Mortgage broker - ask me anything

TeeHouser

Can someone tell me if a mortgage underwriter can legally request medical receipts?  I spent more that I made in a few months because I am going through medical treatments for something. Insurance is covering majority, except for a few things. Some testing my doctor advised and medications are not covered by insurance so I just paid those out of pocket from my savings.  My mortgage counselor told me to just write a letter of explanation stating I was going through medical treatment, and list the expenses that appear on my bank statements related to the treatment which I did.  Now underwriter is requesting copy of reciepts, some of my medical receipts include some personal health info that I do not which to disclose.  The items are on my bank statements and the name of the companies that appear are obviously medical.  I'm not sure why I need to provide receipts also. I'm trying my best to compile all the receipts requested, in case I have no choice, but something about this feels very invasive to me, making me question the legality. 

silvercar

TeeHouser said:

Can someone tell me if a mortgage underwriter can legally request medical receipts?  I spent more that I made in a few months because I am going through medical treatments for something. Insurance is covering majority, except for a few things. Some testing my doctor advised and medications are not covered by insurance so I just paid those out of pocket from my savings.  My mortgage counselor told me to just write a letter of explanation stating I was going through medical treatment, and list the expenses that appear on my bank statements related to the treatment which I did.  Now underwriter is requesting copy of reciepts, some of my medical receipts include some personal health info that I do not which to disclose.  The items are on my bank statements and the name of the companies that appear are obviously medical.  I'm not sure why I need to provide receipts also. I'm trying my best to compile all the receipts requested, in case I have no choice, but something about this feels very invasive to me, making me question the legality. 

It is a request, you don't have to comply. The problem is that the underwriter can decline to offer a mortgage based on your response. I would send in a copy of your bank statement with the items highlighted.

needadvicehere

For a Santander new FTB mortgage, does anyone know if the underwriting is two-stage, ie (1) initial underwriting where the junior underwriters will check whether all the documents are in order, and (2) final underwriting where the senior underwriter will do a final check before instructing valuation?

In the waiting game now and the process of waiting is unbelievably painful!  

biscuit1_2

Hi just a quick one, how long can i expect to wait after underwriters process for completion on a remortgage, i only ask as i had conformation all was ok a month ago, my bank account detail taken but it's gone quiet now, tbh it's been a slow process all the way through with initial contact being made end of August 

Emily_Joy

I have about 10 credit cards in total, only one is used daily (amex, charge card, average monthly balance 300GBP) and another two are carrying balance about 4K interest free, for about a year and a half. I am about to apply for a mortgage with a deposit of about 55%, so about 45% LTV. The total combined limit on all cards is about 50K.

Should I close any cards before application to reduce credit available to me, or just leave it as is?

Should I pay the debt full before the application?

K_S

@Emily_Joy I can't speak for your specific case, but generally speaking -

Available credit limit on cards - is only very rarely an issue that impacts a mortgage app. I wouldn't usually expect it to be an issue for low LTV apps.

Balance on credit cards - with respect to the lender, it doesn't matter whether the interest rate is 0% or 25%, they will translate it to a committed monthly outgoing of 3-5% of the outstanding balance. So for a balance of 5k, that would be around £150-250/month. Whether or not that impacts how much you need to borrow will depend on the specific numbers and whether or not you need to maximise borrowing.

Emily_Joy said:

I have about 10 credit cards in total, only one is used daily (amex, charge card, average monthly balance 300GBP) and another two are carrying balance about 4K interest free, for about a year and a half. I am about to apply for a mortgage with a deposit of about 55%, so about 45% LTV. The total combined limit on all cards is about 50K.

Should I close any cards before application to reduce credit available to me, or just leave it as is?

Should I pay the debt full before the application?

Nailer99

PMcG86 said:

Troy_af said:

Hi.

I have a mortgage offer issued 4 weeks ago at 5.4%. The same lender is now offering roughly 5.1% on the same 5 year deal.

I always had accepted that this may happen and if was just tough luck if I was stuck on the higher rate. However, after seeing another post in another thread I have heard of your rate being dropped in line with the new lower rate. I have not heard anything from the lender or my broker on this. What are my options here?

If they drop further I feel as if I will have no choice but to pull out and reapply for a new deal, as the savings could be significant on rates at 5% or lower. Will this be a problem with the hard searches? 

Thanks for any advice. 

My broker told me that they could make one amendment request after mortgage offer. Contact them and ask them. There is products under 5% at the minute out there.

I have had an offer on a mortgage deal back in November. Since then the advertised rates have dropped twice and each time my broker has been able to switch me to the new rate with no hassle and no need for a new application.

Nomis88

Hello,

Looking to borrow c.£825k for a property of c.£1m. I've been looking at Habito's online rate checker and they have indicated that this is possible via Virgin Money - 2 years at 4.88% on a 25 year term. I ran our details through VM's eligibility checker and they say we're very likely to get a mortgage but the highest they would lend is £794k, which is a little off where we would like to be. This is all via their calculator, not discussing details with a mortgage advisor to get a AIP. Who should I trust? I don't want to go through a credit check to get an AIP and then realise that it's not enough.
My income: £99.75k
Annual bonus: c.£30k (track record of this being paid)
Partner's income: £78k
Annual bonus: £4k
No kids
No loans, other debt
Credit cards - a few Amex's - paid off in full each month

Thanks in advance!

K_S

Nomis88 said:

Hello,

Looking to borrow c.£825k for a property of c.£1m. I've been looking at Habito's online rate checker and they have indicated that this is possible via Virgin Money - 2 years at 4.88% on a 25 year term. I ran our details through VM's eligibility checker and they say we're very likely to get a mortgage but the highest they would lend is £794k, which is a little off where we would like to be. This is all via their calculator, not discussing details with a mortgage advisor to get a AIP. Who should I trust? I don't want to go through a credit check to get an AIP and then realise that it's not enough.
My income: £99.75k
Annual bonus: c.£30k (track record of this being paid)
Partner's income: £78k
Annual bonus: £4k
No kids
No loans, other debt
Credit cards - a few Amex's - paid off in full each month

Thanks in advance!

@nomis88 Generally speaking - if you've used the lender's intermediary affordability calculator (https://intermediaries.virginmoney.com/vmtools/affordability-calculator/), filled it in accurately in line with lender criteria, and stretched term to the maximum available for you, then that *should* give you a reliable number.

mdj1876

Help!

I have approx. 15-20 missed payments on credit cards between Jan 2019 and Oct 2020. All at 1-month status but one in early 2019 is a 2 month status. My credit report prior to this and after is immaculate and I had a mortgage from 2018-2020 with no missed payments. I don't have any credit card balances and I've got a number of well-managed credit lines since 2020. So 26 months since the last missed payment. Also got a couple of payday loans from mid-2017, all paid on time. 

What are the chances of me getting a 90% LTV with my partner (whose credit report is squeaky clean)?