To chase my mortgage advisor every week?

[DemonicEruption]

Hi, I'm a FTB who had an offer accepted on a house nearly 5 weeks ago.

Within a week of this I had instructed both solicitor and mortgage advisor. The same week the MA told me the lender needs to get employers references for both me and my partner, and not to instruct surveyor until this had been done. Fair enough.

For a week I heard nothing from him, so I emailed him for an update. No reply. 8 days later I tried him again and he got back to me hours later saying he would ring the lender to see if the references had been done. It's been nearly a week now since that email and I've not heard from him. AIBU to poke him again this week? Does this normally take so long? I want to get the survey booked so the vendor doesn't think I'm dragging things!

It's also worth mentioning though that nothing has happened with the solicitors either. The vendor allegedly took 3 weeks to sort his paperwork out with his solicitor (according to EA) but my solicitors still haven't recieved draft contracts. Am I over stressing?

These things can take AGES! Just keep chasing.

Yes, it normally takes that long. Your going to need to channel a lot more zen.

I'm surprised they accepted your offer without evidence of mortgage or at least agreement in principle.

Do you know if your employees have sent the references back? That could be what's causing the hold up.

I disagree. We've recently had a very complicated house move, I needed mortgages for 2 different properties, I got one in 48 hours and the other in 24 hours. I'd be tempted to switch mortgage brokers!

*employers

@VanGoghsDog I provided mortgage in principle before the offer was formally accepted.

@MrsHarveySpecterV Deffo not mine as we're a very small company and chat about everything haha. Possibly my partner's could be holding things up but still the advisor should have got this info by now if so!

I will email him again tomorrow if I dont hear from him today but I worry i will just get the same 'i will ring them' response and then hear nothing for a week again.

The process can take up to 3 months to get a formal mortgage offer. You Just need to chase the MA. But do be mindful you’re not the only customer they have and they’re probably in back to back appointments.

YABU. I would have long gone to a more professional mortgage adviser. Yours sounds rubbish.

Your mortgage adviser should be updating you on a regular basis, even if there's no update iyswim. I would to show I'm keeping an eye on it. He will have online access to the lender and log on to see where your application is at.

Has your partner agreed the the financial information being released by his firm. They will have been asked to confirm his salary under GDPR they need his permission to do this. That would be my first port of call check employers have had referenced requested and have actioned this. If bank has had references for more than 5 working days the chasing would be appropriate.
Remember at the bank there is someone who collects the information then the information is sent to the underwriting team who evaluate it all and decide whether you meet lending criteria and affordability.
Then that will go back to the administrator who will then go back to the MA and adv. about survey remember many banks have a surveyor they want you to use. Bank instructs surveyor in this situation so you have to wait for that to happen, you pay for survey.

So every step is complex involving many people. Average sale completed in 4 months so you have a long way to go. This is a marathon not a sprint.

I am a mortgage advisor. It is very difficult to say how long it can take as not every case is the same. Usually it takes 2 weeks to get a mortgage offer, however on a complex case, the lender may take up to 4 weeks but that is rare. Regardless, you should be kept informed by your mortgage advisor, and be aware what stage the application is currently at. It is unusual for a high street lender to take this long so if it is a specialist lender, I can understand the delay but they should be able to give you the reason. Also, not a good sign if the adviser does not bother returning calls/taking 8 days to get back to you. I would suggest sending emails so you have a record of the conversation in case you have to complain.

DISCLAIMER YOUR HOME MAY BE REPOSSESSED IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP REPAYMENTS ON YOUR MORTGAGE.PLEASE NOTE THAT

Not at all, I was chasing mine daily at one point. Sometimes multiple times a day, but he did turn out to be useless PITA with the get up and go of a narcoleptic tortoise.

YANBU - your mortgage broker sounds shite.

I’ve used one for about 10 years (purchases and remortgages) and he’s fantastic. No pissing around, no delay tactics and I’ve never had to chase him once.

