Recourse on declined mortgage?..just looking for a reason why?

toofy

Hi, is there any way to contact a mortgage provider for feedback as to why I have been declined a mortgage? I am at a loss as to why I have been declined, so much so that the independent Mortgage Advisor gave me a number for the Mortgage Department, as she was not able to gain answers from them (Halifax by the way).

When I phoned them they refused to give me any answer as well. I asked for it to be escalated, and was put on hold while they contacted a manager, and they then came back with a prepared speech and refused to budge on a reason. I had looked through my Equifax Report and nothing was untoward, in fact if anything I have been a model customer, always paying on time and even over-paying. On first application in principle I was accepted no problem. The mortgage I was seeking was in fact in tandem with my partner(also an immaculate credit history) and with my son (who will be on the mortgage and residing in the property).
We are providing a 40% deposit for a £50000 house - it will be a second property, but as I have mentioned it is for my 18 yr old to live in, and pay the mortgage. Our affordability was deemed no problem as we were accepted for a mortgage up to value of 90k, on top of our own mortgage and commitments.

How can I find out why they declined our application? I have been wracking my brains and have drawn a blank, apart from the fact I am full-time employed in retail, and perhaps the underwriters are wary of this..any thoughts please?..is there any point of my trying to delve further to find a reason?

Many thanks in advance..

BoGoF

They are under no obligation to tell you, if they don't want to lend to you they don't need to justify the reason why.

Perhaps the reason is that it is for your own son to live in?

At the end of the day trying to get answers will be fruitless and no point chasing that aspect.

toofy

I'm afraid their decision may impact on future mortgage applications to other lenders, that is why I would like to know what has prevented the application..as I'm sure you can appreciate it has left me feeling rather wary of applying for another if they won't give me a reason, something I could understand or relate to...

BoGoF

Back to the original post.....who said that affordability was no problem and you were accepted for a £90k mortgage?

toofy

By the way my son is still a dependent - it is a house for university purposes while he studies.

toofy

When i saw the Independent Mortgage Advisor, who had inputted all my details, incomes and commitments.We are only looking a 30k mortgage, split 3 ways with myself, my partner & my son, with my son residing in the property.

BoGoF

toofy wrote: »

When i saw the Independent Mortgage Advisor, who had inputted all my details, incomes and commitments.We are only looking a 30k mortgage, split 3 ways with myself, my partner & my son, with my son residing in the property.

Bit what was that based on - a mortgage calculator or an actual agreement in principal?

toofy

An agreement in principle I think? - I paid my valuation fee upfront, and and had a print-out given to me, I was just awaiting confirmation and was gobsmacked to be declined. I could see through it if I was employed short-term or there was a default on my payments somewhere, but I have nothing to go on..

thomasdown

They don't need to tell you the reason why you have been declined! Every lender is different in who they accept or decline! Sometimes even the person with a clean history and repays everything on time might be declined. It may be down to something like your job being a profession that they don't want to lend on? Who knows? Credit scores mean nothing. As said by someone else every lender has different lending criteria and if you don't meet it it's simple you get declined and they don't have to tell you why I'm afraid? A whole of the market mortgage broker doesn't know the lending criteria for every lender on the market but they speak to other brokers and they will know who is best to put your application to out of experience and who they know in a similar situation has been accepted previously? So a local broker may be your best bet!

GMS

Were you intending to let spare room(s) in the property? What type of property was it?

toofy

A mid-terrace property, with the potential I suppose for lodgers to live with my son, however that would only be a possibility further down the line as we were intending to renovate the property first in preparation for my son to move in next year. By the way when I spoke to the Halifax, they said they would refund my valuation fee over the phone - still waiting on it as well..not impressed at all..