Applying for FTB mortgage tomorrow: DOs & DON'Ts?

alan_partridge

so, we have a second appointment with halifax tomorrow to process our mortgage application in full.. like most first time buyers, me and my fiancee are quite naive in these matters, so any hints/tips/advice would be very, very much appreciated

the story so far:

we are looking to buy a new build house under the NewBuy 95% scheme, and so far everything has gone well:

- spoke to the house developer at length, who was very optimistic & said many people in our earning bracket were buying houses on the development (i was initially very skeptical, as our combined income is only just over £40k and the house is £192,995).

- went to speak to halifax; was surprised when they said they could offer us the required 95% and gave us a printed decision in principle.. the reason i was so surprised is because i declared myself bankrupt back in 2006, yet this seemed to not matter to them.. i went to great lengths to highlight this black mark in my credit history, convinced it was going to put the kibosh on the whole thing, but the advisor took all the details and entered them into the computer and said there was no cause for concern and that, as far as she could see, the mortgage application would be fine.. she ran credit checks there and then in front of us, and we passed with flying colours - but i remain pessimistic, because i realise that just because the BR has dropped off my credit file, doesn't mean it won't cause problems later on (e.g. once a solicitor gets involved).. still, i was as candid as i could possibly be, so there wasn't much else i could do other than take her at her word at this stage.

- took the DIP back to the housing developer.. she was more than happy with it, and i plonked down £1000 to reserve a house there and then on that basis. she advised that the next step was to talk to a solicitor and get the mortgage processed in full.

which brings us to now.. we are due to see the woman from halifax again tomorrow (wednesday) in order to process the full mortgage application.. i have prepared just about everything i can think of:

- 3 months wage slips for me & my fiancee.
- P60 for me & fiancee.
- details of our sickness policy from work (we both work in public sector so are very lucky to have very secure jobs with fantastic benefits).
- photo ID (driving licences).
- full details of the property.
- statements of mine & my fiancee's ISAs, in case they want evidence of deposit.

everyone i have spoken to (be they friends who have bought houses, friends who work in finance, the advisor from halifax, the developer, etc.) has said that the DIP is the hard part, and if we passed that (which we have) then the biggest hurdle is done and the rest is a formality, but the pessimist in me just doesn't buy that..

surely this BR is going to come back to bite me in the arriss?? it's over 6 years ago, so doesn't appear on any of my credit reports (i have checked all 3 within the last 24 hours), but does this just mean that everything will go swimmingly tomorrow in halifax, only for us to get turned down by some mean-spirited underwriter further along the line? people keep telling me that underwriters are just box-tickers, to an extent, and if you "pass" the application in-branch then chances are that it will be a done deal - the underwriter is just there to provide a human interaction to an otherwise automated process.. is there any truth to this? i find that hard to believe..

the other thing, that i didn't realise was even an issue until i read something on here today, is regarding the deposit.. my dad gave me £6000 the other week towards the deposit.. when halifax asked about the deposit, the advisor just said "deposit; savings, yeah?" so i naturally just answered "yep," as i assumed this was the correct answer.. i now am reading things about declaring such things as "gifts".. is this the case? i just assumed "savings" meant "any money that's in your savings account," which this would be.. do i need to tell the lender that £6000 of the deposit was handed to me by my dad? he doesn't expect anything in return; he just gave it to me because he's a nice chap and wanted to help his son out.. am i jeopardising the application by not explicitly saying it was a gift? and if i do declare it as a gift, does this look "worse" in a lender's eyes, for some reason?

sorry for the ridiculous ramble, but as you know by now, us first time buyers are a nervous bunch!

tl; dr = i declared myself bankrupt, but it was over 6 years ago and since then my credit history has been the epitome of perfection.. my fiancee has never so much as used her overdraft, so her history is equally glowing.. we don't earn much, but we have been promised by halifax that they can lend us the amount we want, and have given us the impression that when we see them tomorrow it is but a mere formality, and it's basically a done deal.. in the (enormous and humbling) experience of those here, does this sound right? or are we just being fed sales patter, and there's every likelyhood that we're going to get chucked on the pile because I'M A TERRIBLE PERSON WHO CAN'T BE TRUSTED WITH MONEY?

anything we can do, or should/shouldn't say while we are applying for the mortgage tomorrow?

any help very much appreciated

thanks.

