TrickyTrev

Help required fellow expats to calm the missus down!!! We have just been on a real estate site and thought we would 'play' on a mortgage calculator link to see how much our repayments would be on a possible mortgage. The quote details asked for the number of dependents as well as net income and monthly outgoings. Thing is.... we have four kids so quote said we cannot have a mortgage!!! 1 kid fine!!!!!! Surely this cannot be right. The amount you can borrow is determined by income and not the number of kids you have right??????

All those that have arranged a mortgage in Australia (Queensland) PLEASE confirm that no one asked you how many kids you have (other than in general conversation of course!!). Otherwise we will seriously have to consider selling one or more of them!!! LOL. Here in the UK 3.5 times income is the norm - is that any different over there??

Thanks fellow BE members.

Tricky Trev and Highly Stressed Wife!!!

thebears

The number of kids shows an indication of your monthly spend. They have a predetermined amount for this. The calculator looks like it is determining your monthly costs will not allow for any mortgage repayments.

However my advise would be to seek a mortgage broker to review your case on its individual merits ie your costs may be lower than what the calculator uses.

I would suggest you draw up your own budget and use an interest rate of 7.5% with a repayment over 25 years - if this can fit in the budget with a reasonable margin then you should be fine.

PM me if you need further help - but I may be offline for next 2 weeks.

Kiwi



Tricky Trev and Highly Stressed Wife!!![/QUOTE]

Sue from Manchester

I did that on line one on realestate.com.au as well and it said I couldn't have a mortgage. Got in touch with my bank (Members Equity), told them my details and they said right there and then that I could have $143k. A man from the bank came to the house one evening and filled in all the forms for us and yes, he did ask about dependents. They also ask about your credit limit on credit cards and assets you might have like insurance and endowment policies that will pay out. He also took into account house contents and car as assets. If you go on www.membersequitybank.com.au and follow the links through home loan, standard home loan and calculators it does a brilliantly easy calculation for you. I can really recommend them as a bank but unfortunately you have to be in a superannuation fund to join, its a bit like a credit union. Watch out with mortgage fees as well as some charge set up fees, even monthly account fees!!! Unfortunately you cant get out of mortgage stamp duty. Good luck.

kimi

Hi

Yes the bank will take into account any dependants, someone who is earning say $50k without children will have more disposable income than those with.

HTH

Kim

Pollyana

It did come up onhere ages ago - someone - I think it might have been Boomie - who had a large family, had a lot of problems getting a decent mortgage just for that reason; they DO take the number of kids into account as they reckon it makes you worse off.

phoenixinoz

This is not aimed at you Polly as you are just clarifying things.

I understand to some degree why they do this [the lenders] as it is perhaps seen as responsible lending. However, unless I am mistaen, the logic IMHO is flawed.

Hypothetically speaking, what if a couple were assessed as OK for a mortgage due to not having dependants, they then get a mortgage, and then have kids

Or another scenario

A chap gets a mortgage [he's a high income earner] then he meets a divorcee with two kids and hey presto, his proposed salary Vs outgoings is distorted


These are just two examples off the top of my head that don't make sense as to why having kids is considered The logic *seems* sound but it is distorted and *nannying* mortgage applications in this way is fruitless.

Perhaps lenders should let the person who's lending take the responsibility

There will always be a minority of people who get up to their necks in debt. The majority know their limitations and understand their responsibilities.

Pehaps I don't understand the way it works

Vash the Stampede

That's true, but it's not the same as "Number of kids determine how much you can borrow on a mortgage." If that was the case, they wouldn't bother to ask for your income; they'd simply ask how many kids you had.

The situation is more correctly described as "Incomings versus outgoings determines how much you can borrow on a mortgage."

The number of kids you have will obviously affect your outgoings, which is why they factor it in. I am sure they do the same in the UK.

In any case, it's all academic anyway, since they still sit you down and run through your monthly expenditure. If the figures don't look good enough, you won't get the mortgage you're after - regardless of how many kids you have.

Vash the Stampede

They are lending you money on the basis of your current financial situation, not the financial situation you may or may not be in five years down the track (which they cannot predict, and over which they have no control.)

The best they can do is what they usually do - they offer some form of mortgage insurance to cover you (but more specifically, themselves!) if at some stage you find yourself unable to meet your repayments.

It's the same wherever you go, for any form of lending - be it a mortgage, a personal loan or a credit card.

phoenixinoz

You have missed the point Vash. If you re-read my post I implied that people who have children are therefore disadvantaged, whereas people without are not disadvantaged and yet their circumstances may change. This is conversley discriminatory.

Agreed. Insurance is offered both here and UK to cover mortgage repayments if for whatever reason mortgage repayments cannot be met.

Is it? So you reckon children are automatically calculated as part of your lending power when applying for a mortgage in the UK? And the same for UK credit cards? Really? I don't remember being asked how many children I had in UK when applying for a mortgage and credit card. Perhaps things have changed

There have been three major differences here that I've noticed.
1. Credit card limits are offset against your mortgage application.
2. Children are taken into account when applying for a mortgage.
3. Your mortgage is not automatically covered in the event of you or your partner dying during the life of the mortgage.

These things were distinctly different than in UK.

This is not a UK Vs Aus thing...as obviously different country different ways. No big deal. Really can't be arsed getting into protracted debate....especially as this is the way things are, after all. Aus is not UK ....and anyways, it doesn't affect me

Vash the Stampede

Oh, I see.

I wouldn't call it discriminatory, though.

No, when said "it's the same wherever you go", I was referring specifically to this:

Yes, they are. I had to pay off a credit card before I could get my first mortgage - mainly because I owed too much on it!

No worries mate.

phoenixinoz

[QUOTE=Vash the Stampede]Oh, I see. I wouldn't call it discriminatory, though.

Children, credit limits, mortgages yada, yada.....who cares?

Even the price of banana's wouldn't get me to move back


[you can keep your new passport ]

Vash the Stampede

Blasphemy! Don't let arkon, jad n rich or the rest of the usual suspects catch you saying that!

Thanks. I was going to chuck it out today, but you've just talked me into keeping it.

phoenixinoz

LOL

Siren & Brian

This is what Low document and NO document loans are for. You will need a reasonably deposit though.

TrickyTrev

Thanks guys and girls for all your replies. We will stop worrying I think and keep the kids locked in the suitcases!!!!