Restart after divorce

dodemkat

Hi everyone, maybe someone could offer some advice.  After divorce 15 years ago and being left with over £60k of debt even after selling my home, I have finally paid back every penny, thanks to the help from MSE which was a life saver (literally). After many years of living on the poverty line to repay debts, I have rebuilt my credit file, saved enough for a deposit (10% of my affordability approx) I have now retrained and have a new career as a teacher. I am in my early 50s and would like to buy my own home again. As I also care for my elderly parent at present, I would like to buy a modest home which I could rent out until such a time that I am ready to move into.  If I take out a buy to let mortgage I will need to provide 25% deposit. 

My question would be, If I took out a domestic repayment mortgage until I renovated the property (with a 10% deposit) and had it revalued, could I then use the increase in equity to change the mortgage over to a buy to let without providing an up-front cash payment of 25% for the buy to let mortgage, or is there another way. I am concerned that the longer I leave it to get a mortgage, my age and further increases in house prices will prevent me from securing a reasonable mortgage. Any help would be appreciated.