Transfer of equity question/divorce

Inforapennyinforapound

Grateful for ANY advice please:

Will try and keep it simple.

My wife and i are divorcing.She has agreed to let me keep house and i will give her some money.So far so good(no kids involved)

Problem i have is that the Mortgage is in joint names and her name is on title deeds.Again no problem as she has agreed as stated above.

I have applied to the Bank to transfer the Mortgage into my name only.
I have been told on phone that this is being declined.(awaiting letter to confirm this).

I am flabbergasted!! The Mortgage is only £40,000 and the house is worth about £180,000.I have always made the payments(never missed one) and my income well exceeds the mortgage payments anyway.
The only reason i can think is a disputed Gas bill 4 yrs ago to the tune of £92 which has been settled but there is a black mark on my name with Experian.

As stated i have not had the definitive reason yet but will do shortly.

The way i see it my options are 1/Ask for an appeal 2/Make a lump sum payment to reduce the loan even more 3/remortgage elsewhere 4/sell the house.

This seems crazy.I am certain i could get a small mortgage of £40,000 with my Private pension and occupational income? so why should i need to remortgage?

Does any expert have any advice please,or anyone had a similar experience?

Thanks in anticipation

The_J

Could you answer a few questions for me?

How much mortgage do you need to buy out your ex?
Who is your current mortgage with?
What is the "black mark" against you name on Experian? A missed payment or default?
Will your requested mortgage term take you beyond the age of 65?

Inforapennyinforapound

i do not need to 'buy out ' my ex. She has agreed to take a few thousand and leave me the house.She came here with no money and silly me married her and put her on the mortgage for her security.She has a very good job and wishes to buy her own house using her resources.

Mortgage with Alliance/leicester now Santander.

@black mark' is a default

The term would take me to 67.....

Inforapennyinforapound

Ref above: i have savings to use to pay her off....

The_J

Brill, thank you for speedy response.

Firstly, it is pretty crazy that they can't just transfer it into your name I agree. Common sense would suggest that but unfortunately they have black and white rules that you have to stick to.

I think it is very likely that the default is the problem, Santander have recently tightened up significantly in the area of credit scoring because their analysis of their loan book showed how important it was. Basically any default in the last 6 years will mess things up.

On account of the dispute, the size of the default etc. I think it would be worth appealing. If your income is decent hopefully you can talk some sense into them. A letter detailing the default, the circumstances surrounding it and confirmation that the mortgage is comfortably affordable etc. Don't get angry, just spell out the relevant facts.

It's really a cautionary reminder to anyone reading this to never let something get to the point of affecting your credit file. Pay the bill and complain afterwards until legislation is changed that removes the power of the credit companies.

Inforapennyinforapound

Yes,thanks.I totally agree.It is crazy.

Actually 2 or 3 yrs ago Santander offered me a credit card and when i accepted it they then declined.I asked why and was told it was the default.They didnt want to listen or change their mind.A strange way of conduting business i think.

I wrote and told them it was their loss as i only have one other credit card(rarely used) and would use this one and pay it off easily.

Maybe i am too good a risk and will make them no money.

Anyway i will add more when letter received,but i am absolutely fuming about this.I am the customer,believe it or not.

Be warned folks that santander have strange ways...

Dave_Ham

Santander are already up to 2nd in my least favourite lenders and to be fair to them, they are trying hard for top spot..

My take on this, assuming you are now on the Standard Varaible Rate; take your business elsewhere. you will get a much, much better rate of interest than the old A&L mortgage rates and should cut your monthly amount.

Forget trying to reason with Santander, I have tried carrying numerous monthly mortgages for them and they are simply not interested.

The default is an issue, but typically pragmatic lenders will mitigate this with low risk loan to value and presumably otherwise good credit control and the low value and nature of the default.

Good luck

The_J

Spot on Dave, I was going to mention that. You can definitely find another mortgage elsewhere and if you are on the SVR you'll be paying less as well.

Inforapennyinforapound

Dave Ham,
Thanks for advice..still no letter from SANTANDER! but can only guess its due to a minor default over 4 years ago.

I am still confounded by this..what do they need? Blood!,,,£40,000 owing on a house worth £170,000 and they will not transfer the equity..i am speechless really so next option is remortgage.

Folks please heed the warning about Santander,and to top it all they have messed up on my ISA's...........

Didi_T

Useful posts, as I'm at ToE attempt no. 2! The first application lapsed after 6 months. Considering a mortgage broker for the second try.

Dave_Ham

Santander are not doing themselves any favours and are constantly appearing on these forums for the wrong reasons!

Cut your losses, get a sensible bank and product and it will be cheaper than the Santander offering in any case...!

I wish you well