Mortgage for Settlement Visa Applicant

Wizardmaxx

Hi

I am new to the forums and have done some searching through the threads to see if my situation is similar to others, but to no avail.

My wife and I moved to the UK about 6 months ago. She has a British passport as well as a South African one. I have a South African passport and have been issued a Settlement Visa.

The details on the Visa are

UK Entry Clearance
Number of entries - Multiple
Valid until 2013
Indefinite leave to enter the UK

The question is will we be granted a mortgage and what will be the best way of going about it. I am permanently employed, my wife is temping atm. We have no outstanding debts, both cars paid for with joint annual income of around 45k. The house we are interested in costs 170k and we can source about 15k as a deposit.

The best I could find on the net so far is that lenders want both applicants to be UK residents or want huge deposits, which unfortunately we don't have and we will only be able to apply for residency in about two years time.

I will continue searching, but any advise will be appreciated.

herbiesjp

Hi Wizardmaxx

Welcome to the board

As you have only been in the UK 6 months, this means that any lender will not have much of a track record on which to base a lending decision.

There are some lenders that might be able to look at your application in more detail, but as with all types of cases like this, they will be assessed on an individual basis If you could work up to a 10% deposit it may open a few more doors and keep costs to a minimum as most lenders will charge a Higher Lending Charge over 90% borrowing.

Have a look at Martin's guide and then contact a fee free whole of market mortgage adviser

HTH

izoomzoom

Welkom te Enegland ! Hoe gaan dit ?

(sorry written is worse than my spoken which has always been rusty).

We recently purchased our house, but have been here a few years longer than you.

I agree that your biggest stumbling block is likely to be the fact that you have so little financial track record in this country. Time only will sort that out.

Secondly, please clarify your status here. When my H applied to come to UK, he was issued with a settlement visa. At the time, you could apply for indefinite leave to remain after 1 year (but I know that it increased to at least two years a couple years ago). He was obviously granted this, and to this day that is all he has (hasn't applied for British citizenship - although he does now qualify).

What I am trying to say is that you should definitely have a chance with indefinite leave to remain status, as opposed to just the settlement visa.

Also, your wife shouldn't have any problem applying, but I notice that you said that she is temping. This is likely to be a problem.

Finally my best advise would be to contact a whole of market fees free broker who could do all the ground work for you. Even if you can't get a mortgage yet, they should be able to advise of when you will be able to, and in the meantime, you could keep saving that all important deposit.

Best of luck and if you know of any good biltong around, pleeeezzzz give me a shout.

Wizardmaxx

Thanks for the replies

and

Baie dankie vir die welkom.

I have proceeded with an adviser and it seems as though Halifax require either a 25% deposit :eek: or at least 2.5yrs remaining on the visa. Since the visa is valid for another 7yrs it seems that sorts things out a bit. Still waiting for adviser to come back to me though.

Out of interest, when I joined HSBC I inquired what sort of mortgage I'd qualify for and I was informed that I qualified for 131k, but that I wouldn't be able to apply for one until my probation period of three months had ended at my employer. There was not concern over the visa at that stage at all.

As far as the Indefinite leave to remain goes, afaik it depends on how long you have been married (ie two yrs for newly weds, but special application if and immediate if you have been married for four year). Not 100% sure though.

Best place I've found for biltong is a Saffie shop in Bristol. Too far for me, as my cousin stays there and we see here now and again. I tend to make my own, its easy enough.:beer:

I will post reply as soon as I've heard more, and mabye help someone out in the future.

BTW - The offer on the house was accepted, now its just the mortgage to sort out.

izoomzoom

Congratulations on having your offer accepted.

Won't try any more Africaans.

It seems your settlement visa differs from my H. Our's was valid for multiple entry for a year, but as soon as we had been here a year we could apply for the indefinite leave to remain. We have been married many years.

Friends of ours, married for even longer, who came a year later, had to wait for two years to apply for indefinite leave to remain. They may have purchased their house before their two years was up, but I am not sure. It would have been pretty close because it was round about that time.

Probably best for you to contact the Home Office and ask when you can apply, although it is unlikely to make any difference to your current situation.

Hope your advisor can come up with something. Sorry I can't really help any further on that front.

I haven't had tong in years (well except when we went home) but get some pretty good wors from a butcher in Baldock (north Hertfordshire). Yum yum.

There are annual get togethers and other meets, with other southern African and you can usually get some decent stuff there. Can't wait for July again.