What are my chances....?

Blue_Monkey

... Of getting a mortgage for £200k on a salary of £45k? House price is £250k.

Basically, I've been living overseas working for a UK company in Australia for the past 14 months, and now we find ourselves pregnant and considering moving back to the UK.

OH is self-employed.

My maternity leave would start end of November, so I'm wondering:

• Will my salary alone be enough to get a mortgage?
• How many months of UK earnings will I need to apply?
• Will my impending maternity leave affect (effect??) any application?

If we have to rent for the first 18 months we're back in the UK, so be it, we can leave our savings untouched (and add to it) and then buy in early 2013... But I'd prefer to be in our own house with the baby coming along, rather than a rented flat.

Thanks in advance!

Wh05apk

This is an awkward one, generally lenders cannot descriminate, so the maternity should not effect things, obviously you need to consider all options, and long term affordability.

Will you be transfering back with the same company? if so it shouldn't be an issue, your oh, will they be starting a new business, or sub contracting for someone else?

Blue_Monkey

Longer-term affordability should be ok. We hope to arrive home with approx £75k in savings, but don't want to use all of that on a deposit. If we could use £50k then have a buffer of £25k for renovations, decorating, maternity etc, that would be good. My maternity pay is pretty good (18 weeks full pay, 8 weeks half pay, 26 weeks smp) and we'll be fine on OH's income alone during the last 6 months.

Yes, I'm with the same company.

OH is a sole trader.

Conrad

It can be done, but the biggest challenge by far will be getting through the credit score as these are designed to pick up financial footprints over 3 years at UK address's only. In addition a score is enhanced where applicants have for example work and home UK telephone landlines, are on the voters roll etc. HSBC would be a reasonable place to start but beware thier long winded process.

iamana1ias

Blue_Monkey wrote: »

Longer-term affordability should be ok. We hope to arrive home with approx £75k in savings, but don't want to use all of that on a deposit. If we could use £50k then have a buffer of £25k for renovations, decorating, maternity etc, that would be good. My maternity pay is pretty good (18 weeks full pay, 8 weeks half pay, 26 weeks smp) and we'll be fine on OH's income alone during the last 6 months.

Yes, I'm with the same company.

OH is a sole trader.

Are you sure that's right? You should get 39 weeks SMP in total, with 26 weeks being paid with your full/half pay you'd only have 13 weeks SMP left.

herbiesjp

In theory this could be possible.

There will be many hoops to jump through so be prepared for that aspect.

As long as you maintained credit links in the UK you should be ok in terms of credit history.

Has OH got accounts for is income? Was he doing the same job prior to the move to Oz?

WellKnownSid

Conrad wrote: »

It can be done, but the biggest challenge by far will be getting through the credit score as these are designed to pick up financial footprints over 3 years at UK address's only. In addition a score is enhanced where applicants have for example work and home UK telephone landlines, are on the voters roll etc. HSBC would be a reasonable place to start but beware thier long winded process.

They could also consider Barclays Wealth, who we mortgaged through.

We've been out of the UK for some years now, so no credit history, no UK postcode, no UK address, no UK telephone, and to make matters worse no foreign postal address either (we are only entitled to have a PO box as there is no postal service where we live) which really requires underwriters that can think for themselves and not be box tickers!

It took almost 5 months from seeing the house to completion, some of that down to mistakes made by the Woolwich at offer stage, but also postal strikes, snow and the Christmas break didn't help!

Blue_Monkey

iamana1ias wrote: »

Are you sure that's right? You should get 39 weeks SMP in total, with 26 weeks being paid with your full/half pay you'd only have 13 weeks SMP left.

I think the company uses SMP for the last 39 weeks, but then tops it up for the 13 weeks before the last 26 IFSWIM.

Blue_Monkey

Conrad wrote: »

It can be done, but the biggest challenge by far will be getting through the credit score as these are designed to pick up financial footprints over 3 years at UK address's only. In addition a score is enhanced where applicants have for example work and home UK telephone landlines, are on the voters roll etc. HSBC would be a reasonable place to start but beware thier long winded process.

herbiesjp wrote: »

In theory this could be possible.

There will be many hoops to jump through so be prepared for that aspect.

As long as you maintained credit links in the UK you should be ok in terms of credit history.

Has OH got accounts for is income? Was he doing the same job prior to the move to Oz?

We both have our UK current accounts (no money in them though, and one is slightly overdrawn), I have an ISA with about £10k in, OH has a savings account with about £8k in. I have a couple of UK credit cards, one of which is in default (I hadn't realised I was short £50 when I paid it off).

We don't have a UK landline any more and I'm not sure about the electoral role. All of our post goes to my mum's address.

I did have a really good credit score (high 900's) before we left...:cool: I don't think it will be so great now...

What can I do to start re-building it? Spend on the credit card (and pay it off?)

WellKnownSid wrote: »

They could also consider Barclays Wealth, who we mortgaged through.

We've been out of the UK for some years now, so no credit history, no UK postcode, no UK address, no UK telephone, and to make matters worse no foreign postal address either (we are only entitled to have a PO box as there is no postal service where we live) which really requires underwriters that can think for themselves and not be box tickers!

It took almost 5 months from seeing the house to completion, some of that down to mistakes made by the Woolwich at offer stage, but also postal strikes, snow and the Christmas break didn't help!

So the level of my salary should be ok for obtaining that kind of size mortgage?

Do I need to tell them about my maternity? Would it be easier if I am for only 6 months off initially, get this confirmed by work, get the mortgage and then later "decide" to extend the mat leave?

Thanks for your comments so far

iamana1ias

Blue_Monkey wrote: »

I think the company uses SMP for the last 39 weeks, but then tops it up for the 13 weeks before the last 26 IFSWIM.

Can't do it like that. The SMP has to kick in when you have the baby - not 13 weeks later.

herbiesjp

The default is a silly mistake really.

Some lenders will say no to any credit problems, others will accept it, as it is below their threshold.

Your situation was already awkward, and now the default, can further complicate matters.

You should definitely get your £2 credit files and discuss everything with a good whole of market adviser