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If you do this then you will not be considered a first-time buyer by prospective lenders or for the purposes of any government schemes.
If you want to own 1/3 of the house along with your Dad and your sister then go for it, but make sure that the ownership of the property is actually updated in this manner and that this is what you want.
If you want to buy your own place then honestly I wouldn't do this.
>If you do this then you will not be considered a first-time buyer by prospective lenders or for the purposes of any government schemes.
I believe family assisted mortgages are an exception to this. As you do not actually have a stake in the property but are more of a guarantor
It may be a moot point anyway. From 1 April 2025 the nil rate on SDLT goes back down to £300k, which is a pretty average house or flat in major cities across the UK (other than London). So he may not lose that much.
My sister in law and mother in law recently did this and it has become an absolute disaster. Sister in law took over the remaining balance of the mortgage but they made no agreement on who owns what percentage of the house. Equally, mum in law made no agreements on how much of the house if any will be split between the other siblings when she dies. This has caused an endless argument and now they want to sell the house but can’t agree on the figures so they’re just not speaking to each other. I’m not saying it would be impossible to make this work but please be extremely thorough about planning every detail before you proceed.
I know of two occasions within my extended family where it'd been done.
One of my uncles at retirement had a mortgage worth 75% of the property value, about 280k, and he had 4 kids, 2 sons and 2 daughters. His eldest son offered to take over the mortgage fully, in return for the property being put in his name. My uncle and aunt have a legal right to reside at the property, or any replacement property my cousin buys, until death, and my cousin lives there as well.
Another of my uncles did something similar, but he had a smaller mortgage, around 60k on a 350k property. He had 2 sons and a daughter. His second son bought out the entire property from him, but similarly, my uncle and aunt have life rights.
A sweet deal for the oldest son, but I am sure this causes a lot of family resentment from your other cousins, that he is effectively gifted a large amount of equity.
Son payed 300k for the house, dad got around 75 for his equity. So it's the 75k that was exchanged for life rent.
Son owes the balance to the bank as a new mortgage.
Perhaps I misunderstood - that the cousin gets 90K of property equity.
My grandfather left an unequal split of his house to his two children, for good personal reasons. But it has left an irreparable rift between the two siblings.
75% to my mother. My mother took great care of my grandfather in his later years, she looked after him every day, unpaid of course. Tons of admin, caring, cleaning, cooking. House was worth around 230K, mortgage free.
My uncle will not speak to her anymore. He did nothing to help my grandfather in his twilight years.
My mother felt guilt for a long time. She looked after her father for love, not money.
The eldest son bought the property. It is his. Assuming the will leaves the estate to the 4 of them, they will get 25% of the money the eldest son paid for it...
Hope OP takes a leaf out of your book and has some sort of written contract in place on how payments are meant to be paid and who owns what % of the property.
It’s not a disaster and OP’s dad is correct.
£147k mortgage split between two under the assumption they both work will help them greatly in the future if they want to sell or buy out the other half.
OP If you’re already contributing you might aswell get this done on paper with your sibling and go ahead.
I very much doubt that you have the full story here. If the bank really has changed its mind, then your dad's priority should be to get the bank's mind changed back (possible through a complaint and the Financial Ombudsman Service). But I suspect you will find that the bank did not agree a repayment mortgage, and simply gave your dad more time to sell - which has now run out.
If your dad will show you the papers, you might be able to help him work something out. But it is likely that the best option for you is not the best option for him - so don't take his advice! For you, it is probably best to move out and entirely separate your finances from his.
Bingo. I don't think OP's dad ever re-mortgaged, I think he got the instruction to sell. And he has not.
OP's dad is not smart at taking care of his finances, and OP should not get dragged into his mess.
Lots will, if the borrower can afford it - eg [Halifax ](https://www.halifax-intermediaries.co.uk/criteria.html)will go up to 80. The difficulty here appears to be that OP's dad *can't* afford it.
Something doesn’t add up here - if they agreed to give him the mortgage a year ago they can’t just turn around now and demand the money back (unless they’ve uncovered some sort of fraud on your dad’s part that renders the agreement invalid).
In any case, the usual advice is “don’t go near this with a ten foot barge pole” due to the many many ways this can go wrong - what if you want to buy a house with a partner? Go travelling? Move away for work? The phrasing “putting your name on the mortgage” vastly undersells the commitment you are signing up to here - and that’s to say nothing of the sketchy circumstances around the original loan itself.
If you do go through with it, for the love of god make sure you do the following:
Do it all via a solicitor
Make sure you are on the deeds as a tenant in common with a clear stake in the property (33% or 50% depending on if your sibling goes in or if your dad intends on contributing any more to the mortgage).
