Mortgage in principle using a broker. How likely is an approval?

[LaksaLover]

Hi,

Recently had an offer accepted on a house and have been using an independent mortgage advisor.

Because the house ticked most of our boxes, we have pushed to the top end of our budget. We didn't expect or want to do this tbh.

I know the closer to your top end you go, the more scruntiny you will be under and so more likely you are to be rejected I guess.

How much more reliable is a broker putting in your application to you making one yourself?

DP has an excellent credit history. I understand that we will have had a hard credit search, not soft.

We are not FTB and have never missed a mortgage repayment. Everything we have put forward is honest and there are no financial skeltons in our closet.

Our repayments will be an extra £500 pm, but my DPs salary has increased quite significantly since our first application and is likely to increase further in the not too distant future, although I doubt the lenders will take that into account.

Anyway, I'm so stressed about the final decision and was just wondering if anyone could shed some light on the likelihood, given our circumstances.

TIA

Just giving this a hopeful bump

I’ve only ever used a broker - if you’ve got a decision in principle and there is nothing major that you’re hiding then I would be pretty confident that you would be accepted.

Thanks @WifOfBif

I naively thought that a mortgage in principle was pretty much always a done deal, but then I've heard so many stories recently of people getting unexpectedly rejected, even with great credit history.

I think it’s more watertight with a broker - they have their reputation on the line after all.

You’ll be fine

Unless there’s something you haven’t declared then I don’t think there’s any reason for it not to be approved

Using a broker has nothing to do with your eligibility for a mortgage. The lender doesn’t use a different set of criteria to assess your application.

Using a broker though means they have up front access to that criteria so if they think you’ll be accepted, you probably will be - unless you’ve hidden debt, credit file oddities, or if the property has something that the lender doesn’t like.

A mortgage ‘in principle’ is just that. It means that based on the provided info, they’d be willing to complete a full application with the ultimate view of lending to you. If it’s not quite right - for example, you forgot you had a payday loan three years ago and that lender doesn’t accept customers who’ve had one - then they can decline your app. However, the broker should have discussed all of this with you. This is what they are for.

Thanks for the replies.

We have definitely declared everything. I think if we weren't at the top end of our budget, I wouldn't be worrying.

I think there's the added pressure, as my DD loves the house and has already moved in in her head I think So I'd also feel incredibly guilty if it was rejected, but then I suppose that just comes with the territory!

We're also DESPERATE to leave this house!

A broker doesn’t guarantee eligibility no, however they will spend a lot of time going through all of your documents and matching you with the best lender with the highest chance of acceptance based on your personal circumstances.

For example a broker will go through your credit report and bank statements before applying for a DIP. If you sit at home and apply yourself with someone such as nationwide they give you a decision in principle without seeing any of those documents, hence why I said a DIP usually carries more weight if done by a broker; the important documents have been checked already and are often submitted to the lender when the DIP is applied for.

I had the exact same worries as you at this time last year OP, it all went through without issue x

Go to a broker. I don't know why people don't tbh. They get their income from the lenders and after a couple of hours going through your spending/ income etc the brokers will usually be able to say if it's a yes or no.

Self employed people should especially go to brokers and not waste time with the banks.

@WifOfBif, were you at the top end of your budget too?

Yes, right at the top!

I think one advantage of using a broker is that they know the idiosyncrasies of the different lenders' policies. We used a broker for our last purchase - we weren't near our lending limit, but we did have the complication of living overseas at the time. The broker was able to advise us which high street lenders had the most favourable policy on overseas purchasers, and our mortgage offer came through without any issues. So although PPs are right in that a MiP via a broker is exactly the same as a direct application, I think it is more likely to be approved because the broker will have used his or her insight to select a provider that you are most likely to succeed with.

...@Proseccopeach are you being serious?

@ActualHornist
Yes I’m being deadly serious. We spent months with banks taking all our information, not communicating with us. We first bought in 2005 and every time onwards we’ve used a broker who has told us on the day of meeting that we have a mortgage and paperwork is sent through for signing by the next week. Yes it’s in principle but it’s not the same as banks letter in principle which is often subject to final checks.

We are self employed and banks mortgage advisors just don’t know how to deal with it.

@cheeseismydownfall exactly that with the bonus of taking a few days instead of weeks. Win win.

A broker is free, they DO have access to better rates, they know when there might be an issue and they are your go between. They network with the banks lenders as that is their job.

OP if your broker is happy you can get the amount you need and one you should be ok.

I think brokers are probably worth their weight in gold if you have trickier circs like self employed, credit issues or high lending to your budget etc. They can find deals suited to your circumstances which saves lots of applications being declined. They will know the lenders criteria inside and out.

However if you do your own research and have a straight forward application like we did. No credit issues. High deposit. Not lending at the top of our budget. It really was not hard work just one appointment at the lender of choice.

Purchased recently, no broker and top of our budget. Mortgage in principal was spot on and no issues with approval.

@Proseccopeach yes but OP’s question was because she has already gone through a broker! That is the whole point of her post!