Specialist Mortgage Advice in Cardiff

There’s a high chance that you could encounter difficulties during your mortgage application. This could be anything from failing to match lending criteria to your application being affected due to a divorce/separation.

Mortgages are complicated! You won’t be able to obtain one just like that. Firstly, you’ll have to pass lender credit checks and affordability assessments to show that you’re eligible for a mortgage. If you encounter a hurdle during these stages, you may need a mortgage specialist to help progress your application. If you are a first time buyer in Cardiff, these problems may seem complex; we can explain these problems and will try to help you get by them.

Here is a list of the most common mortgage hurdles that home buyers come across during their mortgage process.

Common mortgages hurdles

Childcare fees

It’s very unlikely for you to be turned away due to you having children, however, your overall offer may be a little higher than if you didn’t have them.

When assessing your affordability, lenders will factor childcare costs into your expenditures. They have to be sure that you can afford a mortgage, therefore, they have to consider all of your outgoings. Childcare costs (depending on how many children you have) can run into the hundreds each month, and they don’t go down! They’ll treat these costs as recurring payments and will treat them as they would treat a car loan or hire purchase agent.

Even if you don’t pay for childcare, such as a nursery, you still may be offered less than other buyers who don’t have children.

Divorce/separation

It’s unfortunate when it happens, but when you and your partner decide to call it a day and you’re both linked to a mortgage, you may need to solve your financial problems first. Things can get complicated the longer that you leave it.

Lenders may struggle to progress your application if you’re still financially linked to someone else, especially you’re linked through a mortgage. This would mean that you would be accountable for two sets of mortgage payments each month, which could be too much for you to manage.

When customers in this situation come to us for specialist mortgage advice in Cardiff, we are usually asked the same type of questions:

  • How can I remove my ex’s name from my mortgage?
  • How do I remove my name from my ex’s mortgage?
  • Can I have two mortgages?

If you are asking these questions, it may be best to try and speak with a professional advisor who may be able to assist you with these problems. A situation like this is already stressful enough, never mind the worries of your mortgage.

Benefit income

Different lenders will have different views on benefit income and will assess it differently. Other benefits that could be assessed include child tax credit, working tax credit, disability benefit or pension. Each lender will differ with what they choose to assess.

We have access to many different specialist lenders that each have their own unique lending criteria and will measure different types of income. These types of lenders could help you with your case.

New job

When you get a new job, more often than not, it will come with a higher salary. This would mean that you have more money for things like a new mortgage. You would also think that because of your new higher salary, you should be able to get a mortgage easier, however, this is sometimes not the case.

Some lenders may consider probationary periods as an issue (depending on the likelihood of you staying on), whereas others may not be bothered at all. They will also look at your previous line of work and see whether you were employed for a while before your new job or if you were jumping in and out of work. Lenders need to make sure that you are a reliable applicant and not someone who will be unemployed within months. Gaps in employment can negatively impact your chances of being accepted.

On the other hand, some lenders may even qualify you before you’ve even started the job. This will be no more than a month in advance.

Evidencing a deposit for a mortgage in Cardiff

In Cardiff, when you’re applying for a mortgage, you need to correctly evidence your deposit and show exactly where you obtained it from. If you’ve simply built it up over time, you will need to evidence this through your bank statements and if you’ve received a gifted deposit, the person gifting you the money will have to prove where they have got the money from.

This is all for anti-money laundering purposes and so that your lender knows that the funds have been legally raised. Your solicitor and estate agent may also ask for this evidence.

Applicants can easily slip up on this part of their mortgage application. If your funds have not been evidenced correctly, your lender could start to question where the money has actually come from. If you use a mortgage broker in Cardiff like us, we will help you evidence your deposit correctly. We can go through this step with you so that you have the best chance of being accepted by your lender.

Date Last Edited: October 9, 2024