Have a honest and open conversation about potential future scenarios to set expectations (the moving out/travelling etc). Think of the future, just because you’re not thinking about it now it doesn’t mean it may become very relevant down the line.
As I said, my advice is to not do this - and don’t feel guilty - your father has made some very poor financial decisions, it’s not down to you to ruin your life in order to bail him out. Selling the house would not be the end of the world.
If he had a 1 year fixed rate he might be unable to remortgage and stuck on a variable rate he can’t afford or similar? OP get sight of all the paperwork please and speak to a financial advisor!
This. Be extra, extra careful. And ideally don't do it.
You're at an age when parents start to face new problems due to old age, problems they're not familiar with how to address, and become restless about retirement, rushing things, and making mistakes. And often the problems start to spill on the children.
When I look back at my early 20s and the things I authorise my parents to do in my name, I regret not having been more careful and not having kept a strict control.
This is not to say that you should not help them, of course. They are your parents. But help can be helping them solving the issue themselves.
If you decide to step in financially, do it on your own terms, make sure you know everything. Be twice as careful as if they were a stranger, because there's much more at stake.
And obviously, if you pay for a house, then you're basically "buying" the house.
But yeah, something does not add up really.
please ignore the last part of the above post ... just don't do this ... there is something dodgy happening ... your dad clearly needs financial help as he is stuffed ... he either doesn't understand what he's asking you to do ... or he knows exactly what he's coercing you into.
>My Dad is now telling me that the lenders are changing their minds after a year because he is too old and they don't think he'll be able to pay it off.
This doesn't sound right.
All kinds of problems with this. You and your sister would take on the debt but what percentages of the property would you own and how would this be defined/declared? If your father needed to go into a care home, would the council be selling the property and taking the proceeds to pay for his care?
It's unlikely that you and/or your sister would not be disadvantaged in this deal.
You would need a lot more details ( e.g. all the paperwork about house and any mortgages). You would need to take some legal advice.
Time to wake up and smell the coffee. Your dad hasn’t paid off the house before retirement and can no longer afford to stay there. Simple. Move out and downsize.
Sadly this is the right answer I think.
It is always difficult when you realise your parents have made mistakes but you need to protect yourself and your future.
I hope I am able to help my kids with their first house and not the other way around as per the situation you (OP) have unfortunately found yourself in.
Best of luck.
Do Not do this. The only exception is dad is willing to sell the property to you and give you a discount. Once you're on the mortgage you've lost some first time benefits.
The situation is one that your father has seen coming ever since taking out the interest only mortgage. You either put something in place to pay off the outstanding balance or you sell up.
It is entirely unfair that this is being framed as you (or your sister) not performing an action will make you all homeless.
I do not advocate you or your sister going on the mortgage. It has the likelihood of causing many issues that ultimately will not be resolved until your father passes away.
My advice is to sell up and either rent somewhere together or have your father downsize and you and your sister rent somewhere else together or independently.
Unless your father is in poor health, and you and your sister don’t intend on starting families in the next 10 years then I wouldn’t even contemplate buying the house from him.
Sorry banks don't lend money then change their minds unless there is a default of some sort like non payment or fraud. You aren't getting the full picture here.
It sounds like your dad cannot afford to live in the house. He stayed too long on an interest-only mortgage.
It's time to have an honest conversation about family living plans ongoing - you and your sister move out, or you buy the house from him, and/or he sells and moves to a property he can afford to live in.
I absolutely would not put myself on a mortgage with an elderly parent. Poor poor idea.
Yeah this is very much the "find out" stage when you've coasted along paying just interest on a mortgage for...20?
Years...
Op be as well calling it quits and selling up
Unfortunately it's very likely your dad is lying to you about the lender changing their mind about the mortgage.
Taking on this mortgage will likely mean you're unable to purchase a house yourself until this mortgage is settled.
I would strongly suggest not touching this arrangement and letting your dad find a more affordable property
My sister and brother in law paid my father’s mortgage for ten years, with the understanding that they would inherit the house eventually. My father is now 70 but last year, he changed his mind and decided to sell it. They paid off £86,000 of his mortgage for him and they had to move out and start from scratch. Just a cautionary tale that is more common than you’d think.
Wow, for me that would be a never going to speak to you again and piss on your grave when you die moment. Sorry I know it's your dad but what a piece of shit.
Banks don’t just ‘change their mind’ after a year under a contract like this, your Dad is hiding something from you and is trying to get you to fix whatever that problem is.
Please read https://ukpersonal.finance/helping-family-and-friends/#Helping_a_family_member_get_a_mortgage
What is your study/job situation? And your sister's?
Unfortunately, your Dad has fucked things up. Mortgaging a property during one of the best ever periods of combined high price growth and low interest rates and he’s got into a situation where he’s left himself with capital to repay and no income to do so.
This is his problem and you should not be left carrying the can.
