Savings before applying for a mortgage

[ginabrett]

Hi, my partner owns a house which he rents out and is up for sale. He will gain money from this sale which will go into a savings account until we buy together. Not rushing perhaps next spring. He is the main breadwinner, I don't earn much but thanks to Martin Lewis, lots of money tracking I am good at saving. How much do you think I will need to save just so it looks good when we apply for our mortgage? I don't want to look like a burden. I have a main part time job and 2 smaller ones. I was thinking 3-4,000 this wouldn't go towards the deposit but more furniture ect when we move. I just want to look independent and good with money before we embark on this journey together.
Thank you!

Getting a mortgage is mostly about your credit rating. If you have a good one it shouldn't be a problem. If you can bank 3-4k in savings by next spring I think that will look fine too.

Agree with PP. Look at your credit rating not savings. FWIW DH had a £500 default and even though this was reflected on his credit score it made zero difference to actually getting a mortgage.

Your credit rating, salary and outgoings have far more influence than savings. A lender has never been interested in our savings beyond proving it for a deposit.

Op are you going to be named on the mortgage as it's his deposit? That's not Important- although you will need a spare few k for solicitors fees/ moving costs/ mortgage fees etc. The things they'll look at:

1. Income / regular outgoings including debt repayments (affordability - how much could you repay as a couple pcm)
2. Credit rating
3. Size of your deposit which will affect the overall price of the property you could buy

Sorry, by 'that's not important' I was referring to your few k savings not whether you're on the mortgage or not.

Yes I will be on the mortgage, we have son together aswell. Thanks for all your help

We have savings already for fees ect my partner has saved for years and I won an amount that I put in the pot.

I agree with PP that it’s more about your spending pattern than about how much you have saved, if it’s not going towards the deposit.

If you’re applying for a mortgage together, then they’ll look at how good you are with managing debt - so it’s better to make sure you don’t default on any loans, credit cards etc. Also don’t apply for too much credit at the same time.

If I were you I’d use Experian etc to give you a “credit score” - this will tell you if you have anything in your history that may cause an issue, and give you time to resolve it. It will also mean the credit search will disappear off your recent history. Then make sure you don’t apply for any big lons in the next year, or it may affect your affordability.

Concentrate on keeping your current job and salary, reigning in any excessive spending, and paying down as much debt as possible if you have it.

Of course it’s always good to have savings for moving costs or anything else that crops up, but the above will help you much more in looking good for the mortgage.

Get married! Far better for your security than saving a few quid.

I agree with the previous poster. Just get married and share everything. If you're not going to do that then please don't spend your money on consumables while he puts his into the deposit. If it all goes wrong later, your money will have disappeared.