Between him and my solicitors I can honestly say there has never been a hold up from my end.

The survey with the mortgage may only be a brief valuation survey, you might want to order your own survey to get a more detailed view anyway.

I sold my Dad's house at the same time as buying my own. My dad's estate agent/solicitor firm was totally professional, cost a bob or two but got everything organised quickly and smoothly. No difficulties, no delays - it was a very stress free process. The same could not be said about my house purchase. I used a well known estate agency who outsourced solicitors to a small company (not in my home town). There were delays, I had to chase things up and in the end I was billed for something they'd forgotten to bill me when I was settling up. Won't use them again.
Your company needs to keep you informed. I don't know if I'd have the gumption to change solicitor part way through, but I would be thinking twice about using them again.

I'm a mortgage advisor & I don't know of any lenders who write to employers for reference. Usually all the need to verify income are 3 months payslip & 3 months bank statements (some only want 1 month of each), unless you are still on probation.

Also I would have thought a telephone call once a week was the bare minimum contact, especially for a FTB. I had a case last year where I was constantly emailing & calling the client (had to switch lender half way through as they wouldnt lend on a flat with more than 5 floors where there was no lift) & I like to "handhold" through the process.

Which Lender is it OP?

Commercial Property Solicitor here so similar field.

If the Solicitors haven’t issued drafts yet he may still be delaying through laziness or whatever reason. They usually don’t act until they have proof of ID, money on account and clear instructions. It doesn’t matter when someone technically instructs, they can’t act until they have that.

I did a seat in res con and the amount of time people thought it took 8 weeks, but then didn’t give details or money for 3 then though it was only 5 weeks left... erm no we don’t start work until we have everything! Then they may not be able to issue draft paperwork straight away due to workloads etc, usually allow a week for that.

Just thought I’d stick my 2penneth in.

It really can take a while!
I had an offer accepted on our current house in November last year (had mortgage in principle at that time) & contacted a broker at the same time to see if he could get me a better deal - it took till mid January to get a formal mortgage offer I was happy with. I guess I might have had a different experience though as there was no rush as I was buying a new build that wasn’t even going to be completed till mid February (had bought off plan).

Keep being a damned nuisance. The squeaky wheel gets the oil. Good luck. Phone both at least once a day. X

OP this wont be the lender 100% this is the broker. My application to offer ratio is 5.2 days. I work for a lender as a mortgage consultant. It is 100% not normal to wait more than 1 month at the most for a mortgage offer.

@koolaider The lender is Halifax

@TheBrockmans I paid for a Homebuyer's + valuation to Halifax through the mortgage advisor, over 4 weeks ago. I recieved the surveyor contracts in the post a week later, but MA told me not to send them off until the references had been done.

At the end of the day I'm not in a rush to complete, but I don't want the vendor thinking i'm not serious about buying if they hear things are stalling with my mortgage application!

I'm a timid person and the adviser was so lovely and friendly in person, seemed to get things done real quick at first. We had our mortgage in principle within a couple of days of him meeting us, and he kickstarted the full application the day after our offer was accepted. Not sure why things are so held up now. I asked my boss today if he heard anything from halifax yet, and he said he's received nothing. So it seems like the lender hasn't even attempted to get references yet!!

Ok thanks. I find the employer reference unusual tbh and I advise on mortgages as well. Have you just started a new job and they want to see a contract or any reason why they'd want to do this, normally payslips with bank statements and a P60 would be ample.

@koolaider I thought it was unusual and a bit pointless too. I've been working at the same place for nearly 6 years and my partner's been at his place for just over a year. We submitted p60s, bank statements, wage slips to the mortgage advisor straight away along with proof of deposit funds. We were so ready from the get go and I can't believe this has stalled things for weeks.

I just got a full mortgage with Halifax in a week, including them completing a valuation visit.

No references, just pay slips.

I really think you need to give him one chance to explain why the references and most likely change advisors.