Remortgaging whilst on maternity leave can pose plenty of questions, particularly if you’re not sure how to navigate this period of your life. We’re going to run through why this might affect your application and the approach we recommend you take.
Why does being on maternity leave affect my mortgage?
As a mortgage is directly linked to how much money you earn, your lender has to take maternity leave into consideration when carrying out affordability checks. When you’re on maternity leave, your income is often reduced after a certain period of time, which places you in a different financial position. However, this doesn’t necessarily mean that you won’t be able to remortgage.
It really does depend on the lender as to what evidence you might have to provide, and how this might affect your mortgage application.
For instance, most lenders won’t directly ask if you’re currently on maternity leave, or are going to be soon. However, they are likely to ask questions about your future plans, so you should be upfront and honest with them - especially as they’ll be asking to see payslips, which will indicate that you’re receiving maternity pay from your employer. Being honest with your lender is important, and keeping things from them can be classed as ‘non-disclosure’, which you don’t want to happen.
Once you inform your lender, they may ask to see what your payslips were before you went off on maternity leave. They might also want a letter from your employer with your return date (if you’ve decided this yet), and what your salary will be on your return to work. More often than not, this will be sufficient information for the application to go ahead.
Should I tell the lender if I'm pregnant?
As a general rule of thumb, and going back to what we said about being open and honest with your lender, yes, you should let them know you’re pregnant. However, once again, what they decide to do with this information differs from lender to lender.
Admittedly, having a baby means your finances are inevitably going to change in the future, as you will have a dependent. As the baby won't have yet arrived, some lenders don’t take this into consideration. Nevertheless, it’s still important you tell the lender, as they need to make sure you adhere to their policy.
Other options to consider
If you’re currently on maternity leave and would rather wait until you’re back in employment before you remortgage, that is fine. Just be aware that you’ll drop onto the standard variable rate (SVR), which means you could be paying more than you were previously. You can come off this rate and remortgage once you’re ready - most likely once you’re back at work and have a regular wage coming in.
Use a mortgage broker to remortgage
As we mentioned previously, each lender will have a different approach to maternity leave and mortgage approval. Some may deduct 50% from the amount they can lend you, and some might not change their lending amount at all.
Remortgaging whilst on maternity leave is possible - you just need to find the right lender whose policy you fit.
At Mortgage Advice Bureau, we work with 90+ lenders and have access to more than 12,000 mortgage products, so we’re perfectly placed to help you find the right mortgage for your circumstances. Our fully qualified advisers will listen to your circumstances and can make a recommendation that is specifically right for you.
Feel free to get in touch with us to discuss your mortgage needs, and we can put you in touch with an adviser local to you.
Most lenders will be happy with proof that you'll return to work on a full salary, as well as when that will happen. Some lenders may reject an application from people on maternity leave, which is why speaking to an adviser is important.
Talk to an adviser about mortgages and maternity here: Get in touch.
Some lenders will offer flexibility for those on parental leave. This can include temporarily reducing your mortgage repayments. If you are already in mortgage arrears, you won't qualify for any payment breaks. Speak to your lender to find out more.
You can get a mortgage if you're pregnant and taking maternity leave, you may just have to jump through a few extra hoops. The lender will want to know how your business and income will be affected and if you can continue to make repayments.
Learn more about self employed mortgages here: How to remortgage if you're self-employed
Porting a mortgage applies to the product, not the mortgage itself. This means you'd be moving your fixed-rate deal, for example. You should be able to take the rate with you to your new property, but speak to an adviser for more detail.
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Important information
Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.
There may be a fee for mortgage advice. The actual amount you pay will depend on your circumstances. The fee is up to 1% but a typical fee is 0.3% of the amount borrowed.
You may have to pay an early repayment charge to your existing lender if you remortgage.