I'm 40, she's 28: joint or single mortgage?

dutchcloggie

Hello,

I will graduate as a nurse in September and my starting salary will be £21,500 on a permanent NHS contract.

My wife is currently on a fixed contract in the private sector until April 2016 and earns £20,000 per year. It is likely this will become a permanent contract from then on.

We do not have joint savings but I have £30,000 for a deposit.

I am worried about us getting a mortgage because I am 40 and she is 28. Neither of us have bought a house before but I did inherit half of a property from my first wife (who owned it with her sister). The £30,000 is what is left after being bought out of that property and spending money on re-training as a nurse.

I understand that due to having owned that property (which was mortgage free at time of me owning it), I will not qualify for any First Time Buyer help but my wife will.

I am confused about my options. My age is a problem but I have £30,000 for a deposit. Should the mortgage be joint or in my wife's name? Will we even be likely to get a mortgage with our income (assuming her contract will become permanent).

We are based in the East Midlands so hopefully there will be some nice affordable house out there for us with a deposit that size but any info and advice gratefully received.

Dutchcloggie

betmunch

Think your worrying over nothing, you can still have a traditional 25 year mortgage before reaching state retirement age.


Suggest you get in touch with a decent broker to go through your options

dutchcloggie

You are probably right that I am worrying over nothing. Just with all the scaremongering stories you hear about people needing enormous amounts of deposits or not getting mortgages after 40, I was getting worried. Other Half doesn't want to visit broker until I actually finish uni in September (probably wise ) but I am a worrier so like to have an idea of what to expect before.

betmunch

Some lenders will allow you to use income on a contract that doesn't even start up to 3 months ahead of the application.


I would see a broker sooner rather than later

dutchcloggie

Excellent advice. Hopefully I can convince The Wife that it is much more fun to look at houses once you know you might actually be able to afford one.

dutchcloggie

In response to a now removed spam post
[Not doubting your intentions but I suspect your post will not be allowed on the forum as it is advertising services.]

amnblog

Expect a result (I expect you will get one) and stop worrying - but follow the advice of your wife and look into this once you are earning (or about to be).

Nick_C

I took out a new mortgage last month. I am 57. My partner is 40. We had no mortgage on our previous home. We got a 17 year mortgage (to be paid off before I'm 75. My only income is a private pension. My partner has a number of short term temporary contracts. The LTV is only 34%. We got the mortgage directly from Santander.

Shop around, don't assume you will be turned down. There are a lot of lenders out there.

Re your original question though, I think you have to apply for a joint mortgage as you are married and living together.

dutchcloggie

Cool.
Already feeling less worried about it. Was getting all worked up about having large deposit and yet maybe not getting a house. I have no pension savings (I am obviously starting some once working for the NHS) so I really need to buy a house asap to have some kind of investment for later.

clarky_cat

I'm 41 and in the process of applying for a joint mortgage and we earn similar wages to yourself and your wife. We're getting it for 26 years to start with. None of the lenders expressed any issues about my age. My brother also recently got a new mortgage and he's 47.

audigex

Rememeber that the larger your deposit is, the less of a concern it will be to the lender: because they can start eating into your equity if you still owe them money when they repossess and sell the house.