Saving/Applying for a mortgage 2015/16/17/18/19

purpleisafruit

Mickiemcfist wrote: »

I'm not an expert in saving by any means, however when I need to watch myself, the first thing I do is take out cash at the start of the week rather than use my bank card, you end up deliberating more about spending on discretionary stuff.

Definitely agree with this. When using cash, you're much more conscious of what you're doing. Contactless meant I was spending way more without thinking about it. It also has the added bonus of less showing on your bank statements when you do apply for a mortgage. Do you really want to bank to know you spend 200 a month on coffee

EireinOZ

purpleisafruit wrote: »

Definitely agree with this. When using cash, you're much more conscious of what you're doing. Contactless meant I was spending way more without thinking about it. It also has the added bonus of less showing on your bank statements when you do apply for a mortgage. Do you really want to bank to know you spend 200 a month on coffee

I would worried I would lose cash but I recently got a revoult card to help me save! I have it 3 weeks and so far I find it so handy to keep control of ur spending! I top it with 25 Euro a week. The first week I literally used 25 Euro on coffee🀣 , let's just say the coffee spending has now be cut in more than half . And by the end of the second week I have money left on it! I would recommend the card for day to day spending!

purpleisafruit

EireinOZ wrote: »

I would worried I would lose cash but I recently got a revoult card to help me save! I have it 3 weeks and so far I find it so handy to keep control of ur spending! I top it with 25 Euro a week. The first week I literally used 25 Euro on coffee�� , let's just say the coffee spending has now be cut in more than half . And by the end of the second week I have money left on it! I would recommend the card for day to day spending!

Just remember that you'll have to provide the revolut statements for a mortgage application too. They'll want to see that it's not going to Paddy Power!

scarepanda

We've been saving for a deposit for a while, so we're used to not having that money available each month. But we both signed up to revolut this time last year and it's honestly been a game changer in terms of everything else. Combined with an excel sheet all our finances are tracked and savings each month put away for both monthly and yearly expenditure and it's taken so much stress out of keeping an eye on where we are each month.

We had to give both revolut and N26 account statements for our mortgage application and there were no issues with them. And both statements were on hand when we needed them. No hassle or wait for them like with the bricks and mortar bank.

8-10

Creamy Goodness wrote: »

If you eat out, cut down to twice a month and when eating out with a partner (if you have one) share a starter and dessert it’s enough to satisfy the cravings without feeling like your penny pinching.

I would try to cut this out completely, nobody should have to eat out twice a month. If you're 'cutting down' to only twice I'm very interested to know how many times you were doing this previously! Anniversary and Birthdays only, and only if really necessary I'd say.

And no takeout.

Properly planning meals and groceries alone will save you a lot of money if you're already eating out more than twice a month/getting a takaway every other week.

If you want to get a takeout or eat out and decide against it - immediately transfer that amount you were about to spend to your savings account. Do that with every purchase you're thinking twice about.

I know it's penny pinching but it becomes routine and it's a short term pain to reach your savings goal even sooner

Creamy Goodness

8-10 wrote: »

I would try to cut this out completely, nobody should have to eat out twice a month. If you're 'cutting down' to only twice I'm very interested to know how many times you were doing this previously! Anniversary and Birthdays only, and only if really necessary I'd say.

And no takeout.

Properly planning meals and groceries alone will save you a lot of money if you're already eating out more than twice a month/getting a takaway every other week.

If you want to get a takeout or eat out and decide against it - immediately transfer that amount you were about to spend to your savings account. Do that with every purchase you're thinking twice about.

I know it's penny pinching but it becomes routine and it's a short term pain to reach your savings goal even sooner

It really depends what you're used to and what's normal for you. Since the poster gave very little information on what's what for them i was more generalising. My partner and I ate out roughly twice a month whilst saving. We did my suggestion of share starter and share dessert (if we were still hungry) and it cost €30-35 each time, €60-70 a month isn't a terrible expense in the grand scheme of things, people spend more on smokes/alcohol/penney's a week for example

When saving there's zero point to cutting out all luxuries, you'll end up hating yourself and your partner. It's best to figure out what your big discretionary spends are and cutting down not entirely out.

Eating Koka noodles (extreme example) whilst penny pinching isn't exactly appealing for 2-3 years

awec

You need to find the middle ground. Save as much as you can, but don't end up in a miserable existence either.

Rx713B

Hi All,

Myself and the girlfriend started saving for a mortgage 1 year ago - currently sitting at 16k its a 3 year plan. We have this money sitting in a joint savings account with AIB. Is this the right place for it ? or should we have it elsewhere is it right to have it all in 1 account

mycro2013

Rx713B wrote: »

Hi All,

Myself and the girlfriend started saving for a mortgage 1 year ago - currently sitting at 16k its a 3 year plan. We have this money sitting in a joint savings account with AIB. Is this the right place for it ? or should we have it elsewhere is it right to have it all in 1 account

Bank of Ireland have a mortgage saver account and a bonus payment at draw down.

whatever76

mycro2013 wrote: »

Bank of Ireland have a mortgage saver account and a bonus payment at draw down.

this * 2 !! Got advised this earlier in year and at draw down recently got a nice little 1300 k back ( its 2k but they take DIRT tax) . you are not tied in to taking mortgage with BOI either - just a criteria of having to save X amount for at least 6 months consecutively and have X amount of money saved at drawdown ( cant remember the figures but ur well on the way by sounds of it ) - its just a savings incentive worth thinking about for that return and proof of savings etc.

