Halifax Mortgage - Timescale PLEASE!

strong8096

We've just started the Halifax journey, yesterday our broker submitted all paperwork, noticed Halifax done the Hard search yesterday on credit file, seem its now weekend presume wont get any update till next week 

rdchick

trakky14 said:

rdchick said:

Well we are now on the Halifax journey! Application in, valuation booked and paid for .. now we wait!

Did they book your valuation already? We've not been notified when ours is (we are using a broker). Hopefully soon!! We've been waiting since Wednesday with paperwork in though we paid the £100 over a week ago...feels like ages already 😂

Yeah it's booked in for 21st apparently! I'd imagine for valuations it might just depend on how busy they are in the local area perhaps? I hope you hear soon!

FLB2796

I’ve just submitted a further advance with Halifax our documents got reviewed the same day, the call centre said they have a few discrepancies that need to be answered but our advisor is away until Monday. I’ve noticed that an amount I’ve given on the application compared to a payslip is a couple of hundred wrong. Does anyone know if we’ll have to do a whole new application or they’ll just amend the one we’re doing? Thanks 

K_S

FLB2796 said:

I’ve just submitted a further advance with Halifax our documents got reviewed the same day, the call centre said they have a few discrepancies that need to be answered but our advisor is away until Monday. I’ve noticed that an amount I’ve given on the application compared to a payslip is a couple of hundred wrong. Does anyone know if we’ll have to do a whole new application or they’ll just amend the one we’re doing? Thanks 

@flb2796 Generally speaking, in scenarios where the income numbers on the application don't match the uploaded documentation (eg: you mistakenly input £49,000 as basic instead of £46,000 as per payslip), the underwriter will usually just amend the number, recalculate affordability and rescore the application, it won't require a fresh new application.

rdchick

Valuation tomorrow! It is so weird that it's going through so quick after the slow response from nationwide, to be told no on the day of the supposed valuation ! Let's hope it's a goer!

Hope everyone else has had a good Monday!

Sootster2021

@rdchick our valuation is also tomorrow! I am so nervous. Compared to other houses on the market I definitely don't think the house is overvalued however there aren't many recent compariables (last sale recorded on the street was June 2021 and we know house prices have gone through the roof since then). Not sure if they take that into account because if they compare to a year ago + I fear it will look like we've over valued...

rdchick

Sootster2021 said:

@rdchick our valuation is also tomorrow! I am so nervous. Compared to other houses on the market I definitely don't think the house is overvalued however there aren't many recent compariables (last sale recorded on the street was June 2021 and we know house prices have gone through the roof since then). Not sure if they take that into account because if they compare to a year ago + I fear it will look like we've over valued...

I know what you mean, the house we're buying sold last year for 50k less than we're buying for so maybe we're spending too much... But as I know they want to be out by September I'm hoping if they do devalue it we can get a better offer as we have no chain😬🤞

It's all in the hands of the mortgage gods 😅

Sootster2021

rdchick said:

Sootster2021 said:

@rdchick our valuation is also tomorrow! I am so nervous. Compared to other houses on the market I definitely don't think the house is overvalued however there aren't many recent compariables (last sale recorded on the street was June 2021 and we know house prices have gone through the roof since then). Not sure if they take that into account because if they compare to a year ago + I fear it will look like we've over valued...

I know what you mean, the house we're buying sold last year for 50k less than we're buying for so maybe we're spending too much... But as I know they want to be out by September I'm hoping if they do devalue it we can get a better offer as we have no chain😬🤞

It's all in the hands of the mortgage gods 😅

Good luck! Will keep my fingers crossed for you. Please come back and let me know the outcome!! 🙂

rdchick

@Sootster2021 you too! Fingers crossed for good outcomes!

