Tips for work visa holders as first-time home buyer in England?

shakil_ms

Hi All, 

Are there any seperate do's and don'ts when the first time home buyer are work visa holders in England (skilled worker visa and dependent)? Will having a 900+ credit score and more than 10% initial deposit help apart from debt free record of approx 2 years? 

I understand that not many lending options are available. 

Kindly guide. 

Thanks,
Shakil

RAS

Your credit score is irrelevant.

What potential mortgage providers want to see is your credit history. Might be worth asking on the mortgage Forum how many years records are required? 

And clarifying if you employed/ self employed and end date of visa.

shakil_ms

Thanks RAS for the suggestions

seradane

Go speak to a mortgage broker, you may need to find one who specialises in mortgages for visa holders, but they will have an idea of which banks will lend to you (not all will), and what information they require.

When I bought a few years ago the banks required that there was at least 12-18 months remaining on your current visa (plus obviously have been in the UK long enough to have a solid credit history), so depending on how much time you have left on your visa you may need to renew it before they will consider you.

kingstreet

Deposit percentage.

Time in UK.

Visa type and duration.

These will all determine lender options. Put your details to an independent broker and let them tell you your current and future options.

Emily_Joy

Friends bought a house in London last summer. Both on a Global Talent Visa with end date in December 2026 and arrived to the UK in 2020. So two years of credit history are OK for some mortgage lenders. 

waseem432000

Two of my work fellows bought their flats in last 2 years, both used help to buy and had between 2 and 3 years in the UK. One of them had about 6 months on his visa remaining and was told by mortgage broker that it will not be enough for the lenders so he had to wait till his visa extension. 

One of them got mortgage from Halifax and second one got from Santander so most big lenders do provide mortgages. 

kingstreet

In the 'good old days', lenders used to accept the HTB loan as part of the deposit and would do day one UK residents regardless of visa because their LTV was 75% or less. That's now over.