Dolbhad

whatever76 wrote: »

this * 2 !! Got advised this earlier in year and at draw down recently got a nice little 1300 k back ( its 2k but they take DIRT tax) . you are not tied in to taking mortgage with BOI either - just a criteria of having to save X amount for at least 6 months consecutively and have X amount of money saved at drawdown ( cant remember the figures but ur well on the way by sounds of it ) - its just a savings incentive worth thinking about for that return and proof of savings etc.

Did you take a mortgage with BOI? I always thought you had to take a mortgage with BOI to avail of this

whatever76

Dolbhad wrote: »

Did you take a mortgage with BOI? I always thought you had to take a mortgage with BOI to avail of this

Crap you are correct - for some reason I thought you were not tied in to BOI mortgage ; could have sworn I was told that as I asked same question but reading the terms online now and its states bonus is received when you draw down you BOI mortgage - sorry for the mix up ( I did go with BOI) .

Dolbhad

whatever76 wrote: »

Crap you are correct - for some reason I thought you were not tied in to BOI mortgage ; could have sworn I was told that as I asked same question but reading the terms online now and its states bonus is received when you draw down you BOI mortgage - sorry for the mix up ( I did go with BOI) .

Wishful thinking on my part! 😂 We had looked for approval with BOI and they told us about it but getting more money elsewhere so not going with BOI - would have otherwise. But don’t see that offer advised much and it’s a really good offer

whatever76

Dolbhad wrote: »

Wishful thinking on my part! �� We had looked for approval with BOI and they told us about it but getting more money elsewhere so not going with BOI - would have otherwise. But don’t see that offer advised much and it’s a really good offer

Yea I would not have heard about it only for an advisor saying it to me so I hopped on it and just got to 6 months and hit the criteria for my draw down - I know long term cost of mortgage is what is important and interest rate to go for but I just fixed at 2.9 for 2 years so will see then. I got that bonus along with the 2% cash back on draw down so was a nice short term fix considering I just put myself into a 20 year debt :eek:

Dolbhad

whatever76 wrote: »

Yea I would not have heard about it only for an advisor saying it to me so I hopped on it and just got to 6 months and hit the criteria for my draw down - I know long term cost of mortgage is what is important and interest rate to go for but I just fixed at 2.9 for 2 years so will see then. I got that bonus along with the 2% cash back on draw down so was a nice short term fix considering I just put myself into a 20 year debt :eek:

That’s a very good deal to get the €1300 and cashback with a interest rate less that 3%. I would could with BOI only to for the fact in getting a bigger exemption elsewhere. I was going through a broker but at the time BOI aren’t available through mortgage brokers (think their slowly re-entering market though). So would suggest to people have a look

Naos

EireinOZ wrote: »

I would worried I would lose cash but I recently got a revoult card to help me save! I have it 3 weeks and so far I find it so handy to keep control of ur spending! I top it with 25 Euro a week. The first week I literally used 25 Euro on coffee�� , let's just say the coffee spending has now be cut in more than half . And by the end of the second week I have money left on it! I would recommend the card for day to day spending!

If you're spending less than 25e a week, you should be the one giving tips!

Paul_Mc1988

Rx713B wrote: »

Hi All,

Myself and the girlfriend started saving for a mortgage 1 year ago - currently sitting at 16k its a 3 year plan. We have this money sitting in a joint savings account with AIB. Is this the right place for it ? or should we have it elsewhere is it right to have it all in 1 account

Yes that is fine. What they will want to see is regular savings to the amount your monthly mortgage payment will be or preferably a bit over. 3 years of that and you should have no issues.

pmfcnl

Prospector1989 wrote: »

Think ours was about 2 weeks but as you can see from other posts, that can vary.

Thanks a million for the reply. Did it automatically get transferred into your account or did you request this?

Natashaw88x

Finally collected my keys to my new build Thursday. Joined this thread nearly 3 years ago. Been a long journey! From getting declined due to my ICB (lesson learned there), or losing a house we thought was our dream home. To now 2.5 years after starting to save we have a beautiful new build. Can’t believe it. Best feeling ever. For anyone still on the journey or struggling, just
know it will happen. All the hard work makes you appreciate it so much more

paul-2008

After a long process with AIB we finally got our approval in principle on the 8th November. We have found a house we wish to buy and have gone sale agreed - 20k under the approved mortgage value. I notified AIB of the property etc and the last message from them was

"I have reviewed this and have progressed your application to the next stage where we will complete a final check to ensure you are ready for Letter of Offer."

