narrowing the gap. We also confirmed the chain was solid before recommending they proceed, as the buyers below them were chain-free with a mortgage offer already in hand.
THE OUTCOME
The family completed on the Leverstock Green semi in August, comfortably ahead of the school term, with a five-year fix that cost less per month than continuing with their existing deal would have. No broker fee charged.
THE SITUATION
A landlord approached us about purchasing a two-bedroom flat in Apsley for £285,000, with a 25% deposit of £71,250. The property was in a modern mixed-use block above commercial units on the ground floor, close to the canal and well placed for professional tenants commuting into London Euston.
THE CHALLENGE
Several lenders on our panel excluded mixed-use blocks entirely, treating the commercial element as a material risk to saleability. Those that would consider it applied a stressed rental calculation at 145% of the pay rate at 5.5%, requiring a minimum monthly rent of around £1,430. The asking rent for the property was £1,350, which left a shortfall and ruled out a number of otherwise suitable products.
WHAT WE DID
We identified a specialist buy-to-let lender that accepted mixed-use blocks where the residential element made up the majority of the building’s floor space. Their rental stress test used 125% coverage at a lower notional rate of 4.99%, which the projected rent of £1,350 comfortably satisfied. We confirmed the block had no cladding concerns and a lease with over 100 years remaining before submission.
THE OUTCOME
The mortgage completed on a 75% LTV buy-to-let product with no broker fee charged to the client. The gross yield on the property came in at approximately 5.7% against the purchase price.
Every mortgage situation has its own quirks. We’ll find the lender that fits. Get Free Advice →
We work with high street banks as well as specialist lenders that only accept applications through brokers. Some deals simply aren’t available if you go directly to a bank.
We tell you upfront how a lender is likely to view your mortgage application and what’s genuinely achievable. No jargon, no vague answers and no surprises down the line.
We chase the mortgage lender, deal with queries and coordinate with the valuer and your solicitor so things keep moving without it landing back on you.
We identify where your case fits before submitting anything. Self-employed earnings, contractor rates, bonus income and commission can all affect which lenders say yes.
You’ll never be left wondering where things stand. We contact you when decisions are made and flag anything that needs your attention straight away.
Phone, online meeting or WhatsApp, whatever suits you best. Most clients never need to meet us in person and the advice is exactly the same either way.
With 1,600+ five-star reviews on Trustpilot, we’re ranked among the top 10 mortgage brokers in the UK. That comes from taking every case seriously and making sure every client feels looked after from the first conversation right through to completion.
Buying your first home in Hertfordshire means navigating new build estates, period properties and commuter-town flats. We handle the mortgage side from start to finish, including shared ownership and first home schemes.
If your deal is ending or you want to check you’re on the right rate, we search across 99+ lenders and handle everything. It costs nothing to find out if you can do better.
Moving home in Hertfordshire often means properties lenders assess very differently. Whether porting (transferring your current mortgage to your new home) or getting a new deal, we compare both options and manage everything through to offer.
Hertfordshire has a strong rental market, particularly in commuter towns with fast links into London. Rental income calculations and lender criteria need to be right from the start.
A missed payment or an old default doesn’t close the door on a mortgage. We work with a specialist adverse credit broker that matches the case to lenders who assess the full picture rather than just a credit score.
A mortgage is a long term commitment. We advise on life cover, critical illness cover and income protection so that if something unexpected happens, your home isn’t left exposed.
Hemel Hempstead is a town of distinct parts, and which part you land in shapes your experience considerably. The modern town centre, with its Magic Roundabout and shopping around Marlowes, is functional rather than beautiful. It does the job. But move a mile south into Boxmoor and the mood changes completely. There is a canal towpath, a village green, a high street with independent cafes and pubs, and a pace that feels nothing like a post-war new town. Boxmoor is where most people end up when they say they love Hemel. It earns that reputation.
The train connection is one of the strongest arguments for the town. Hemel Hempstead station sits in Boxmoor, not the town centre, and that is worth knowing before you choose a postcode. From there, you are on the West Coast Main Line with fast services into London Euston in around 27 to 32 minutes, with up to four trains an hour at peak times. For a commuter who needs to be in central London before nine, that is a genuinely competitive journey time. The catch is that if you buy in Adeyfield, Woodhall Farm or Gadebridge, you are adding bus or car time to the platform. That extra leg matters on a daily basis and is worth pricing in when choosing a neighbourhood.
Schools are a real factor here, and the picture is postcode-specific. Leverstock Green consistently draws families partly because of the community feel and partly because of the schools nearby. Nash Mills buyers sometimes look at Kings Langley catchment schools depending on the exact address. Boxmoor attracts professionals who also happen to have children, partly because the school catchments there are worth investigating carefully. Values in areas with strong catchment proximity tend to hold well as a result. If schools are driving your search, get the catchment map open before you start viewing, not after.
For weekend life, Gadebridge Park is the main green lung in the centre of town, and the Grand Union Canal towpath gives Boxmoor and Apsley a leisure corridor that is genuinely well used year-round. The Old Town is a ten-minute drive from the new town development and feels like a separate village entirely, with timber-framed buildings and a market that pre-dates the post-war expansion by several centuries. Berkhamsted is a short drive west along the A41 if you want an independent high street with more variety.