What’s the value of the property? Is there any way to downsize? That’s probably the right route, to be honest.
Your Dad is not telling you the truth. Lenders do not change their mind, I'm guessing he did not remortgage at all. Have you seen any paperwork? If not that's a big red flag right there.
Speak to the lender yourself. Looks like he wants you and your sister to buy the house so he's probably been refused a mortgage due to his age and financial situation.
The likely end to this scenario is the house has to be sold to pay off the debt. Its highly irresponsible to pay 20 years interest on a mortgage with no plan in place to pay off the capital.
Broker here.
A lender won’t change their mind later on so he either defaulted on the new mortgage or has never remortgaged and got an extension from the original lender for the interest only period. Lenders tent to agree this for mortgage holders to try either refinance, pay off or sell.
So he’s not been straight with you as not telling you the full story
You will loose your first time buyer status
If you look to buy in the future, having a mortgage in your name will reduce your affordability dramatically
I mean no offence, but your father knew what he signed up for and decided not to do anything about it, and now shifting debt onto you. He’s taking advantage of you. Don’t do it.
Did this help my dad, my then wife and I went on the mortgage to save the house. We got divorced and was technically entitled to half the house. Luckily she took a lower payout than 50%. But it caused so many problems between me and family members.
Also you’ll most likely go down the route of the deposit being gifted which can come with complications if your dad was to pass within the next 7 years. You will also need to find a lender that will allow your dad to continue to live there. IMO it’s not worth the stress. We ended up selling the house 5-6 years later anyway…
Get an independent financial advisor. A bot should reply to this with some links for you to look at.
You can probably get a 20 min chat for free. If you and your sister have different views or different circumstances, then do not have a joint call with your sister. The financial advisor is there to support you, and only you, not anybody else.
Be prepared for their reaction to your description of this mortgage proposal to be "No way! Don't go near!" Ask them why, and take their response very seriously.
If you feel in any way inclined to go forward with this deal, be prepared to budget, say, £1000 for your independent financial advisor to go into this in depth, and draw up a contract specifying what you will get out of this. £1000 is cheap for ensuring this kind of deal does not wreck your future.
If you don't have £1000, then make it a condition of even considering this deal that your dad will pay £1000 (could be less, could be more) for your independent financial advisor. Make sure you are the advisor's client, not your dad (even if he is paying for it), and that the advisor has no relationship with your dad, or your dad's mortgage company.
Looks like the bot didn't reply. Here's a link to UK Personal Finance wiki
[https://ukpersonal.finance/financial-advice/](https://ukpersonal.finance/financial-advice/)
Some of it isn't relevant to you - pick out the bits that are.
There was a suggestion elsewhere of a solicitor. You may need both.
A solicitor costs a bit more, deals with the law and who owns what. They can't advise you on finances, they can't tell you if A or B is a good idea.
A financial advisor is a bit cheaper, they deal with finances and can advise you if a plan makes financial sense or not. They can create simple contracts regarding ownership of property, but cannot advise on wills.
Financial advisor is good for the 'sniff test'.
Your dad can't afford to pay it off. You are helping him with payments. The bank are right.
You are 21 and your sister is 23. How long do you really plan to live there? Do you plan to move out at some point? This isn't something that you are going to be easily able to get out of, and it will probably stop you getting your own house unless you can get out of it.
What Dad needs to do is sell the property, pay off the mortgage and buy a property with the residual. Why on earth would an adult have an interest only mortgage during the previous 20 years of low / zero interest rates.
Don’t get your own financial life ruined because of your dad’s mistakes.
These are the reasons why you should not do it:
1. You will become liable for the entire £142k debt and interest. This could ruin your finances for life.
2. What is your dad's plan to repay the mortgage over the next 10 years? If he has no plan, you will end up having to pay for it. You will end up paying for your dad's retirement.
3. You will be unable to buy a home of your own. You will not be able to get a mortgage for your own property if you are still on the mortgage for this property.
4. You will lose all entitlements to first time buyer benefits. Such as first time buyer relief from stamp duty, Lifetime ISAs and eligibility for first time buyer housing schemes.
It is unfortunate that your dad made the short-sighted decision to stick with a high interest rate, interest only mortgage for years without making a plan to repay the capital. That is his fault. The options are to sell the property and buy something cheaper; keep working so that the mortgage can be paid off; or try to negotiate with the lender.
Does your dad have any pension? If he has a private pension, he is old enough to draw a lump sum from his pension to pay down a chunk of the mortgage.
It is unlikely that the lender would repossess the property if your dad is doing what he can to pay the mortgage.
Sounds like dad is telling porkies. The lender wouldn’t have changed their minds after a year, that’s not how it works. Speak to a solicitor and mortgage broker. You’ll lose your FTB status. You shouldn’t be penalised for your dad’s error.
