Mortgage application and outgoings

[TakeItEasyChicken]

Hope someone can offer some reassurance... I'm currently renting from a private landlord, and have been given the opportunity to buy my rented house from from landlord. If I don't buy, I'd need to leave the property in a few months so the landlord can put the property on the market.
I'm hurriedly putting my mortgage application together. I have 10% deposit (gifted by parent), a good salary and no debt. However, I'm worried that the pace of my application means that I've had no time to tighten my belt and make my bank statements look a bit healthier prior to application, which is what I'm sure most people would do. I went into my overdraft last month (only by £70) and I've made a big purchase this month (very unusual). How much do mortgage lenders take spending of money outside of rent/bills/council tax etc into account? I've never had any trouble paying these.

They will do a credit search to see if you pay your bills on time each month. You will get rated on if you pay credit card etc on time every month. If you have not gor credit card or bought anything on credit then you are scored down as they have no record of you being consistent with your repayments. They will ask you if you have any regular financial commitments like child care or car repayments, mobile phone contracts etc. Most people will have to send in last 3 months bank statements. I don't think they worry too much if they keep seeing Starbucks or your favorite takeaway on your bank statement. They may ask about being overdrawn though. If your bank won't give you mortgage you could try a broker as they know criterias at different banks and mortgage companies vary.

We had some big purchases in the lead up to application process

They’d already asked what fixed expenditure we had and didn’t really take much from the bank statements as far as I can tell

We always use an independent broker for best rates and likelihood of being accepted

Thanks for your replies. I've got a couple of very small monthly credit payments which I've always paid on time. My mortgage payments (if all goes through) should be the same as my current rent payments so hoping they can see I can pay it without any difficulty. Its just the fact that this month's statement won't look great. It's just so stressful with the timelines

In one of my statements I sent in to my overdraft by about the same amount as you OP and it was never raised as an issue. But I did go in to my overdraft and more or less immediately back out so I don't know if that was a factor.

I'm applying for a mortgage and they didn't want bank statements just two years tax returns and proof I'd paid the tax.

Depends how you are with their affordability criteria. If you're close to the limit, the things you mention might be viewed less favourably.

Also don't forget that they will stress test you to a much higher interest rate than what you are applying for.

In the next few months try to stay out of your overdraft even if it means using a credit card.

Banks see overdraft use as a bad thing but using a credit card that you pay off in full every month to avoid interest is fine as it shows you can manage credit and will delay the spending coming out of your current account so keeps the balance higher.

But definitely see a broker to get a good mortgage deal that you will get accepted for.

Thanks, everyone. I manage fine with all my payments but don't have much left at the end of the month. The use of the overdraft was a one-off and happened the day before my pay went in (January being the longest month ever).
I'm going to use one of the online brokers so hopefully that will help things.

An online broker is not going to make any difference. In fact, you would probably be better seeing someone face to face, an actual human being to talk to.
Just because you can pay your rent does not mean you will be accepted for a mortgage. Your income will be stress tested to make sure if interest rates go up, you can still afford your mortgage. If you are already close to the bone with your outgoings you may not pass this test. Using an agreed overdraft once is not going to make much difference, and they will look at several months statements for patterns, but if you have debts, this can affect things even more so. All you can do is ask.

Id also recommend a face to face broker ( and one that doesn't charge you a fee!), but your bank statements shouldn't be a problem. A one off big purchase can be explained and a short dip into a small overdraft doesn't show irresponsible financial conduct at all.
Best of luck OP