Absolutely desperate: anyone here ever lied on their mortgage application?

[bibby2001]

I have basically been told that neither of my jobs will be conisdered as income because one is zero hours and the other is fixed term.

I make probably around 26,500 a year, so plenty for a mortgage.

The zero hours contract alone makes up 16,000 of that, so what's the harm in sending the bank an altered contract to say that I am employed permanently and part-time? I am consistently working these hours and there is no risk of them disappearing.

I have started the process of pleading with my employer to change my zero hours to a proper contract but I'm unsure of how fruitful this will be.

£50000 deposit through hard work suggest a healthy working history. If true, speak to a broker. Keep speaking to them until you find that will help.

this is a great idea! i will do. i normally am just very passive and super grateful to have such a good job but i think i am gonna stand up for myself and try to fight for this.

Haven't read all the replies here, but talk to different places. I had about the same income as you made up from a couple of sources of income and no permanent job but with a very decent deposit. One place said they wouldn't lend me anything, another said they would lend me 20k and another would offer much more than I needed.

The place I had the best luck with was a small building society near where I was buying and I still have the same mortgage advisor few years later. (Although I've seen some people on here say building societies tend to be stricter)

....If you have a record of tax returns, even if from different jobs then you should be ok

Are both of your current jobs under the 12 month mark, OP? If so that could be the issue. I used to work in HR, have done hundreds of mortgage references for a large employer and that included fixed-term staff so it's not rubbish, honestly!

You've done really well with your deposit, I appreciate it must be so frustrating at the moment but don't do something you'll regret for years to come.

if i have 3 identical payslips, do you think this will work?

HSBC will accept FTC and zero hours contracts provided it is regular income and you’ve been getting it for a while. If they do I’m sure other lenders do too as they’re the strictest. Talk to a broker.

@bibby2001 it really depends on the lender, I saw a mortgage broker and they found a few banks who were happy to lend to me on my zero hours contract with a certain number of pay slips. Some wanted six months, others 12. Some lenders would not accept at all. Ime it really varied!

Which banks were these please?

Covid has changed everything OP, it's not a great idea to lie about your employment status via forged documents.

I'm in the process of applying for a large mortgage and earn many multiples of what you have stated, and am going through a high level of scrutiny.

My high street lender is forensic about reviewing my income and expenditure on bank statements and payslips, and I recall there was a box to tick about confirming employment status, which no doubt stays on the record.

This is too big a risk to chance it, due to the ramifications, and I wouldn't go down the route you proposed, if I were you. As others have suggested, find yourself a broker who can get you through a mortgage application legitimately, and declaring your current employment status.

thank you for this compassionate response. i should be able to afford it, you know, im a teacher. this country has no respect for the people who make it work

@bibby2001

thank you for this compassionate response. i should be able to afford it, you know, im a teacher. this country has no respect for the people who make it work

It’s not about respect, it’s simply about ensuring that you can pay back what you have borrowed. From a lender’s perspective, a fixed term contract and a zero hours contract are far more risky, objectively, than someone in permanent full time employment. It would be irresponsible not to carry out the appropriate financial checks. Putting a teacher on a zero hours contract does seem pretty shit though.

@bibby2001

thank you for this compassionate response. i should be able to afford it, you know, im a teacher. this country has no respect for the people who make it work

A teacher on a zero hours contract? Agency, then?

How daft would it be to deliberately do something that would affect your entire career when - not if, when - it is discovered?

Many users here have suggested that, like them, instead of my harebrained scheme to edit a contract, that I just submit payslips instead of providing a contract

Just want to say that I work in the industry and we've recently been advised that income fraud is at an all time high so the liklihood of you being found out is incredibly high because lenders are hypervigilant on it.

Add the penalties for committing fraud, which is a hefty fine and potentially prison, then the fact you'd probably lose your job if that happened, etc, is it worth it?

Just out of interest
How many convictions have their been for mortgage fraud in the last 5 years?

And what’s the average/typical sentence for those convicted?

The other thing to take into account is that if you commit mortgage fraud, your solicitor can also be held criminally liable for your actions.

I can imagine that you wouldn't need a conviction to nose dive your credit rating in case of potential fraud like this.

This sort of thing really annoys me, as IMO, it was people willing to lie and overstretch themselves to get big mortgages back in the late 90s and early 00s, that made it even harder for everyone else.

As everyone else has said, don’t lie. Look for a broker who handles unusual situations.

@Blackmagic5 - you mentioned you’re leaving your job before the mortgage is drawn down. I’d check carefully with your broker before you choose to say nothing. In my experience, it’s routine for the mortgage provider to request the most recent payslip and bank statement right before drawdown, to check you are still with same employer.

Can’t you do a tax return? I got a mortgage as a freelancer by showing three years of tax returns. You don’t have to wait for the deadline in January for last year’s one.

I’d change your broker, they’re not all great. You need one that has knowledge of the whole market. A broker took a payment up front from us and applied to just one bank and we were declined because my husband had 2 defaults that were 5 years old. The broker said there’s no way we’ll get a mortgage. Basically took our money and ran.

Found out later he was only knowledgeable of high street banks and straight forward applicants. We found our own mortgage provider without bothering with a broker.

You need one that’s specialised in complex applications

When my husband got our mortgage last year he didn't even have to supply a contract and they didn't ring hood work either. He just supplied 3 months wage slips. Through a broker. But he had a 60% deposit so not sure if that affected it

'this country has no respect for the people who make it work'

I'm sorry but what does that even mean? You started a thread asking if you should commit fraud and then say something weird like this? No one disrespected you, people told you not to break the law. As much for your own benefit as well as everyone else who wants to get a mortgage.

@bibby2001 sorry for the late reply - I’ve PM’d you

Good luck