PalomaLiu

My situation:

1. First time buyer (FTB), Chinese
2. Non UK National
3. With no permanent right to reside (On a skilled worker visa)
4. not on the electoral roll (I am not eligible to vote due to my nationality, but all mortgage lenders consider electoral roll registration important in the credit scoring process)
5. Experian: fair. Equifax: good. No credit default history 
6. Lloyds keeps rejecting me when applying for Mortgage in Principle on their website (but Halifax issued me one, which is also a surprise worth mentioning here, given they both belong to the same banking group)
7. LTV 60%
8. Almost all of the deposit is gifted from parents in China, already transferred under my name in GBP in my bank and NS&I account
9. Primary income: PAYE income, permanent role. Self-employed income: act as a shareholder (47% shareholding, not a company director) in a limited company with two years of trading history, and receive dividends annually.
10. At the point of submitting my first mortgage application with Santander, I was in my job for 5 months.
11. At the point of submitting my second mortgage application with Halifax (after Santander rejected my mortgage application), I was in my job for 6 months.

Santander Timeline - applied via Broker 1:

• 28 Apr: house offer accepted, and started the mortgage application process
• 5 May: mortgage product secured, paid £999 product fee and Hard Search on Experian and Transunion
• 5th - 12th May: I was preparing for my accountant's certificate to evidence my dividends income from 5th to 12th
• 12 May: mortgage application fully submitted 
• 24 May: Told by the broker Santander had requested some further documentation on the deposit, and they have provided it to them the same day.
• 1 June: Mortgage application declined, saying I have 'undisclosed credit' and 'low credit score'. The broker asked me to download my Experian report and see nothing wrong, then appealed. 
• 9 June: Santander officially declined the application with no further explanation.

I was frustrated as it's been more than a month since the house offer was issued, and I was under pressure from the vender. I sent a message to  @K_S for help (I found her on money saving expert forum, reading through her reply on other people's mortgage applications, and I was convinced that she has the expertise in her area of specialization). She did her research and help me submitted another mortgage application to Halifax within 24 hours of being declined by Santander. (She also drafted a plan B for me in case Halifax comes back negative) This time,  @K_S suggested I use my new salary for the coming August and my dividends income to apply (she is bold!). Therefore, I have also acquired a letter from my employer to confirm the new salary.

Halifax Timeline - applied via @K_S

• 11 June: Halifax mortgage in principle received, full application submitted, Hard search on Experian, Equifax and Transunion on the same day(submitted on Saturday)
• 13 June: Halifax called me to confirm my deposit amount and where it comes from
• 14 June: Halifax asked for two years of business accounts, submitted on the same day with K_S explanation notes to the underwriter
• 17 June: Halifax asked for 1. accountant's letter, 2. 3-month bank statement from the business, 3. Signed gifted deposit letter. Submitted them the following day.
• 20 June: Mortgage offer issued, valuation instructed

With my complicated situation, Halifax issued my mortgage offer within 6 working days! @K_S  has provided so much advice and rationale in the application process. She is so knowledgeable and professional. I cannot appreciate her more.

Reflecting on the Santander application, my mistake was the terrible broker selection. My application is not straightforward, and a broker with well-rounded knowledge and extensive experience is essential to the successful applicant. Broker 1 must miss Santander gifted deposit criteria, Santander website clearly shows that they do not accept any deposits originating from China. They also did not advise me to add a product fee to the mortgage in case the application gets declined. After paying the £999 product fee, I found another product with 0 product fee but a slightly higher rate, but this option wasn't suggested to me at the beginning... Many lessons learned from the Santander application (fortunately, my £999 product fee can be refunded as the application got declined before valuation). At one point, I was devastated and believed I won't get the house since Santander did not explain clearly why my application got declined, and I didn't even know what to fix before making another application. But I was lucky that I made the right choice the second time, but I assume not all buyers have the opportunity to learn from mistakes before the house offer is withdrawn as the time passes. I benefitted a lot from reading relevant threads in the forum, and I hope to share my journey to help others avoid repeating the same mistakes.