mortgages and permanant status??

Hi 

I'm new here, so appologise if this is repeated elsewhere - I've tried to find it, but haven't had any luck.

Does anyone know about mortgages? My husband and I are hoping to be able to use both our incomes for a mortgage, but I only got my temporary leave to remain (the initial two years?) in April, and I've heard rumours that I need to wait til I've got my ILR (so permanancy?) before mortgage companies will agree to finance based on my income as well.

Do we need to wait until I have my 'permanant' residency? (That *is* the ILR, isn't it?) Is anyone else having a problem with this?

Thanks!

I have heard differing answers on this. I've heard people say it's not possible, and I've heard people say it is. I had ILR when we applied, but we had no UK credit history and were able to get a mortgage. I have friends who are both American here on HSMP and they got a mortgage less than two years after they got here (not sure how much time was left on their visa). We used the same mortgage advisor they did, and I remember him saying that some lenders balked with them as applicants because of the visa/length of time left etc. But he was able to get them a mortgage so it can be done. I think the key is you need to talk to a mortgage advisor as they know the lender guidelines and will know if that is ok, and if so, with which lenders.

Good luck!

Yes, it all depends on the lender.  They would make it seem like "rules are rules" but there is nothing specfically barring them from doing that.  I am specifically looking at lenders that cater to the self employed.  But I am sure there are lenders out there that specialize in immigration as well, or at least would consider your income.  Of course there are also Let-To-Buy schemes out there, but I really don't know if those are good investments or not.  They have a very bad reputation in the states by only being for the severly credit unworthy.

your best bet is to get a mortgage advisor who knows something about this.  i was here for 22 months and my visa was soon due to expire (was going to be getting another 3 year visa).  i waited until i had a new shiny 3 year visa b/f applying for a mortgage and this helped me considerably.  also, i had to put down a decent deposit to get the house i wanted... be persistent.  it is possible.

Just another slant on this..

Like alot of things in life, call it unfair or just the way it is..

you can get anything you want..  provided you have enough money!

KitsonK, just picking up on your comment -  Buy to let mortgages,  they don't have a bad reputation at all and in fact are only given here and in many european countries to those who can put down a sizeable deposit up front. Usually, 20% or more of the property value. Hence these tend to be given to those who have a spare few tens of thousands lying around! by 'credit unworthy' I think you may mean 'self employed' people or those who dont have a fixed amount of income per month! - maybe its different in the US - although from my property interest over there, BTL mortgages are easily and readily available to anyone who stumps up the downpayment!

Welshgirl - good luck and do as much research as you can !

Cheers! Dennis! West London & Slough UK!

KitsonK, just picking up on your comment -  Buy to let mortgages,  they don't have a bad reputation at all

Dennis, i dont think he is  talking about 'buy to let'...  when he says 'let to buy' , i think he means something like a shared ownership scheme, where part of your rent goes toward the purchase of the property.   Im sure he will come back and tell us exactly what he meant, though! 

Dennis, i dont think he is  talking about 'buy to let'...  when he says 'let to buy' , i think he means something like a shared ownership scheme, where part of your rent goes toward the purchase of the property.   Im sure he will come back and tell us exactly what he meant, though! 

Yes, sorry for the confusion...  Buy to Let are obviously investment properties and take a large amount of captial.  I am talking about Let to Buy schemes.

When we got our mortgage, I was only about 6 months into my first spousal (2 year) visa.  As for the financials, they went entirely on hubby's income, credit rating, etc -- since I didn't have any over here (at the time).  They tacked my name onto the mortgage at the last moment (as a requirement) upon learning that my name was to go on the property title -- held in joint name, so they said my name also had to be on the mortgage loan (which makes perfect sense).  It was no big deal.

hiya

Ahhh I see, I thought he'd got them the wrong way round ! i've never heard of them called 'let to buy' before!!

Shared ownership  - now that I've heard of! I think recently another poster mentioned those and looked into it for her/their situation.

I'm of the view that shared ownership has only come about because of the ridiculous house prices compared to income differential in the UK. I guess it is at least a way of owning - moreover, many people already do a 'private' arrangement in so much they buy with best friends, co habitating couples, relatives etc again mainly becuase it's extremely difficult to buy on their own.

I guess a 'proportion' of those in a shared ownership/let to buy are going to be bad risks in terms of little or no credit history, but on the whole, they are a viable option if circumstances allow.

I'd still say do your research very carefully in this kind of arrangement and ensure you have some legal recourse in case things go pear shaped (as they often seem to in these schemes!)

Good luck!

Dennis! West London & Slough UK!!

i've never heard of them called 'let to buy' before!!

Nor have i, but i googled it, and there it was!

When we got our mortgage, I was only about 6 months into my first spousal (2 year) visa.  As for the financials, they went entirely on hubby's income, credit rating, etc -- since I didn't have any over here (at the time).  They tacked my name onto the mortgage at the last moment (as a requirement) upon learning that my name was to go on the property title -- held in joint name, so they said my name also had to be on the mortgage loan (which makes perfect sense).  It was no big deal.

But presumably it was just a matter of you being legally responsible for the loan, which I'd expect? Any money you earned wasn't factored into it? (Just checking that it's another statement supporting that I'm unlikely to count credit-wise.)

That said, I've got a credit card here, so would that help?

Argh. I need to find someone to talk to... 

But presumably it was just a matter of you being legally responsible for the loan, which I'd expect? Any money you earned wasn't factored into it?

Exactly right.  I wasn't earning any money at the time - lol.  And the only credit I had here was whatever being added to his bank account garnered me.

I don't know whether I would have counted credit-wise -- I wasn't really involved in that part of the process because I didn't have anything to bring to the table (i.e., down payment monies, wage income, or any established credit here).  Again, it was a mere legality at the very end of the process (adding my name to the loan).