Anyone know what this final check is? It has me worried that they will change their mind as it took us about 6 weeks to get approval in principle. I would have assumed that since only about a month has passed that they would not have had to check anything else? Should I expect them to start requesting more documents etc from us?

wirelessdude01

paul-2008 wrote: »

After a long process with AIB we finally got our approval in principle on the 8th November. We have found a house we wish to buy and have gone sale agreed - 20k under the approved mortgage value. I notified AIB of the property etc and the last message from them was

"I have reviewed this and have progressed your application to the next stage where we will complete a final check to ensure you are ready for Letter of Offer."

Anyone know what this final check is? It has me worried that they will change their mind as it took us about 6 weeks to get approval in principle. I would have assumed that since only about a month has passed that they would not have had to check anything else? Should I expect them to start requesting more documents etc from us?

AIP isn't worth anything at all. They will have to go through the formal process now.

auris00

We have been trying to buy for a while now, but no luck yet. We had to renew our AIP, got it both times underwritten from KBC with no problem. Both have good salaries and we have more than 20% saved with something still being saved every month.
But we would like to go on a trip next year that will probably cost us around 5k euro. We heard banks don't like that, but I’m wondering if its only one of those things that everyone keeps saying? Anyone have an idea if we might have a problem getting the AIP again (or the mortgage if we find a house in the mean time) because of it?
Thanks!

EireinOZ

Hi guys . Does any bank give more than 3.5 times your annual salary?

Paul_Mc1988

EireinOZ wrote: »

Hi guys . Does any bank give more than 3.5 times your annual salary?

Yeah they give exemptions up to 4.5 times. Most people that get them are highish earners I have heard, but there are exceptions to the rule. If you go through the last few pages there was a bit of talk about it. They have a limited amount of these exemptions and the apparently tend to use these at the start of the year.

Paul_Mc1988

auris00 wrote: »

We have been trying to buy for a while now, but no luck yet. We had to renew our AIP, got it both times underwritten from KBC with no problem. Both have good salaries and we have more than 20% saved with something still being saved every month.
But we would like to go on a trip next year that will probably cost us around 5k euro. We heard banks don't like that, but I’m wondering if its only one of those things that everyone keeps saying? Anyone have an idea if we might have a problem getting the AIP again (or the mortgage if we find a house in the mean time) because of it?
Thanks!

We put down 110k on a 440k property so 25% down. Combined income of 117k so 2.9 times our salary. I had a dividend payment of 300 euro from an american stock account and they wouldn't issue full approval until I could get a statement. My advise is if you can simplify the process and have them ask less questions then take that option. Putting of a holiday for a few months wont kill you.

paul-2008

wirelessdude01 wrote: »

AIP isn't worth anything at all. They will have to go through the formal process now.

Loan offer came in this morning - no extra checks needed.

auris00

Paul_Mc1988 wrote: »

We put down 110k on a 440k property so 25% down. Combined income of 117k so 2.9 times our salary. I had a dividend payment of 300 euro from an american stock account and they wouldn't issue full approval until I could get a statement. My advise is if you can simplify the process and have them ask less questions then take that option. Putting of a holiday for a few months wont kill you.

Of course a few months wouldn’t kill us, but we have been actually putting it off for a while now, not wanting to spend on something big before the first AIP, then hoping we would find a house, then the AIP extension. Its just soul crushing, you keep putting your life on hold together with the state of the market and the prices and everything ...

Paul_Mc1988

auris00 wrote: »

Of course a few months wouldn’t kill us, but we have been actually putting it off for a while now, not wanting to spend on something big before the first AIP, then hoping we would find a house, then the AIP extension. Its just soul crushing, you keep putting your life on hold together with the state of the market and the prices and everything ...

I know just how you feel. Have not had a holiday since November last year and wont be going on one until September next year. Was bidding from March till september until we finally won a bidding war. Collect the keys on Wednesday/Thursday this week. It was one of the most stressful things I've ever done. Keep plugging away and you'll get there .

auris00

auris00 wrote: »

Of course a few months wouldn’t kill us, but we have been actually putting it off for a while now, not wanting to spend on something big before the first AIP, then hoping we would find a house, then the AIP extension. Its just soul crushing, you keep putting your life on hold together with the state of the market and the prices and everything ...

Could an argument be made that the bank don't want someone who is scrimping and saving and putting their life on hold to get a mortgage, but more someone who can save the required amount and still has a life. That way if theres a downturn, or interest rates go up or one partner gets sick/loses job, there is still comfortable wiggle room for the (presumably) couple to repay the mortgage.

Padre_Pio

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Could an argument be made that the bank don't want someone who is scrimping and saving and putting their life on hold to get a mortgage, but more someone who can save the required amount and still has a life. That way if theres a downturn, or interest rates go up or one partner gets sick/loses job, there is still comfortable wiggle room for the (presumably) couple to repay the mortgage.

No.

The bank will stress test your mortgage. If you pass that you should be fine.