Will being married help me to get a mortgage?

Applying for a mortgage as a couple could help you to get a mortgage, although it depends on a few factors like your credit histories and income.

However, you don’t actually need to be married for any of this to impact your chances. Some of the big obstacles to getting a mortgage depend on whether your finances are linked instead.

Wedlock itself won’t help

Despite what you may have thought, getting married doesn’t mean your finances are automatically tied together.  

In that sense, just the act of being married doesn’t play any part at all in whether or not you’ll get a mortgage.

If you’ve been sharing your incomes in a joint bank account and paying bills together, whether or not you’ve now tied the knot won’t make a difference in the eyes of a lender.

The thing that will make a difference is if your partner is financially associated to you.

They’ll only be linked to you if you’ve had a joint bank account together or if you’ve taken out joint credit before – like a loan in both of your names.

Being linked means your name appears on their credit history and theirs on yours.

When you apply for a mortgage, the lender will take both of your credit histories into account if you’re financially linked – even if you try to take it out in just one of your names.

So this could either help or hinder your chances of getting a mortgage.

If you’re not sure whether your accounts are linked, you can check ClearScore or Noddle for free to find out. You’ll be able to see anyone you’re linked to under the section titled ‘financial associations’.

How your credit history plays a part

If you’re taking out the mortgage in both of your names, or if your finances are already linked, both of your credit histories will play a part in your application.

So if you both have a good history of managing credit, you shouldn’t have to worry about it holding you back from getting a mortgage.

On the other hand, if just one of you has a poor credit history, it might prevent you both from getting a mortgage. Even if it doesn’t, it may mean you can’t borrow as much as you’d hoped, or that the interest rate is worse than you had hoped for.

But if your partner does have a poor credit history, it might work out better for you to apply in your name only.

This will only work if your finances are not already tied, and it’s important that you think carefully before taking it out in your name alone. You’ll be the sole person responsible for repaying the debt should the worst happen and you separate, so you need to be completely happy with your decision.

The chances are, if you do this, they won’t take your partner’s income into consideration either. This means you might not be able to borrow as much as you’d hoped.

In the end, it really depends on the lender you apply to. For this reason, you might want to speak to a mortgage broker like Ocean, so they can try to find a deal that’s suited to your situation.

Having a larger income

If you both work, the chances are you’ll have a higher income than if you were trying to buy a home on your own.

Having more money coming in means it’s more likely you’ve got room in your budget to make mortgage payments.

When a lender carries out affordability checks, they’ll want to see proof that you can afford to make payments on a mortgage. How much money you’ve got coming in and how much you’re spending will influence their decision, and how much they’ll lend to you.

And of course, having two wages coming in means it might not take as long for you to save up for your deposit – or that you could save up a larger deposit!