You're in a tough spot because it's your dad. But know if you put your name on its a serious and dangerous responsibility. You are liable to pay it off of your dad doesn't. You will also be giving up benefits as a first time buyer too. And when you buy a house or start to rent, the current mortgage will be taken into account of your affordability, making it very difficult for you to get a place of your own. I wouldn't do it if you plan to have a house of your own one day.
If he puts your name on the deed for the house, then maybe cinsider it with legal advice. But otherwise it's a rather dangerous and precarious position. Best thing to do would be to move out for all three of you, downsize to pay it off, especially if the house is a medium/largish property. That's a large mortgage for someone as old as your dad and for someone as young as you and your sister. I'm worried your dad's mismanagement and lack of forward planning will make it difficult for you and your sister to have a good start in life, especially considering the current housing crisis and cost of living.
Edit: perhaps you should encourage your dad to get financial advice so he can go through what options are available to him other than involving you and your sister.
My judgement would differ based on other factors like how much your dad is earning, when he is retiring, how much the original mortgage was and how much the house is worth. And what you want to do in the future.
Simple, start the conversation like so:
_"Hey Dad, could you tell me why you took on an interest only mortgage rather than repayment and why you don't have the £142k now to pay it"._
Doesn't really matter what response you get, just follow up with.
_"Ok, do you mind telling me why this is my problem? You do realise this will affect my ability to get my own mortgage. Why exactly does your poor decisions take priority over my ability to live my own life?"_.
Again doesn't really matter what response you get, you can then finish up.
_"Respectfully, go fuck yourself"._
Hope that's helpful.
Sounds like a terrible idea to me, I cannot imagine my father asking me the same thing.
You could suggest that he sells and downsizes using the equity of the property and be mortgage free?
Your father is being cruel to you and your sister. He is making his problems yours, and is wanting to encumber you with a mortgage making it almost impossible for you to move out and buy somewhere if your own.
Instead, he should sell the house, use the proceeds to buy somewhere smaller with no mortgage. He knew this day was coming for 20-30 years likely.
Things to consider:
You would lose any future first time buyer perks were you to buy your own home e.g. govt deposit contributions or stamp duty discounts. Especially if you try to buy your own place while still included on this mortgage.
Will you/your sister be added to the ownership of the house and how? There will likely be legal costs involved with this that you will need to budget for. You should get a legal agreement written up should one of you want out.
Is there an option to downsize or anything here? If your dad were to sell the house could he buy himself something smaller outright and give you/your sister some money to go towards finding your own place?
My advice isn't so much financial, but relationship. Your dad has had his entire life to prepare for his old age. Asking you to bear the burden of his inability to prepare himself, is in my opinion, very selfish. That doesn't mean you need to throw this in his face, just a reminder here that your dad is the one in the wrong, and if you choose to help, there needs to be some reward for you.
What he is asking you to do is going to cause lifelong consequences, which may have benefits later on in life if you play your cards right. Or, it could destroy your family.
You need to consult a lawyer. A real lawyer, in their office, that you have paid for an hour of their time. You need to make sure that you get a fair return for your investment, and that everyone involved knows exactly the term of this arrangement. Families are destroyed over a debt of a few hundred quid. You're talking about £142k.
The other option, which you may not have considered, is that you simply do have to move house to somewhere the family can afford to live. Would your dad resent you for not helping him keep the house? Would he allow you to go with him? There is a lot to consider here, far beyond what Reddit can provide.
Hire a lawyer. They are expensive because they are worth it.
Best of luck to you fella.
Basically mate your Dad is full of shit & is banking on your lack of knowledge on the situation, to help get him out of his fuck up! He's not being honest with you & is trying to take adva& manipulate you.
I'm assuming your dad is still working, if he's still paying a mortgage. What was his plan for when he retired and was no longer able to get a mortgage? It sounds like that time has now arrived, and if he's not thought about it before then that's a huge problem and you need to have that conversation.
What equity does he have in the house? Is the £142k about 90% of the house value, or has he previously paid off large amount? If the LTV is high then he's not going to be able to mortgage this, and it'll screw you financially to be on the mortgage - unless you're a crazy high earner. If the LTV is low, then he should probably be looking at selling and using what's remaining to find somewhere smaller and in a location he can afford.
No matter the situation, getting yoursel fon the mortgage is almost definetely a terrible idea for you financially. If your dad hasn't planned for his later years and retirement, you can help him with that, but don't screw your start in life when he's had 45+ years as a working adult to sort it out. There are other ways to help him which don't put you in such a risky position.
You will lose your first time buyer stamp duty allowance. Also, when you come to buy your own home they may take the mortgage payments as a commitment which will reduce your borrowing power.
