Please help - gambling and a mortgage

PiperMorgz

I want to preface this by saying please don’t judge me, I’ve made a mistake, and I’m looking to rectify what I can. 

My partner and I have been renting for the last 3 years, and we’ve finally got a deposit saved for a flat. 

Last month my best friend passed away very suddenly and unexpectedly, and I, for gods knows what reason, decided to gamble £2500 on a betting website, believe it or not I’ve never gambled before other than the odd lottery ticket, I saw an add for 10 free spins and thought F it, won £20, and it just snowballed from there. Now I’ve got several dozen transactions in my bank account to this online casino for £10, £20, £30, £50 at a time as I kept putting money on after panicking and chasing a loss. I’m well aware of how stupid and idiotic this was. I won £1300 back and thankfully snapped out of it, and withdrew it into my account. 

In the heat of the moment, I didn’t take a second to think how bad this will look on my bank statements. I’m now getting really worried I won’t be approved for a mortgage. 

My partner and I are both employed and work full time, my salary is £40k + bonuses, my partner is on £40k, we have a 25% deposit saved, neither of us have any loans or insurance to pay (I.e private health care, car insurance), neither of us have credit cards, we have no debt. I have £12,000 in a ISA, and £3000 in a separate savings account. This will be the first house we’ve brought and both of our first mortgage. 

We’re looking to buy this year, ideally within the next 6 months or so, is there anything I can do going forward to help rectify what an absolute mess I made last month? I’ve got some savings in a separate account which I will dip into occasionally if I’m running low on cash in the lead up to pay day, but I always put it back in once I’ve been paid. 

Any advice is massively appreciated, I really have no idea what to do from here, and again I know how reckless and stupid I was. 

PiperMorgz

Also we have a £100,000 deposit. 

la531983

I had 000s of pounds of them on my statements, nobody batted an eyelid

ACG

Dont worry. 
Most lenders will only ask for a maximum of 3 months bank statements so worst case scenario you wait 3 months and you should be fine. 

But if you find somewhere prior to that, there are lenders who need less than that. There are also lenders (at normal rates) who will probably be ok with an explanation. 

But like I said, stop worrying. You have a good deposit, you spent your own money, it was all confined to a very short space of time, there is a clear gap between the gambling and now (showing its not an ongoing addiction) and you have a reason for it. 

If in any doubt, use a broker. But stop kicking yourself, it wont help and you really have not done any major or lasting damage. 

Brie

Take a deep breath. 

Turn off your access to the gambling sites.  Block their emails as they may try to lure you back. 

Let a few months go by and enjoy your lovely new home when you get it.

Arents

I am also an active gambler. I understand your feelings. I try not to let it affect my credit history. I avoid large amounts on my casino account. I make thoughtful decisions while playing. I usually look for the best deals. I often look at here to find out where I can get free spins without a deposit. It helps to play without unnecessary risks. Recently, I took a car on credit and there were no questions about my credit history. 

luckbox

It won’t be a problem, a bank won’t want to see 6+ months of bank statements anyway, particularly when you appear to be aiming at a good ltv.