GMS

Halifax criteria re bankrupts:

Bankruptcies


We do not accept applications from customers who have ever been declared bankrupt or have made an IVA with creditors.


Regards the deposit being 'savings' the 'adviser' should be shot. Solicitors will need to know the source and declare to the lender. Solicitors will also do a bankruptcy search at which point your offer (if issued) will almost certainly be withdrawn due to the bankruptcy.


I hope I am proven wrong. Good luck

Simon_gloster

If the question on the system was asked re bankrupt ever and they clicked yes, it triggers an automated decline. At high LTV on a new build, when the solicitor spends £2 5 weeks later on a search, they are duty
bound to inform the lender.

You have only completed their soft print going back 3 years. They will do the hard credit score tomorrow going back 6. You may still pass, but I feel the advisor is at fault here as their new mortgage platforms are far more robust than the old one.

Have my doubts here, get to see on their system tomorrow that yes has been clicked for the adverse question.

kingstreet

Post #16 refers.

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4296877

Worth bearing in mind by the OP, a previous bankruptcy will be picked up by the solicitor's bankruptcy search they do close to exchange. That will be enough to have the mortgage offer withdrawn by the lender when it finds out, if not disclosed at the outset

Simon_gloster

Tumbleweed..........

kingstreet

Yep. On the old Halifax system there was no question about adverse and the bankruptcy section of the criteria used to read nothing but "subject to credit score."

That has now changed.

alan_partridge

Simon_gloster wrote: »

Tumbleweed..........

because, believe it or not, some of us go to bed.. the only reason i checked this now rather than tomorrow is because i happened to check my email..

GMS wrote: »

Halifax criteria re bankrupts:

Bankruptcies


We do not accept applications from customers who have ever been declared bankrupt or have made an IVA with creditors.

indeed- i came across the same thing, hence my surprise when they agreed..

GMS wrote: »

Regards the deposit being 'savings' the 'adviser' should be shot. Solicitors will need to know the source and declare to the lender. Solicitors will also do a bankruptcy search at which point your offer (if issued) will almost certainly be withdrawn due to the bankruptcy.

yeah, this is what i'm worried about

GMS wrote: »

hope I am proven wrong. Good luck

ditto- thanks

Simon_gloster wrote: »

If the question on the system was asked re bankrupt ever and they clicked yes, it triggers an automated decline.

the system did ask her this, and i watched her enter YES and put in my other pertinent details; again, hence my surprise when it came back in the affirmative!

to be honest, i've given up fretting about the BR - there's nothing i can do about it now, so that part is beyond my control.. i was more concerned about this concept of a "gift" that has just come to my attention (and if it weren't for the internet, i'd know nothing about it at all, so i don't see how your average borrower is expected to), and just wondering if anyone has any tips or advice on things i should be doing & saying during this application tomorrow (about anything, not just this aspect)?

thanks

Simon_gloster

Id worry about the money your going to spend ie a grand at least, to then be declined at a later stage when the br crops up.

It may be ok the br, get the advisor to speak to an underwriter before you part with any money.

The gift isnt an issue.

alan_partridge

Simon_gloster wrote: »

Id worry about the money your going to spend ie a grand at least, to then be declined at a later stage when the br crops up.

i've been assured that the £1000 is refundable in the event of the mortgage not being agreed, fortunately!

Simon_gloster wrote: »

may be ok the br, get the advisor to speak to an underwriter before you part with any money.

The gift isnt an issue.

thanks - the gift thing only came to my attention today, and as i say i just want to make sure i go over everything with a finetoothed comb and understand as much as possible to increase my chances..

i guess i'll just see what happens!

kingstreet

If you've paid the fee for a mortgage report and valuation, a survey on top of that and search fees to the solicitor and these fees have been spent on their intended use, you won't get the money back if the lender decides to decline you in several weeks' time.

That's what we're all worried about for you. If the decline comes tomorrow, you'll have spent nothing. However, if the decision comes at the point an underwriter looks at the case, just as it's waiting to be offered, the expense will have been incurred and there'll be no getting it back.

droiderm

Please let us know how you get on.
Good luck.