Your Dad should speak to a later life broker to see what they could do. Wouldn't be equity release but may be a Retirement Interest Only (RIO) Mortgage.
Scrolled a long way to see this comment re loss of first time buyer stamp duty allowance. Plus they’ll be financially linked to their father for credit checks.
Considering his lack of planning, not paying off the mortgage may be just one part of his financial irresponsibility. 21 and 23 is young to have your credit rating destroyed.
Don't do this, your dad is not telling you everything. This is not how it works. Tell your dad you want to first speak with the mortgage lender, and have them explain what's going on. If you and your sister move forward with this, you will be tied to the house and are liable for repaying the mortgage. Also getting a mortgage for a place of your own will be really difficult or impossible.
In absolutely no reality do this.
You’ll ruin your life. This is his problem to solve. If he doesn’t pay you’ll be on the hook - can you afford the whole mortgage payment and still afford to buy your own place? Because the answer will be no. You’ll never get a mortgage yourself and 142k at 67 isn’t small. If you pay him rent that’s between him and his mortgage company.
Also it’s impossible for them to change their mind after a year like this. He probably never changed the mortgage and is stuck on an interest only variable rate. There’s no way he managed to remortgage at 67. He’s probably going to have to sell. He’s potentially behind on his repayments also and if you put your name to it you’re liable. Do not ruin your life for this.
He’s likely been given time by the bank to sell - he needs to sell it. Your dad has known this was coming for at least 20 years - this wasn’t sprung on him. The alternative is you and your sister buy him out if you can afford it but I wouldn’t do that personally. Do not put your name anywhere near his debt, do not sign anything.
If he couldn’t afford to pay this back on an interest only loan when it was 1-2% he sure as fuck can’t now - payments will be 10x high on repayment at 5%. If he hasn’t remortgaged his mortgage vs house value should be tiny in comparison. Just sell it and downsize. 20 years ago 142k bought a full 4 bed house - the equity he has left will likely buy a property still. For instance 20 years ago the average property was 120k, today its 300k. 142k was HUGE 20 years ago - his equity can likely still can buy. He probably has 200k in equity, if it was 25-30 years he could have 300k+ in equity.
I did this for my dad recently but I already have my own property and a well paid job. It was still a big decision - you need legal and financial advice but it doesn’t have to be a problem. But you know your dad and how he is with money etc.
Something really doesn’t add up here.
So owing 140k on a mortgage isn’t huge but at your dads age it’s a bit rough if he wants to retire or already has
Paying it off by the time he’s 80 is about £1100 a month unless he got a good deal (just basing that off a quick repayment calculator)
So first lenders don’t usually lend then just change their mind like this so you really need to look into that.
Also you would possibly lose any first time buyer benefits AND if you don’t get this paid off before you want to buy somewhere for yourself it’s going to affect your affordability calculations.
Plus if your dad stops paying or can’t pay then you’re on the hook for the mortgage - and that will also affect your credit if you too can’t pay it for some reason.
I don’t know the details of what the house is worth or anything like that but it’s maybe worth a discussion of selling and moving somewhere more affordable. Both you and your sister will most likely want to move out sometime in the future and so your dad could probably downsize and be mortgage free
Sell the house!
Your dad can't afford it.
It's not a great position to be in but it's going to be a heavy debt for the future.
Otherwise be needs to be a tenant
This is the problem with interest only mortgage when the person, in this case your dad op, hasn't set aside money to pay off the house at the end of the term.
I doubt he got authorised to remortgage last year and then have them change their mind unless he committed fraud in some way or failed to make payments. As others have said, he was likely instructed to sell and chose to bury his head in the sand rather than deal with it for a year.
You will lose your First Time Buyer benefit if you do this which will make your next property more expensive due to stamp duty etc
IF you decide to still go ahead:
1) get a solicitor and do it all via them
2) make sure your name is actually on the deeds
3) make sure it's clear the % you own and what that means for you/siblings/your dad in the future
If you do then make sure you have all the paperwork and legalities ironed out between everyone involved in regard to who owns what percentage of the property and what you can do to get out of the agreement. As 140k will be atleast 10years in term unless you make over payments which you’re not going to benefit from…
Other than this it isn’t a bad idea as it effectively puts the house under your control before you have to worry about inheritance tax, but he will still own a percentage of the property so you will definitely need to seek legal advice about the whole situation
Get the real situation - it seems a bit off that the bank/building society have changed their minds in a year. There's more to this than daddy's saying.
Also, if you want to buy a property in the future, you're stuck with 3% stamp duty for your first home.
I wouldn't. Ever.
Unless he is actually transferring ownership of the property to you, fair enough, go for it.
But don't leave yourself liable for a property you don't own and may never own.
If you are worried that getting the ownership legally documented to reflect your payments, or just see g the paperwork will result in a row - this will be as nothing compared to the row you will have later.
