FTB - Mortgage application with Natwest

kms1990

Hi all,
My partner and I are First Time Buyers and have already had our offer accepted on a property we liked. We have 10% deposit and looking for a mortgage.

Our situation-
1) Job status
We both work at Universities (Graduate level research roles) and we only get Fixed Term Contracts. Our current contract started in January 2021 and is valid until August 2026.

2) Visa status
I have a settled status (Indefinite Leave to Remain) while my partner is on my dependent visa which they got as my Global Talent Dependent. Their visa is valid until September 2026, but will be eligible for ILR in January 2026.


Based on our Visa conditions (only one applicant ILR and the other on dependent visa), we realised that our options were limited - Natwest, Barclays and Santander. 

As Natwest had the best rates among them by a good margin, we have applied for a mortgage at Natwest online. 

Timeline -
14/11 - Got DIP, passed affordability check
14/11 - straightaway applied online for mortgage.
15/11 - Valuation booked by the bank.
16/11 - Desktop valuation done (same as offer price)
16/11 - Valuation accepted by the bank.

Since then, it shows Assessment In Progress. 

They have not asked any extra document yet. The service level website shows that the mortgage is generally offered within 48 hours of valuation accepted. 

Anyone who could let me know the likelihood of our mortgage getting accepted and the probable time it would take.

Thanks a lot. 

ACG

You should hear this week. 
We had a valuation returned on Monday last week which was offered yesterday. They have gone terrible and trying to get through on the phone is a 30+ minute wait at the minute. 

kms1990

ACG said:

You should hear this week. 
We had a valuation returned on Monday last week which was offered yesterday. They have gone terrible and trying to get through on the phone is a 30+ minute wait at the minute. 

Thank you so much. Fingers crossed.

And what do you think our chances are of getting a mortgage approved ?
We have no debts, no loans, no overdrafts, no missed payments (no missed rent/council tax/utility bills, etc) and no credit cards as well. 

A friend told me that not having a credit card negatively affects your credit score so a bit concerned.

ACG

Assuming the valuation comes back ok, you will be fine I think. 

Ignore the score on your credit reports, its completely worthless. Mortgage lenders take the information from your credit report (bank acounts, credit cards loans etc), they look at the balances, the limits, the payment history and they combine that with the information on your application form. 

They then score you based on their own calculation. They all do it differently. Having a credit card or not will only form a very small part of the process. It can help if you have limited credit history but most people have a bank account a mobile phone and are on the voters roll so that should be enough for most people. 

Your friend isnt wrong, but there is a whole lot more to it. If you plan on applying for a mortgage next month for example, applying for a credit card now would probably do more harm than good for example.