Unmarried Couple - Application & Payment Source & Worry!

jack900

Hi All,

First of all here are the relevant facts:
Me and my partner are an unmarried couple.
Me and my partner have had an offer accepted on a house which we will buy together.
My partner has a larger deposit, and currently has a mortgage which will be paid off with previous sale and we will apply for a joint mortgage together.
I am a first time buyer and still trying to get to grips with it all!
We are getting a deed of trust so we can declare each persons ownership share, and we will split mortgage payments 50/50 which will be reflected in the deed of trust.

So the question I need answering is:
My partner wants to setup a joint bank account - where we both pay our mortgage payments into (presumably via standing order) from our current accounts, and the lender then takes a direct debit for the monthly mortgage payment from there. I am just wondering if this is what most unmarried couples do? Is it not possible to get a mortgage to take direct debits from two separate accounts?

My other worry is the with the application succeeding. I have decided on a mortgage with Tesco, and I wonder how much more likely I am to succeed in getting it by going through the application with a broker, if that is even possible. I am concerned due to the fact most of my identity documents/proof of address, are split between my parents house (passport + driving license) and where I currently rent (electoral roll, current account). I also have no utility bills I can use for proof.

I would be grateful for any responses at all, and thank you for reading this

bryanb

Have you a council tax bill? most accept one for proof of address

amnblog

The lender will want one direct debit.

Whether to use a mortgage broker is a matter for you. Given your scenario it is probably as good idea as you will need advice on issues like what happens if one of you dies, becomes sick, or loses their job?

Twiggy_34

A joint bank account seems like a sensible approach. My partner and I are in a similar situation to you (but we split everything 50/50 so didn't need a deed of trust when we bought/mortgaged last year).

Neither of us want joint accounts so almost everything is paid out of my account and once all the bills are settled I simply tell him how much his half is once I know what it is. We rented together for 5 years before buying and this was the habit we got into back then.

Are you worried that you will have difficulty providing documentation to enable you to open this joint account? If so, why don't you open it with your existing bank so that your other half is the one who needs to provide identification (assuming they have everything present and correct) and arrange for the mortgage payments to be taken out of this?

By the way, your passport doesn't have an address on it, and you should update your driving license as soon as you reasonably can as I believe you can be fined for not having the most up to date address on it (not lecturing though as I did exactly the same thing as my dad still lived at the relevant address!). Out of curiosity, I take it the place you rent is shared with others, or has the bills included in rent, for you to not be named on any of the utility bills?

Edit: Sorry, I can now see that you said about needing ID for your prospective mortgage provider. You might need pay slips too, usually the last 3 months - we needed these even though we both banked with our mortgage provider.

Voyager2002

Warning: if your driving license does not record your correct address, you risk a hefty fine. Deal with this ASAP.

Your passport does not give your address.

jack900

Twiggy_34 wrote: »

A joint bank account seems like a sensible approach. My partner and I are in a similar situation to you (but we split everything 50/50 so didn't need a deed of trust when we bought/mortgaged last year).

Neither of us want joint accounts so almost everything is paid out of my account and once all the bills are settled I simply tell him how much his half is once I know what it is. We rented together for 5 years before buying and this was the habit we got into back then.

Are you worried that you will have difficulty providing documentation to enable you to open this joint account? If so, why don't you open it with your existing bank so that your other half is the one who needs to provide identification (assuming they have everything present and correct) and arrange for the mortgage payments to be taken out of this?

By the way, your passport doesn't have an address on it, and you should update your driving license as soon as you reasonably can as I believe you can be fined for not having the most up to date address on it (not lecturing though as I did exactly the same thing as my dad still lived at the relevant address!). Out of curiosity, I take it the place you rent is shared with others, or has the bills included in rent, for you to not be named on any of the utility bills?

Edit: Sorry, I can now see that you said about needing ID for your prospective mortgage provider. You might need pay slips too, usually the last 3 months - we needed these even though we both banked with our mortgage provider.

Thanks for all the replies so far. You'll be pleased to hear I have now gone and updated my address on DVLA online, no doubt that that will take at least a month to come through - my fault for not keeping it current though.

I am looking at the guide provided by Tesco here (couldn't post the link as I'm newbie, but searching Tesco mortgage document guide should find it). I have proof of income, so all my payslips / P60 etc., just not convinced my identity checks will all align!

Twiggy, I currently live with my partner in the flat she owns and pay her x amount to cover bills and a small contribution of rent. Her name is on all the utility bills. I don't think it will be too difficult to apply for a joint account, but I have recently read that a mortgage lender will want to see proof of income for the actual account that it will take payment from, which means setting up a new joint account just before applying would mean no transaction history and therefore rejection. But then, maybe it's possible to change your source payment account after you have started your mortgage? Would that incur fees?

And thank you bryanb, I will look to see if we have a recent council tax bill somewhere.

carrot_cake

Just a note re: driving licence, I had to update the photo on my driving licence and had to send it off.... it was back within 3 days so hopefully you won't have to wait too long for it

anotherginger

My partner and I don't have a joint account because we didn't really want one. We split everything 50/50 so the direct debit comes out of my account and they have a standing order to me for their half.

ValHaller

Voyager2002 wrote: »

Warning: if your driving license does not record your correct address, you risk a hefty fine. Deal with this ASAP.

Your passport does not give your address.

It is not mandatory to have a single address AIUI. The reason for the requirement is so that you can be contacted. So I would feel a little more laid back about a driving licence being registered at the parental address than I would with it being registered at a rental address I had left 6 months ago.

kingstreet

Twiggy_34 wrote: »

your passport doesn't have an address on it

Absolutely spot on.

One ID item - current signed passport.

One address item - current account statement dated in the last three months.

jack900

anotherginger wrote: »

My partner and I don't have a joint account because we didn't really want one. We split everything 50/50 so the direct debit comes out of my account and they have a standing order to me for their half.

Is the mortgage in both your names too?
If for some reason in the future you part ways, does that mean your partner will have a harder time claiming their half of the mortgage should their be a dispute?