Will I ever get a mortgage??

[MissPrimaryCrafts]

I'm 27, bf and I have been together 12 years and want to buy a home and have children. I worked freelance but now I'm training to be a teacher and start a teaching job in September.

A generous family member started a savings account for me when I was born and that has about 20k in it. Bf and I are good with money and we have saved about 15k.

Problem is he has health issues and isn't able to work. Getting a mortgage on one pretty low salary, even with a good deposit, doesn't seem like it will ever be enough.

We both have credit cards designed to improve your credit score, both have help to buy ISAs which give you a % of what you've saved to put towards mortgage. Bf gets universal credit, AFAIK Barclays is the only bank to treat this as income?

Any insight or advice? Renting is awful and I dread to imagine doing it for the rest of my life

You should be able to get a mortgage for 4 or 4.5 times your salary. Is that enough for a property in your area?

It would totally be doable up near me.
25k salary, three times salary plus 25k deposit. 100k would get you a decent 2 bed terrace, or a 3 bed semi in a slightly less nice area.
However, in much of the country, I suspect it would prove difficult.
So I guess it totally depends on where you live, or if you are prepared to relocate.
Many people look in horror when we say where we live. It has some low point, but also some great points.

You’ve a really good deposit, I suspect it will have to be you who gets the mortgage.
If he can it might be worth him starting a small business as that will increase you household income, some lenders may not count it as income unless he has three years of accounts.

Thanks, I live in East Sussex so we would have to relocate. We have friends who live in Sheffield so been looking near there but not even sure if I could afford there.

Also looked at shared ownership as there are lots of those nearby but have heard bad things about bad quality builds and issues selling them when you want to move.

It's hard for me to plan as I don't know if I'd even be approved letalone how much I would get. Online mortgage calculators vary so much

Don't discount shared ownership. And don't listen to the doom and gloom merchants who say new builds are poor quality! What do they know, theyre not construction experts lol.

do your sums and join a few facebook and instagram groups for first time buyers for advice.

No-one knows if they will be approved until they go and see if they can get a mortgage. If you have a good credit rating then you will likely be approved - the query is not so much whether you will be approved but more how much will they lend you.

@StephenBelafonte

Don't discount shared ownership. And don't listen to the doom and gloom merchants who say new builds are poor quality! What do they know, theyre not construction experts lol.

do your sums and join a few facebook and instagram groups for first time buyers for advice.

No-one knows if they will be approved until they go and see if they can get a mortgage. If you have a good credit rating then you will likely be approved - the query is not so much whether you will be approved but more how much will they lend you.

True - I'm hoping if we save for another few years and find a good shared ownership property maybe we won't have to relocate. My nan is here and I'm the only family left in the area, I don't want to leave her and move far away like everyone else has done.

I didn't know first time buyer facebook groups existed, thank you!

True - I'm hoping if we save for another few years and find a good shared ownership property maybe we won't have to relocate.

The only problem with this is that sometimes house prices increase faster than people can save. So i'd buy sooner rather than later, just to get on the ladder.

In the past 3 years I've known two single NQTs buy houses with much smaller deposits. If you're realistic about what you can afford and you don't want to buy in a really expensive area I don't see why you couldn't.

Can you move op? What do you need in terms of accommodations?you can probably get a cottage or flat in crowborough or hailsham or a less fashionable seaside place eg pevensey . What do you need? If it is lots of room; move north, there are lots of places where you could afford a property.

@yikesanotherbooboo

Can you move op? What do you need in terms of accommodations?you can probably get a cottage or flat in crowborough or hailsham or a less fashionable seaside place eg pevensey . What do you need? If it is lots of room; move north, there are lots of places where you could afford a property.

Happy to live in any of those places! We'd want a 2 bed with a garden for our dog. Hailsham does seem reasonable for the area

You need to work on this being almost completely your project OP. Speak to a mortgage broker and then start looking.

@yikesanotherbooboo

You need to work on this being almost completely your project OP. Speak to a mortgage broker and then start looking.

I won't have a job until September as I'm still training, is it ok to speak to a mortgage broker now? Or shall I wait until I can actually commit to a mortgage?

Once you have permanent work a broker will be able to work with you to get the best option for you. I suggest you spend the next 12 months paying off debts and getting you outgoings down, once you have passed your probation teaching you can then get work where you can afford to buy - the great thing with teaching is that your salary doesn't reduce because you are in a cheaper area

Definitely consider shared ownership and it doesn't have to be a new build, shared ownership resales do come on the market it's how I got mine. If you plan on staying in the house long term you can always save up and purchase a bigger share in future, it's what I plan on doing. Helpfully paying your mortgage off each month helps build a deposit for purchasing a future share. Eg if you buy a 25% share and then look to purchase a 50% share, your remortgage would be to borrow 25% plus your outstanding mortgage on the original share. But your loan to value would be against 50%. A lower loan to value gives better interest rates and makes you look less risky so better chance of getting a mortgage. But definitely speak to a broker about it or try the money saving expert forums they have sections on mortgages and shared ownership.

Would your partner qualify for additional benefits? If he can't work long term then he should be entitled to some support that may count towards income.

I second getting a decent mortgage advisor, I managed to get a mortgage whilst working as an LSA before starting my NQT year in September. They were fantastic and went through income properly compared to online who gave different amounts!