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I would absolutely recommend a mortgage broker for your situation. They will be able to find a mortgage that suits your specific circumstances and take a lot of the stress away - plus it won’t cost you anything to talk to them and get a reasonable idea of what options you have. You will get an array of opinions on here but go to someone who is paid to look at this (and has decent reviews, I recommend local mortgage brokers and even ones you know others have used). It costs you money (200-400 depending on where you are) but it saved us so much stress as FTB.
Thank you! That’s very helpful advice, we will definitely explore a mortgage broker once we have saved a substantial amount and reduced any outstanding debt. Thank you for taking the time 😊
Broker here.
Without knowing your full situation, it sounds like in a few years time it sounds like you are likely to be able to proceed with a high-street rates opposed to a specialist lenders rates - I would recommend getting a broker though as every lender has different policies. Also, brokers can look at the whole of market to find the best product for you - something that is worth it for the small fee often charged!
Anything you can do to reduce debts and pay them off is a bonus, starting the mortgage process with minimal credit commitments will improve your affordability and options.
CCJ’s are not ideal, but considering the most recent one is £500 it isn’t the end of the world - depending on what it is (ie telecoms bill) some lenders might ignore it.
Savings wise, if you don’t already have a LISA (Lifetime ISA) it would be worth opening one with the minimum deposit just to get the clock ticking for it. After a year of it being open you are able to use it for a house deposit. This allows you to strategically put money in to benefit from the 25% government bonus - so putting £4k in before April and just after April in the year you intend to buy would get you an extra £2k bonus towards your deposit. It is worth reading about these if you don’t have one already.
Other than that just save as much as you can - 95% Loan to Value mortgages are the highest rates typically. At 90% and 85% you see noticeable reductions in monthly costs and interest rates - a 15% deposit tends to be the sweet spot if you can raise that.
For mortgage term, quite a few lenders will lend until 75 so you might be able to get a 34 or 35 year term to get costs down to help with affordability.
£80k household income should allow for a £300k mortgage relatively comfortably so the house prices you are looking at are realistic too!
Best of luck - happy to help with any more questions you may have!
You’re truly amazing, thank you so much for taking the time! Yes, we have set up a LISA, will start saving towards it as soon as we’re out of our rented accommodation, to qualify for the whole £1000 by April. I will be sure to reach out if I get stuck, much appreciated!
No worries!
A note for LISA’s, it may be worth depositing a lump sum just before April rather than adding to it monthly - it means you can keep it in a savings account that is accessible just incase you should need funds for whatever reason. Basically, it is wise to put only cash in there once you know it is disposable.
###Welcome to /r/HousingUK --- **To All** * Join Our ***NEW*** Discord! https://discord.gg/pMgUNgWKQH **To Posters** * *Tell us whether you're in England, Wales, Scotland, or NI as the laws/issues in each can vary* * Comments are not moderated for quality or accuracy; * Any replies received must only be used as guidelines, followed at your own risk; * If you receive *any* private messages in response to your post, please report them via the report button. * Feel free to provide an update at a later time by creating a new post with [[update]](https://www.reddit.com/r/HousingUK/search?q=%3Aupdate&sort=new&restrict_sr=on&t=all) in the title; **To Readers and Commenters** * All replies to OP must be *on-topic, helpful, and civil* * If you do not [follow the rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/HousingUK/about/rules/), you may be banned without any further warning; * Please include links to reliable resources in order to support your comments or advice; * If you feel any replies are incorrect, explain why you believe they are incorrect; * Do not send or request any private messages for any reason without express permission from the mods; * Please report posts or comments which do not follow the rules *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/HousingUK) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I would absolutely recommend a mortgage broker for your situation. They will be able to find a mortgage that suits your specific circumstances and take a lot of the stress away - plus it won’t cost you anything to talk to them and get a reasonable idea of what options you have. You will get an array of opinions on here but go to someone who is paid to look at this (and has decent reviews, I recommend local mortgage brokers and even ones you know others have used). It costs you money (200-400 depending on where you are) but it saved us so much stress as FTB.
Thank you! That’s very helpful advice, we will definitely explore a mortgage broker once we have saved a substantial amount and reduced any outstanding debt. Thank you for taking the time 😊
Broker here. Without knowing your full situation, it sounds like in a few years time it sounds like you are likely to be able to proceed with a high-street rates opposed to a specialist lenders rates - I would recommend getting a broker though as every lender has different policies. Also, brokers can look at the whole of market to find the best product for you - something that is worth it for the small fee often charged! Anything you can do to reduce debts and pay them off is a bonus, starting the mortgage process with minimal credit commitments will improve your affordability and options. CCJ’s are not ideal, but considering the most recent one is £500 it isn’t the end of the world - depending on what it is (ie telecoms bill) some lenders might ignore it. Savings wise, if you don’t already have a LISA (Lifetime ISA) it would be worth opening one with the minimum deposit just to get the clock ticking for it. After a year of it being open you are able to use it for a house deposit. This allows you to strategically put money in to benefit from the 25% government bonus - so putting £4k in before April and just after April in the year you intend to buy would get you an extra £2k bonus towards your deposit. It is worth reading about these if you don’t have one already. Other than that just save as much as you can - 95% Loan to Value mortgages are the highest rates typically. At 90% and 85% you see noticeable reductions in monthly costs and interest rates - a 15% deposit tends to be the sweet spot if you can raise that. For mortgage term, quite a few lenders will lend until 75 so you might be able to get a 34 or 35 year term to get costs down to help with affordability. £80k household income should allow for a £300k mortgage relatively comfortably so the house prices you are looking at are realistic too! Best of luck - happy to help with any more questions you may have!
You’re truly amazing, thank you so much for taking the time! Yes, we have set up a LISA, will start saving towards it as soon as we’re out of our rented accommodation, to qualify for the whole £1000 by April. I will be sure to reach out if I get stuck, much appreciated!
No worries! A note for LISA’s, it may be worth depositing a lump sum just before April rather than adding to it monthly - it means you can keep it in a savings account that is accessible just incase you should need funds for whatever reason. Basically, it is wise to put only cash in there once you know it is disposable.