Back to: Homeownership
We devised a way to remember the most important parts of the house buying journey, the 4 Ps’; Person, Property, Product and Process.
Person
The person is you! When you buy a home, it is about you, your decisions, your safety, your security, your likes and dislikes, and most importantly your future.
To make this amazing investment in yourself, you are going to need to have some items/documents in place when you’re ready to start the process.
Documents.
Lenders will do electronic ID checks. However, they may also require physical:
- Proof of ID (valid passport or driving licence
- Proof of current address-such as a council tax bill, posted utility bill or bank statement
- Proof of previous address (depending on how long you have lived at your current address).
If you are not registered on the electoral roll, it is recommended keeping documents for three years to be able to prove address history.
You will need to provide proof of your income and expenditure so you will need to supply:
- Up to three month’s payslips (if paid weekly this will be 12 weeks payslips)
- Up to three months bank statements showing income credits and day to day spending (such as households bills, if renting it would be expected to show rental credits)
If you transfer funds to other accounts (i.e. savings accounts) your lender/underwriter would expect to also see those statements. They would not want to see things on your bank statements such as:
- Excessive overdraft usage
- Gambling to an excessive level
- Pay day loans
- Family members/friends assisting the applicants lifestyle
You will need to declare:
- All debts-loans and credit cards
- Student loans
- Childcare costs
- Child maintenance payments
- Leasehold charges for the property being purchased
Your documents will be checked and your application assessed by an underwriter. A mortgage underwriter plays a crucial role in the home-buying process. They assess the creditworthiness of potential borrowers and determine the amount of loan they can receive.
Find out more about what the underwriter and other people involved in the house buying process do, and to understand the terms used read our Jargon Buster page.