FTB Advice

FTB19

Hi guys,


FTB here, all very new and quite mind boggling to me if I'm honest.
Myself and my partner have received an AIP with Halifax for £210k. I have £6750 in a HTB ISA which should get the 25% extra on plus £5k gifted which we are looking to use to get our deposit up to 5% - we are then looking to use Help To Buy Wales to top our deposit up.
We have a combined income of £53k - I pay a loan out of my salary through work of £158 and my partner has a loan repayment of £150. We have a combined credit card balance of around £1900 and both have authorised overdrafts - mine £300 him £500. These are settled every month when we get paid but we do use them. No kids or dependants.
I'm so paranoid that the mortgage won't go through, but the AIP has given me hope. Has anyone been in a similar position or can offer advice?
We do have a meeting with a broker booked but it always helps to get other opinions or stories.

[Deleted User]

Help to Buy Payments will be factored in, so if you've not declared them in your AIP the max lending might come down a tad.

On that salary it should be fairly straightforward though if you are both employed with no adverse credit (late payments etc).

I know it's scary for FTBs, but try not to worry. The broker will put your mind at rest!

Also - if you have a meeting with a broker booked, don't apply for any more AIPs. Halifax only soft search, but if you go somewhere like Nationwide it'll hard search you which isn't going to help the process - leave the AIPs to the broker when they've given you their advise

FTB19

Thank you! I feel better now, I also was wondering if I have to declare money I pay to my dad? He paid my car insurance in full so I pay him every month, I wouldn’t want to not declare it but it wasn’t asked as such so I didn’t put it down.

Bermonia

Discuss this with your broker... if it is paid direct out of your account by standing order then you may have to justify it.

[Deleted User]

I’d declare it to the broker - different lenders have different rules. They all have to account for expenditure, but how they do it varies. Some lenders will treat things like car insurance and petrol as within ONS, so automatically factor that in.

If you then declared it again, it’d be double counting.

Other lenders want to know everything (HSBC I believe are one) and key it all in rather than using averaged figures (ONS Data). Others only want to know about things like petrol if it’s excessive - so they factor in X for getting to work, entertainment etc - but if they see £500 a month on your bank statement to Asda filling station, they’ll manual up the deduction

Unless your case is extremely simple (you live next door to your work, no car or kids, perfect credit) I’d definitely recommend a broker.

I was against using one for my own mortgage before I started my job, but seeing the mess people make of applications trying to do it alone (not their fault, the whole process isn’t exactly customer friendly!) I think a broker that spends day in day out on learning criteria is definitely worth any investment (and lots are fee free anyway). I probably will use one, unless I apply with work

Edit: By declaring it upfront (broker may add a note to the application) it doesn’t mean it instantly will be used - but can help the Underwriter build a case to not use it (if necessary) and ultimately it should speed up the process and mean less questions etc. It’s hard to say we’ll disregard something (that our employer’s rules might say to include) if the information isn’t clear or if it’s being drip-fed.

FTB19

Thanks both, will let my broker know today.