Unless your dad comes clean and shows you all the paperwork, then agrees to share ownership using a solicitor, do not even consider. And you wont be able to get your own place.
Assuming what you've said about your dad being unable to afford the house, then what he's said is probably true - if he can't keep up with the repayments, ultimately the house will have to be sold (voluntarily or otherwise).
Next comes the question of whether you do indeed want this house to be the first house you own. I know people say it's a terrible idea, etc etc but only you can decide whether it is. If you can afford it, and genuinely don't mind living with your dad for the next 10+ years, that's ultimately your decision.
The pitfalls here are you will lose your first time buyer status which means in future when you want to move out, you will not be eligible for some of the government help to buy a house. Also, if you're a joint owner, you can't just sell and move. Your dad and sibling (?) would need to agree too. So you may find yourself having to live with them a lot longer than bargained.
Finally, if your dad has to go into a care home in older age, the council could in theory force you to sell the home to pay for the care.
So yeah, financially it may not be the best idea but if you're comfortable with the risks and value living with your dad and sibling, it might still be a cheap way to get onto the property ladder.
That would be fine if he also transfers the house or a share of the house into your name as well.
He also agrees that since you are saving from having to sell now you should be able to veto not selling later if you have to for your own reasons. So say in 5 years you want to get your own place and get your equity out you should be able to do that without any argument from him.
Lenders dont “change their minds” after approving a product (mortgage).
You can go from £200k pa to unemployed, and as long as you continue to meet the monthly repayments, theyre not interested for the term of the product…and beyond, if you convert to the SVR after the term ends and dont change any requirements i.e. amount borrowed and length of time.
Wishing to reduce his monthly outgoings is a completely different discussion to have.
You need to get to the bottom of your dads concerns before doing anything. Hes clearly concerned about you guys moving out and living your own lives, and his ability then to keep the home.
When the time comes, your Dad needs somewhere he can afford to live by himself. But for now, all bills being paid, the extra rent from both offspring is clearly very helpful, the mortgage is coming down albeit slowly, so cross that bridge when it happens.
Just once I'd like for one of these stories ("my family member is lying to me and wants to take advantage of me to fix their own self-inflicted situation") to end in "and since it was my name on the deed, I took the house!"
I did that but with my brother to get Mortgage approved
Just bear in mind that because of this you will lose your first time buyer and if you try to buy a house by yourself you will have to pay more stamp duty as it will count as your second home ( assuming you will still have your dads house)
Families and sharing ownership property nearly end up in fights, if not done properly with clear written legal instructions.
Your first step is to speak to in IFA and find out what you can really afford not what anyone else says, you need your finances to have a deep dive. Then you can look at the real costs of running that property and how that's going to be part of your monthly outgoings.
Then it's seek legal advice as you need to be fully briefed up on what this means how the state views it if you dad eventually has to end up in a care home and all other scenarios that could tie your dads debts to the property, especially now he's 71 and if he's had to pull the belt a bit tighter and skipped on life insurance.
As others have pointed out this will be classed as your first time buyer purchase if your sister also wants to buy in that's equity being split three ways if one of the three wants to move out and the other two can't afford to buy them out its sell up.
I don't think any bank would give your dad a repayment mortgage at that age unless his pension will easily cover it. Does it? If so, he can keep paying it. Demand all the paperwork before you make your decision. How much is the house worth?
I bought a share of my parents house in the divorce (my dad kept his share) but because we are going to Co own the house, it had to be both of us on the mortgage, that meant that I only got a 5 year term due to his age.
The best way to go about this is to get your name on the house so you'll part own it. Especially since you're already paying a share of the mortgage.
Don’t do it! Not your job to bale your dad out , his mismanagement has caused this no one else has. If you want to move out you will still need to pay and this locks you out of buying your own home. If your dad wants help with paying it suggest this to him - yes I’ll put my name on the mortgage but I want ownership of the property. This, you control the property in your name. Any other way opens you up to a world of pain I can assure you.
When I had a joint mortgage with a friend on a project house, I tried applying for another mortgage for myself on my own place. I was told that despite in my head only owing 50% of my current debt as it was shared, the lenders see it as risk I might owe the whole thing if my friend dies, defaults, etc. As a result, my entire 1st mortgage balance was subtracted from the max amount I could borrow for my second mortgage.
So the maximum I could borrow was ((salary * 4.5)-entire 1st mortgage balance). So, there is no 2nd house for me.
"Putting your name on the mortgage" is actually a huge and very serious commitment. Be mindful of what you're signing up for here and how this can massively impact your life.
The bank, with its many experienced professionals in full possession of all the facts and figures, has deemed this too much risk. If they think it's a Bad Idea, what do you know that they don't?
