Mortgage application - Gifts

Parlaphone

Hi,

I am going through an application at the moment and it is with the underwriter. They have asked about some money that a family member has deposited into my account, just under 5k. My mother is elderly, is terminally ill and wants to help out as best she can. I understand that the underwriter may want written confirmation from her including some details about her income. She will not be happy that I am applying for a mortgage as a result of her financial help and she will not want to provide any personal information to support this either. She believes I should just hoard the money for a rainy day as opposed to invest in a property. I do get the arguement that I should respect her wishes and leave the matter there.

Do I have any options here or is it just dead in the water from this point? Will the underwriter insist on a written and signed statement?

K_S

@parlaphone What have they asked for? You'll have to wait to see what the lender or solicitor asks for, if anything.

Personally, I would be surprised if there was any overly invasive enquiries for a payment of <5k from your mum on your bank statement.

For example, this is Nationwide's published criteria. It doesn't mean that they (or the solicitor who will have both the lender's and their own processes) can't ask for more but it gives you an idea.

Parlaphone said:

Hi,

I am going through an application at the moment and it is with the underwriter. They have asked about some money that a family member has deposited into my account, just under 5k. My mother is elderly, is terminally ill and wants to help out as best she can. I understand that the underwriter may want written confirmation from her including some details about her income. She will not be happy that I am applying for a mortgage as a result of her financial help and she will not want to provide any personal information to support this either. She believes I should just hoard the money for a rainy day as opposed to invest in a property. I do get the arguement that I should respect her wishes and leave the matter there.

Do I have any options here or is it just dead in the water from this point? Will the underwriter insist on a written and signed statement?

Titus_Wadd

Could you deduct the gift from the deposit fund and explain it is money from your mother to buy new furniture foryour new home?  But if you're on a tight budget you might not be able to reduce the size of your saved deposit and still buy the house/flat you want. 

Maybe have a talk with your Mum because buying a home has more to offer than just a monetary investment, perhaps you can talk her round to writing to the lender that she won't have a stake in the house nor expect the money repaid?  Perhaps you can talk to her in stages; the lender is really only interested in protecting their investment in buying your property.  Best of luck in your new place but sorry to read about your mother's condition and somebody with financial knowledge will explain it better than I can I'm sure. 

Parlaphone

Hi both, thanks for your advice. All that has been asked for so far is an explanation for the underwriter through the brokers messaging system, no offical forms yet.

I will explain that it was a gift from my mother and see where things lead, hopefully with minimal fuss. Worse case I guess I may be better off letting this one go and trying again in a few months with a different property when the gift is less visible in my recent banking history.