House up for sale - DP on sick leave

[Timepasses]

Our house has gone up for sale this week , we have been talking about this for few months and decided we need a bigger house.

DP has had back problems for some time but yesterday couldn't get out of bed, Doc has dignoised Sciatica and given DP note for 2 weeks. He is requesting a scan and physiotherapy.

We are due to see Mortage adviser tomorrow re funds for new house. What would happen if DP is off work for months rather than weeks? Should I take our house off the market?

Any advise would be gratefully received.

[Mandy21]

I don't know for sure but when you do eventually apply for a mortgage, the bank will want to see pay slips for the last 3 months to prove your level of income. If the salary is reduced as a result of being off sick then they will want an explanation and possibly evidence (eg a health insurance plan / mortgage protection policy) if you have any of those that supplements the income to demonstrate that your income remained unchanged. If your income has dropped then I'm guessing that the amount you could borrow (3 x joint income etc) would be based on the reduced income and not the pre-sickness income.

You also need to look into the cost of insurance to cover your mortgage / life insurance before you commit since if it is an ongoing problem, the cost of the premiums may well influence your decision of how much to borrow. My H has a history of cancer (I know this is completely different but just giving an example) - he simply cannot get critical illness / mortgage protection insurance now and so I had to know that as a last resort, I would be able to cover the mortgage payments by myself if he became ill again and lost his income.

[Timepasses]

Thank you for the reply. I bought the house we currently live in on my own but we now want to buy together, I do have mortgage protection but will need to DP sorted once we start looking to move.

I was worried we wouldn't be able to get a new mortgage if DP was on sick leave.