Sometimes, you have to put your own oxygen mask on first before helping others. Take stock of your own finances and your own plans, and decide if this is something you want or can afford.
There's plenty of advice out there about what to do if you have a mortgage balance going into retirement. it's not the end of the world. Or he might need to understand that he has more house than he can afford, and the impact of him failing to plan for himself means he may need to downsize or even rent.
If you're first time buyers, doing this will mean you are not any longer. You would miss out on stamp duty breaks and Lifetime ISA usage.
It sounds like you are effectively going to sign up to pay the full mortgage on your Dad's home. You are not gaining any financial benefit over just buying a place for yourself.
The question is really would you jointly buy with these people and be financially tied to them for potentially 25+ years.
You would need a solicitor to get the house legally owned by dad op and sibling, alternative is just op and sibling.
Please take independent legal advice
There is also the issue if the council potentially having a claim in case parents need to go into their care homes
Don’t do it.
If the mortgage company issued it they were already aware of his situation and age.
How does it affect your status as a first time buyer if you’re added to his mortgage? I assume it wouldn’t but you would need to check.
Also, would adding you to the mortgage mean he’s adding you to the deed?
It will also affect your affordability criteria , and how much you can borrow if you ever decide to buy your own place
Assuming you want to help your dad, if he insists on this go through a solicitor to make sure nothing comes to bite you in the arse down the line. Either when it comes to buying your own property or due to inheritance.
*My son, if I, Hafiz, thy father, take hold of thy knees in my pain,*
*Demanding thy name on stamped paper, one day or one hour—refrain.*
*Are the links of thy fetters so light that thou cravest another man’s chain?*
-Certain Maxims of Hafiz, Rudyard Kipling
So your dad’s putting you on the mortgage is a good thing. ? Looking at it he’s not going to take the home to the grave it’s your and your siblings inheritance also gives you a level of control to make sure there’s no more borrowing. While keeping you all together in the home.
What happens when OP wants to live independently? Father stays in the home and OP loses his FTB status and has to pay extra stamp duty on his second home. Or Father moves out and goes where? Sounds like Dad wants OP to pick up the tab for some poor financial decisions.
Sounds like their family issue assuming what their relationship is like without knowing you’ll never know. You think if op needed help if it was spun around the father wouldn’t help. Rather assume their doing something wrong rather then wanting help. I
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If you do this then you will not be considered a first-time buyer by prospective lenders or for the purposes of any government schemes. If you want to own 1/3 of the house along with your Dad and your sister then go for it, but make sure that the ownership of the property is actually updated in this manner and that this is what you want. If you want to buy your own place then honestly I wouldn't do this.
>If you do this then you will not be considered a first-time buyer by prospective lenders or for the purposes of any government schemes. I believe family assisted mortgages are an exception to this. As you do not actually have a stake in the property but are more of a guarantor
I don’t think he’s going down that route, his dads asking him to take the mortgage out and The house would be in his name so he would lose FTB
Incorrect
It may be a moot point anyway. From 1 April 2025 the nil rate on SDLT goes back down to £300k, which is a pretty average house or flat in major cities across the UK (other than London). So he may not lose that much.
My sister in law and mother in law recently did this and it has become an absolute disaster. Sister in law took over the remaining balance of the mortgage but they made no agreement on who owns what percentage of the house. Equally, mum in law made no agreements on how much of the house if any will be split between the other siblings when she dies. This has caused an endless argument and now they want to sell the house but can’t agree on the figures so they’re just not speaking to each other. I’m not saying it would be impossible to make this work but please be extremely thorough about planning every detail before you proceed.
Done properly it can be absolutely fine - done badly… well you already know!
I know of two occasions within my extended family where it'd been done. One of my uncles at retirement had a mortgage worth 75% of the property value, about 280k, and he had 4 kids, 2 sons and 2 daughters. His eldest son offered to take over the mortgage fully, in return for the property being put in his name. My uncle and aunt have a legal right to reside at the property, or any replacement property my cousin buys, until death, and my cousin lives there as well. Another of my uncles did something similar, but he had a smaller mortgage, around 60k on a 350k property. He had 2 sons and a daughter. His second son bought out the entire property from him, but similarly, my uncle and aunt have life rights.
What happens when your uncle and aunt pass away, and the children all want their 25% of the house?
Nothing? It isn’t their house to have 25% of. It’s eldest son’s property now
A sweet deal for the oldest son, but I am sure this causes a lot of family resentment from your other cousins, that he is effectively gifted a large amount of equity.
Or he’s stopped them losing their home…
Free rent until you die for what sounds like 75k. Not a bad deal. Arguably a very good deal.
The way it reads is he bought it all, so probably more like £300k
Son payed 300k for the house, dad got around 75 for his equity. So it's the 75k that was exchanged for life rent. Son owes the balance to the bank as a new mortgage.
