FTB in Scotland

colinrobbie

Hi,

I have done a fair bit of reading on here and a few other sites about mortgages but not sure if I'm taking everything in okay.

I'm thinking about making an appointment with a mortgage broker but would like to be prepared as much as possible.

Here's my situation.

I live with my partner. I am 26, she is 32, and we have a son together, renting from the local council. Our rent is very affordable at just under 300per month for a 2 bedroom flat but we are looking to move away from the area we are in as we don't like the sort of people hanging around here when we have a young child. Moving with the council is a no-no as we have no need for a move just choice and so are exploring other avenues. To rent privately would double our rent so buying our first house seemed a more sensible idea.

We have no outstanding debts/credit although I defaulted on a loan for 1k over 6 years ago (I believe it stays with you for 6 years?). I was 18 or 19 at the time and not a care in the world but now have much more responsibility.

We pay most of our bills using her debit card on our pay days, although internet is by direct debit. The tv license is paid by direct debit in my name from my account. Will this mean my credit rating won't have been built up very much or is dependant on bills being paid on time.

I am handing in a form today to be registered on the electoral roll (I'm unsure but think I may still be registered at parent's house, my partner isn't sure if she is on it).

We both have secure jobs at Asda and Primark. My income is 14k and hers 6k working part time due to health advice. Our tax credits take our joint income to around 29k.

We have looked at local properties in areas we'd move to and they range in price from around 75k-90k.

As we are only exploring the possible options of moving we haven't started saving a deposit, however my parents have just sold a house and have a bit of money behind them and may be able to help us out somehow with a deposit (I haven't spoken to them directly about it but they offered us money towards wedding but we'd put that on hold if we could get a house). I've read about gifted deposits and loans from parents but it all got a bit jumbled to be honest. I would like to pay it all back with the plan being from a SAYE scheme where I can buy discounted shares but with no risk to my investment should I not take up the share options.

The calculators suggest we'd be in the right ballpark for how much we could borrow.

I'm not sure what the broker would need to know, do I have enough here?

Thanks for reading my first post and hope I can take something from the replies.

beecher2

You should get copies of both your credit files to see if there's anything negative on them.

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/loans/credit-rating-credit-score

Also work out a budget if you did get a £80k mortgage - it would cost £468/month at 5% over 25 years. Is that something you could afford, in addition to maintenance costs?

colinrobbie

I don't have a debit/credit card to obtain my credit report, we are at the identity verification stage on my partners.

beecher2

colinrobbie wrote: »

I don't have a debit/credit card to obtain my credit report, we are at the identity verification stage on my partners.

Why can't you use your partner's debit card to obtain your credit file?