If it’s the first time you’ve ever applied for a mortgage, or indeed not applied for one for a few years, you may be surprised at the amount of information you’ll be asked to provide. Your mortgage advisor will require some key documentation from you in order to process your application.
If you can it’s best to get everything to hand before your appointment, so that you then don’t hold things up by having to go away and pull it all together.
So, what are the key bits and pieces you’ll need? If you’re employed and pay your income tax by PAYE, you’ll need to supply the following:
- Payslips for the last three months
- Your last P60
- Bank statements for the last three months
- One utility bill to prove your current address (not a mobile phone bill)
- Your passport and your driving licence
If you’re self-employed, it’s slightly different as you’ll need the following:
- Three years of audited accounts, signed off by a qualified accountant (some lenders will accept two years, but check before you go to your meeting with the mortgage adviser to be sure)
- Two years of your SA302 or equivalent tax computation from your Accountant, and Tax Year Overviews
- Bank statements for the last three months for both your personal and business accounts
- One utility bill to prove your current address (not a mobile phone bill)
- Your passport and your driving licence
Regardless of whether you’re employed or self-employed, as well as the above documentation to prove who you are and what you earn, you’ll also need to know the details of any direct debits or standing orders. This includes any outstanding balances on any credit cards, store cards, personal loans or personal finance.
Again, this is all information that you will be asked to provide. It’s best to spend some time before you actually attend your appointment getting all the details together, rather than having to go away and find out afterwards, which can significantly delay the process.
Another really useful thing to do before your mortgage appointment is to find out your credit score. That’s because as part of the mortgage application process, the lender will check your credit rating.
The higher it is then the more chance you have of being offered a mortgage, but also you may find that you have access to a wider range of products and more competitive rates.
These days you can check your credit score for free online with companies such as Experian, Noddle and Clearscore. It only takes a few minutes, but once you know your score if you’re able to let your mortgage advisor know in advance, you’ll find it will make things easier at your appointment.
That’s why it is so important to know sooner rather than later. If your score is a little low, you can take steps to improve your rating.
The good news is, little things such as making sure that you have a landline telephone number and are registered on the Electoral Roll, as well as making sure that you’re making more than the minimum monthly payment on your store card or credit card, can all make a big difference to your credit rating.
You see? None of this is difficult or taxing, it’s just about being organised.
So, dig out that paperwork, study your bank statements and hop online and get your latest credit score.
A couple of hours spent sorting your personal admin upfront will pay dividends when it comes to getting your mortgage application sorted in double quick time!
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