The honest catch is affordability. The median price-to-earnings ratio in Dacorum sits at around 10.8 times local earnings, which means the maths is tight for first-time buyers without help. That said, Hemel offers access to the same Euston commute as surrounding Hertfordshire towns at a lower price point. The value case is real. It suits commuters who need London within 35 minutes and have a budget that rules out pricier neighbouring towns. It suits families who want good schools, canal-side walks and more space than inner-city budgets allow. It is less suited to buyers who want a characterful market town feel throughout, rather than in pockets.
The property mix in Hemel Hempstead is broader than first impressions suggest. The majority of transactions are terraced houses, averaging around £409,642 (Land Registry, mid-2025), and these are spread across most of the town’s residential areas. Semi-detached houses, which are the dominant stock in Leverstock Green, Nash Mills and Boxmoor, average around £514,798. Detached homes sit between approximately £650,000 and over £1,000,000 depending on location. At the Long Chaulden development in HP1, David Wilson Homes and Taylor Wimpey are currently selling four-bedroom detached homes at around £700,000 and three-bedroom homes from approximately £500,000. Flats average around £247,039 to £294,941 depending on source and postcode, and represent the main entry point for first-time buyers, though they carry the most complexity from a mortgage perspective. Ex-local authority stock in Woodhall Farm and Adeyfield keeps price points lower in those areas, which attracts buyers with smaller deposits, but requires careful lender selection.
Boxmoor consistently holds value well, driven by the station proximity and the village atmosphere that buyers are willing to pay a premium for. Leverstock Green holds up strongly for family homes, largely on the back of school catchment demand. Old Town properties, particularly listed and period buildings, attract a specific buyer and tend not to follow the same price movements as the wider market. The newer affordable areas, Adeyfield and Woodhall Farm, are more sensitive to broader market conditions and serve a different buyer profile entirely. The overall average sold price across Hemel Hempstead sits at approximately £443,733 (Rightmove and Land Registry, mid-2025).
The rental market is active. Monthly rents in Hemel Hempstead run between approximately £1,458 and £1,567 depending on postcode and property type (mid-2025 market data). HP2 offers the strongest gross rental yield at approximately 4.8%, driven by lower average asking prices of around £389,517 relative to the rents achievable. HP3 yields around 3.9% gross, with rents close to those in HP2 but higher purchase prices averaging approximately £487,360. Well-presented properties are reportedly letting within two weeks in the current market, compared to a national average of around 25 days. Tenant demand is supported by commuter appeal, employment along the Maylands Business Park corridor and buyers who remain in the area as long-term renters when ownership is out of reach. Dacorum’s median earnings of approximately £46,207 sit around 16% above the national average, which means the professional tenant profile here is relatively strong. All yields quoted are gross, and net figures will be materially lower once mortgage costs, letting agent fees, void periods, maintenance and insurance are factored in. Getting the mortgage structure right from the outset makes a significant difference to what a buy-to-let actually returns.
Whether you are buying your first home in Woodhall Farm, a family semi in Leverstock Green or a flat in Apsley, the mortgage route through Hemel Hempstead’s market is rarely one-size-fits-all, and that is where having the right broker beside you makes a practical difference.
A short call to understand your situation and goals — income, deposit, the property and anything that might affect lender choice. From there we give you a clear picture of what’s realistic.
We search across the market, including lenders you can’t reach directly. Once you’re happy with the recommendation, we secure the rate, arrange an agreement in principle and submit the full application.
When the lender is satisfied, they issue the formal offer. We stay involved right through to completion, and if a better rate appears before then we’ll look at whether switching makes sense.
No charge for the initial discussion — we’ll explain the options before anything moves forward.
★★★★★ Rated Excellent · 1,600+ reviews
Buying a house is the biggest financial decision most of us ever make. So why do so many of us walk into offers armed with little more than a Rightmove
Lloyds Banking Group is launching a new mortgage that lets first-time buyers get on the property ladder with a deposit of just £5,000. The Halifax £5,000 Deposit Mortgage goes live
In a property market that has spent the last two years swinging between hesitation and urgency, the speed of your mortgage offer is no longer just a convenience. It decides
Hemel Hempstead station is actually in Boxmoor, not the town centre, and that one detail matters more than most buyers realise. A flat in Woodhall Farm or Adeyfield might look good value at under £250,000, but if the building is ex-local authority or sits above six storeys, a significant portion of the market will simply decline the case. Get the lender wrong at the start and you lose time, valuation fees and sometimes the property itself. We work across all parts of Hemel, from Old Town period properties with listed building complications to new build detached homes at Long Chaulden where developer incentives can quietly affect your loan-to-value if nobody flags them early.
We’re a family-run, FCA regulated mortgage broker, not a call centre. You deal with a real adviser throughout, someone who takes the time to understand your situation and works out the best route forward before any paperwork is started.
Hemel’s price-to-earnings ratio sits at around 10.8x, which means standard income multiples often fall short for first-time buyers. There are lenders who will go to 5x income or higher for the right applicant, but knowing which ones, and which ones will also accept the property type you’re buying, is where the work is done.
