Get your house in order before going for a mortgage

POTENTIAL home-buyers tend to focus mainly on the deposit when getting ready to apply for a mortgage. It is very important but it is by no means the only area that the bank will look at when assessing your application, writes Grainne McGuinness.

Having a good income is also no guarantee of success, as lenders are interested in seeing the amount of disposable income you have left at the end of the month instead of just looking at what’s coming in. If 2017 is the year you are hoping to get on the property market, it is well worth spending the next few months getting your finances ready. Every step you take in the right direction will make it easier for your lender to say yes.

The first thing to do is to make your finances as clear and easy to read as possible. You want your bank to be able to see at a glance that you can easily manage the mortgage repayments. To do this they need to see clear evidence of both whatever rent you are paying plus additional savings. If you pay your landlord in cash or are giving money at home, change this so the payment is clearly visible on your bank account for at least six months.