Notice of Possession advise

sidewayslook

Hello and prewarning of a long post.

My partner and I (56 and 46 respectively) received notice of the termination of our Rental property contract today. We have 19 weeks to find somewhere and I need advice on what our best options could be based on our circumstance. We live in the South East (expensive!)

My salary is £32k and I have approx £4.5k in debts (credit card and overdraft) and an unsatisfied £7k CCJ (I am paying this off and it is 4years old). No other defaults or late payments
My partners salary is £45k and he has about £1k credit debts and a £40k loan (car loan). He also pays maintenance for 2 school age children. No defaults or late payments.

Is it worth us looking into shared ownership - perhaps in his name only? I realise my poor credit will hold us back but his new car loan will possibly be viewed negatively too. 
We are also older so may not be able to a 25yr mortgage. Is this correct?
We have about £500 in savings so will now be selling and making as much money as possible to gather deposit etc - I don't know how much we will need until we know if we can get  a mortgage. Am confident we raise about £15-20k if necessary.
We are both full time employed in very stable jobs.

What would our best options be - or do we just have to go back to renting?!

Thank you for any advise - it really is appreciated.

deannagone

You aren't going to like this but you are going to have to take a good hard look at your financial decision making.  £500 savings, a new £40k car loan (you can buy a house in some areas for that) and you have a 7k CCJ you haven't paid off in four years.  Looking for a mortgage right now would seem to be a mistake.., I'm sorry.  You need to sort out how you prioritise your finances first.

sidewayslook

We weren't planning on moving house until April 2023 - my partners financial decision making is fine, and I had a plan in place for 22 months - hence my question should we look for a mortgage now as our situation has changed. Thank you for your input though. I do wish you could buy a house for £40k in this area though! 

MaryNB

Many lenders based the maximum term on retirement age of the oldest applicant so you're looking at about 10 years if your partner is planning to retire at state retirement age. There are lenders that provide mortgages that extend into retirement if they're happy you can afford the repayments but best speak to a broker.

Even if you save up for a deposit your debts will go against you when it comes to affordability. A £40k loan is substantial and the monthly repayments will be taken into account when looking at how much you can afford to put toward the mortgage each month. As obviously will your other debt obligations.

You should avoid using your overdraft if possible and just use your credit card. Overdraft isn't good for regular credit needs. Although that may backfire it if means you are close to your credit limit each month. Obviously the CCJ will be the bigger issue so you should definitely speak to a broker when going for a mortgage.

[Deleted User]

sidewayslook said:

We weren't planning on moving house until April 2023 - my partners financial decision making is fine, and I had a plan in place for 22 months - hence my question should we look for a mortgage now as our situation has changed. Thank you for your input though. I do wish you could buy a house for £40k in this area though! 

Was that the viewpoint of the BMW salesman?

[Deleted User]

sidewayslook said:

Hello and prewarning of a long post.

My partner and I (56 and 46 respectively) received notice of the termination of our Rental property contract today. We have 19 weeks to find somewhere and I need advice on what our best options could be based on our circumstance. We live in the South East (expensive!)

My salary is £32k and I have approx £4.5k in debts (credit card and overdraft) and an unsatisfied £7k CCJ (I am paying this off and it is 4years old). No other defaults or late payments
My partners salary is £45k and he has about £1k credit debts and a £40k loan (car loan). He also pays maintenance for 2 school age children. No defaults or late payments.

Is it worth us looking into shared ownership - perhaps in his name only? I realise my poor credit will hold us back but his new car loan will possibly be viewed negatively too. 
We are also older so may not be able to a 25yr mortgage. Is this correct?
We have about £500 in savings so will now be selling and making as much money as possible to gather deposit etc - I don't know how much we will need until we know if we can get  a mortgage. Am confident we raise about £15-20k if necessary.
We are both full time employed in very stable jobs.

What would our best options be - or do we just have to go back to renting?!

Thank you for any advise - it really is appreciated.

Has a court granted a possession order or has the landlord simply issued a Section 21? If it’s the latter then you have a lot longer than 19 weeks to find a new home. 

If you are looking to buy then you’d be better posting on the Mortgages & Endowments board to see if it’s feasible to get a mortgage. The fact you have a 4 year old CCJ doesn’t necessarily preclude you from having a joint mortgage with your partner. 

wewilldoit

If you are able to raise 15-20 thousand for the deposit could you not use some to pay off some debts to make affordability better? Would you consider moving to a cheaper area and commuting to work? 

bouicca21

A mortgage is not out of reach though whether you will be able to borrow enough to buy even shared ownership in an area where your neighbours have £40k cars is questionable.

Whilst  pursuing mortgage possibilities and checking out the housing market, I think you should also be looking through the debt free wannabe and old style boards.  

diego_94

Like others have said, sort your financial situation out before thinking of a mortgage. Pay off the debt and the CCJ. The south east is hugely expensive, so you will need to get as much of a mortgage as you can with your joint salaries (that are decent btw). 

Where abouts are you based?

also I hate to say this, but £40k on a car is obscene amount on your other half’s salary, a car the quarter of the price would of been sufficient. Sounds to me like he enjoys the finer things in life, and an expensive car will not get any returns in the long run, it’s probably in negative equity now!

sidewayslook

wewilldoit said:

If you are able to raise 15-20 thousand for the deposit could you not use some to pay off some debts to make affordability better? Would you consider moving to a cheaper area and commuting to work? 

Our initial plan was to pay off our debts and buy a home in 2023, the deposit would be a case of sell all our worldly possessions now as the landlord is selling the house or stick to the original plan and continue renting till then. The only problem about moving is my partner won't be close to his children. But it is something we need to consider (although the cost of living isn't massively different 20 miles away).

sidewayslook

diego_94 said:

Like others have said, sort your financial situation out before thinking of a mortgage. Pay off the debt and the CCJ. The south east is hugely expensive, so you will need to get as much of a mortgage as you can with your joint salaries (that are decent btw). 

Where abouts are you based?

also I hate to say this, but £40k on a car is obscene amount on your other half’s salary, a car the quarter of the price would of been sufficient. Sounds to me like he enjoys the finer things in life, and an expensive car will not get any returns in the long run, it’s probably in negative equity now!

I just need to clear up the 40k car loan - it is actually a motorhome which we part exchanged and we are going to hire it out! He has an excellent credit score - I was going to be paying off my debts over the coming months.

The SE is hugely expensive - I wouldn't have a problem moving but my partner sees his children regularly.

I am thinking we would just be better continuing to rent elsewhere until we have  finances sorted and would perhaps get a better deal.