Question: My wife and I are planning to apply for a mortgage on a house in about three months’ time, but for various reasons we are likely to have completed on our existing property by the time we apply and will be living for a few weeks at a friend’s address.
We are unlikely to be there long enough or formally enough to receive bills or change details on driving licences etc.
We cannot apply for the new mortgage until various works have been done on the house we are buying to render it suitable for residential lending, hence the time gap.
I know lenders ask for recent proof of address as part of the application process. Will this temporary arrangement affect our ability to borrow?
Answer: It’s not unusual to receive mortgage applications from customers who have been living in temporary accommodation or are moving from a short-term rental to their new home.
The mortgage application process includes questions about the current and previous residential addresses of applicants and so, the fact that a customer has been in their existing property for a relatively short time, should not be problem.
However, this will depend on the length of time spent at the interim address and the nature of that residence.
Of course, there are many factors which determine whether a mortgage application will be successful and guiding a borrower through this process is where intermediaries can add real value to their clients.
