Help! First Time Buyers...

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Hello everyone,

My boyfriend and I have been saving up for a flat for years. We're in Scotland btw. We are one of those couples who had money accumulating but didn't arrange viewings or get the ball rolling until last week when we arranged and attended several viewings. We saw a flat come up in a block we've been eyeballing for 2 years and they go VERY quickly. Had a viewing yesterday, and we've agreed with the owners on a price and we will put our pre-agreed offer in tomorrow. Our circumstances and timescales are a perfect match and they've even contacted their Estate Agent to let them know that they don't want any further viewings and to make them aware of our imminent official offer.

We have £26k deposit and will be taking a £77,800 mortgage so 75% LTV. We're also in the process of selling one of our cars for another £4k and our families are gifting us a small amount to cover any fees. We don't need to buy furniture or appliances as we have everything already.

We spoke to a mortgage advisor yesterday and he doesn't see any issues with us getting the mortgage for this amount and we have a combined income of £45k but is actually around £50k with additional payments (on call work which is compulsory so the additional £5k is guaranteed).

I've been downloading my payslips, bank statements etc for tomorrow. The utilities all come out of my partner's bank as we switch things around each year to get the best deal. My bank and credit card statements are all for our current rental address (moved in 2 years ago) BUT I've just noticed my only other bill is my mobile phone bill and just realised it's still at the old address (digital billing meant this was an oversight, especially as it's only £12/month so not something I regularly check).

As this was also a bit of a whirlwind, our spending also isn't 100%. We're not in any debt, pay for things like fuel and groceries on our credit cards then pay in full each month. I'm worried about things like takeaways or meals out which we wouldn't have done if we had known we were going to be applying for a mortgage.

However, our current rent is £580/month with all bills on top. The mortgage is going to be £325/month and is smaller and more efficient to run than our current place. I hope this will offset my spending concerns above.

Has anyone been in a similar situation with this? On paper we're the ideal applicants with a 25% deposit, first time buyers and not asking for a lot of money but I'm worried they'll find something to reject us and we'll miss out.

Comments, advice and support welcome. Nerve-wracking sitting about on a Sunday waiting for tomorrow to arrive to actually do anything about it and get proper advice.

With that amount of deposit and no existing debt you will be fine!

I'm pretty sure you'll be fine.
I hope you enjoy your new home.

I think your worrying over nothing

That’s a small mortgage compared to wages

They do go via bank statements looking for spending patterns and debt

You pay rent on time and credit cards are good way of building a credit score so not a negative

Thanks for the reassurance! I'm worried we'll look too scatty because of the old address on the phone bill.

In your experience, approximately how long does it take for a mortgage to be approved?

If they reject you on as phone bill address, about half the number of people wouldn't get a mortgage! They shouldn't have any trouble at all, even if affordability is a bit low for any reason, they can just extend the term which will lower the repayments even more. Then you can make regular over payments up to what you were planning to pay, which would pay it off at the original rate.

That's true! You just hear of so many circumstances and scenarios - people being refused in good positions and other people being refused for minor things. I suppose it's each case on its own merit. I'll need to do my best to contain my nerves and excitement today and patiently await what tomorrow brings!

Seriously DS got a mortgage recently for 95000 on a single salary of 34000, and not through a broker. Through Nationwide who he saved his deposit with. As long as you don’t have debts a clear credit history and have proof of ID and evidence where the funds come from you should walk it.

That's great news on your side!

The one our broker recommended is with Nationwide paying £325 fixed for 2 years or £333 fixed for 5 years. Much less than our £580 rent payment alone and our new bills will be a bit cheaper. We'll still be saving each month but not as religiously as we are now. Credit cards are only used to keep them ticking over or for paying for big items and paid in full. and always on time. We have a car lease which we split (but is in his name) and has always been paid on time.

We've noticed another issue which we really hope isn't a massive concern and would like to hear your thoughts. My partner has been trawling his credit reports again today and has noticed a defaulted payment of £120 from 2015. It was a complete oversight on his part at the time and seems to be from a telecommunications account when he lived at home with his family.

I know defaults are really bad but would they see that this has only happened once 4 years ago and it's only £120 (it's not like he maxed a £5k credit card and ran away!) or would this make lenders run a mile even though it's a tiny amount of money?

Has he paid the 120 pounds? If not get it paid asap and marked as settled on the credit file.

No, he only came across it when he was going through it all in detail. Our broker has said he can pay it and apply for a Nationwide mortgage but we'd need to wait 6 weeks before doing so.

The broker has suggested applying with Accord who, upon research, seem to be quite flexible. He's going to ask the broker if it's worth paying it now and applying right away with Accord.

Does anyone have any recent experiences using Accord with some discrepancies on your credit file and get approved?

I know it's not what you're asking but...if you're currently paying £580 and saving for a deposit and managing fine, then why go for a £325 repayment on your mortgage? You could go for a shorter term and pay it off much quicker with less interest.

Good question

We are managing fine but we want to live life a bit more for a while. We never go out for meals, to the pub and avoid doing most things that cost money. All of our spare money is put into deposit savings and current necessary expenses. We definitely won't be going mad with spending but we're looking forward to some flexibility. Also want to set aside money to replace vinyl with tiles.

We're going to overpay the maximum we can without incurring fees which is about £50 more each month.

Makes sense!