Mortgage Application - Probation question

krazyklown

Hi
My wife & i are applying for our first mortgage.
We had a meeting with our bank at the start of this week, which went well and we left with the understanding we needed letters from our employers confirming we have completed our probation period for work.
I changed jobs during the year and have just finished my 6 month probation. My wife had moved from a contract position with the HSE to a full time permanent position in Aug. Unfortunately we didnt realise until we checked her contract that in fact she has a 12 month probation period. I emailed the bank informing them of the situation expecting to be told that they wouldnt proceed until after my wife completed the probation but got a call today saying that they are looking at making an exception for us (we have very good savings record & no loans/overdrafts plus in two very stable jobs).

I am just wondering now is the whole probation requirement for a mortgage now a nonsense? Has anyone else applied and got a mortgage despite still being on probation in their work place?

Many thanks for any replies.
KK

notharrypotter

krazyklown wrote: »

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My wife had moved from a contract position with the HSE to a full time permanent position in Aug. Unfortunately we didnt realise until we checked her contract that in fact she has a 12 month probation period.

To fail to be kept on in the HSE after you have served your probationary period would require a serious breach.

She would be deemed a safe bet.

seamus

Yeah, she'll get the exception because she's working in the public sector. The job is practically bomb-proof - at worst see might she a small drop in pay if things go south, but she'll never be let go.

It's not a deal breaker in general, they just factor it into their risk calculations. If you have a long history of saving, no debt problems, a history of job stability and a well paid job with a reputable company then the probationary period is pretty minor, the odds of you being fired are very narrow.

krazyklown

Cool - thanks for taking the time to reply.

JohnMearsheimer

Interesting responses. I'm in a similar situation myself. I have 30 months collective service in the civil service (10 months of it continuous since February) but I was only made permanent in August. I won't be out of probation until August 2016. My girlfriend wanted to start approaching banks for a mortgage early next year but I thought they wouldn't entertain me until at least next August.

Jen44

my experience in mortgage applications is that they really do look at the whole picture. We recently got a mortgage with exemption to one of the new rules as the bigger picture showed that we would have no problems making the repayments.

DilemmaDan

krazyklown wrote: »

Hi
My wife & i are applying for our first mortgage.
We had a meeting with our bank at the start of this week, which went well and we left with the understanding we needed letters from our employers confirming we have completed our probation period for work.
I changed jobs during the year and have just finished my 6 month probation. My wife had moved from a contract position with the HSE to a full time permanent position in Aug. Unfortunately we didnt realise until we checked her contract that in fact she has a 12 month probation period. I emailed the bank informing them of the situation expecting to be told that they wouldnt proceed until after my wife completed the probation but got a call today saying that they are looking at making an exception for us (we have very good savings record & no loans/overdrafts plus in two very stable jobs).

I am just wondering now is the whole probation requirement for a mortgage now a nonsense? Has anyone else applied and got a mortgage despite still being on probation in their work place?

Many thanks for any replies.
KK

Mind if I ask which bank? We're in a similar situation and had a couple of banks tell us we couldn't draw down till after probation (Public sector too).

Butters1979

It’s not nonsense, been on probation technically makes your job less secure and they will factor that into their decisions. But like all these things with mortgages, banks will look at the individual situation and decide if they think it is an issue or they are comfortable with it. My wife changed jobs right in the middle or our application for a mortgage and one or two people advised us not to say anything to the bank. In the end we decided to let them know as we didn’t want to be dishonest or have problems further down the line. Sure enough the bank had no problem with it and we went ahead.

I think sometimes people feel like they are going cap in hand when looking for a mortgage and banks are looking for any excuse to say no. This is certainly not the case. Banks make a serious amount of money from mortgages so when they see an applicant who they feel is low risk and within safe boundaries they will try to make it work just as much as you.

krazyklown

DilemmaDan wrote: »

Mind if I ask which bank? We're in a similar situation and had a couple of banks tell us we couldn't draw down till after probation (Public sector too).

Ulster Bank - both of us are customers and have always used them for all our banking needs so they have clear vision on our accounts.
Just for clarity, all they have done is indicated that there is a possibility of making an exception on the grounds that my wife was working for over a year and a half on contract in exactly the same role and location.

The real question on my mind is whether we bother approaching other banks which is why I wanted to hear other peoples experiences. We have a follow up meeting next week which is where I assume we will find out whether they are happy to give us approval in principle.
Appreciate all the input & opinions.
kk

Butters1979

We were with BOI and they were ok with my wife changing jobs. I'd suggest there is nothing wrong with at least approaching one other bank, just in case your first bank get difficult it could be good to have another one in your back pocket.