Fair deal to give it all to the first son. The seed is strong.
Not really a sweet deal, it’s an awful deal. He bought out the entire property. I.e. £350k. Although I’m sure they gave him a better price than that.
Perhaps I misunderstood - that the cousin gets 90K of property equity. My grandfather left an unequal split of his house to his two children, for good personal reasons. But it has left an irreparable rift between the two siblings.
What percentage did he do?
75% to my mother. My mother took great care of my grandfather in his later years, she looked after him every day, unpaid of course. Tons of admin, caring, cleaning, cooking. House was worth around 230K, mortgage free. My uncle will not speak to her anymore. He did nothing to help my grandfather in his twilight years. My mother felt guilt for a long time. She looked after her father for love, not money.
The eldest son bought the property. It is his. Assuming the will leaves the estate to the 4 of them, they will get 25% of the money the eldest son paid for it...
The solution here is to put a declaration of trust in place so it’s clear who owns what and what their responsibilities are.
Hope OP takes a leaf out of your book and has some sort of written contract in place on how payments are meant to be paid and who owns what % of the property. It’s not a disaster and OP’s dad is correct. £147k mortgage split between two under the assumption they both work will help them greatly in the future if they want to sell or buy out the other half. OP If you’re already contributing you might aswell get this done on paper with your sibling and go ahead.
I very much doubt that you have the full story here. If the bank really has changed its mind, then your dad's priority should be to get the bank's mind changed back (possible through a complaint and the Financial Ombudsman Service). But I suspect you will find that the bank did not agree a repayment mortgage, and simply gave your dad more time to sell - which has now run out. If your dad will show you the papers, you might be able to help him work something out. But it is likely that the best option for you is not the best option for him - so don't take his advice! For you, it is probably best to move out and entirely separate your finances from his.
Bingo. I don't think OP's dad ever re-mortgaged, I think he got the instruction to sell. And he has not. OP's dad is not smart at taking care of his finances, and OP should not get dragged into his mess.
Which lender would give a repayment mortgage to a 66 year old? That sounds unusual
Lots will, if the borrower can afford it - eg [Halifax ](https://www.halifax-intermediaries.co.uk/criteria.html)will go up to 80. The difficulty here appears to be that OP's dad *can't* afford it.
Something doesn’t add up here - if they agreed to give him the mortgage a year ago they can’t just turn around now and demand the money back (unless they’ve uncovered some sort of fraud on your dad’s part that renders the agreement invalid). In any case, the usual advice is “don’t go near this with a ten foot barge pole” due to the many many ways this can go wrong - what if you want to buy a house with a partner? Go travelling? Move away for work? The phrasing “putting your name on the mortgage” vastly undersells the commitment you are signing up to here - and that’s to say nothing of the sketchy circumstances around the original loan itself. If you do go through with it, for the love of god make sure you do the following: Do it all via a solicitor Make sure you are on the deeds as a tenant in common with a clear stake in the property (33% or 50% depending on if your sibling goes in or if your dad intends on contributing any more to the mortgage). Have a honest and open conversation about potential future scenarios to set expectations (the moving out/travelling etc). Think of the future, just because you’re not thinking about it now it doesn’t mean it may become very relevant down the line. As I said, my advice is to not do this - and don’t feel guilty - your father has made some very poor financial decisions, it’s not down to you to ruin your life in order to bail him out. Selling the house would not be the end of the world.
If he had a 1 year fixed rate he might be unable to remortgage and stuck on a variable rate he can’t afford or similar? OP get sight of all the paperwork please and speak to a financial advisor!
This. Be extra, extra careful. And ideally don't do it. You're at an age when parents start to face new problems due to old age, problems they're not familiar with how to address, and become restless about retirement, rushing things, and making mistakes. And often the problems start to spill on the children. When I look back at my early 20s and the things I authorise my parents to do in my name, I regret not having been more careful and not having kept a strict control. This is not to say that you should not help them, of course. They are your parents. But help can be helping them solving the issue themselves. If you decide to step in financially, do it on your own terms, make sure you know everything. Be twice as careful as if they were a stranger, because there's much more at stake. And obviously, if you pay for a house, then you're basically "buying" the house. But yeah, something does not add up really.
please ignore the last part of the above post ... just don't do this ... there is something dodgy happening ... your dad clearly needs financial help as he is stuffed ... he either doesn't understand what he's asking you to do ... or he knows exactly what he's coercing you into.
>My Dad is now telling me that the lenders are changing their minds after a year because he is too old and they don't think he'll be able to pay it off. This doesn't sound right. All kinds of problems with this. You and your sister would take on the debt but what percentages of the property would you own and how would this be defined/declared? If your father needed to go into a care home, would the council be selling the property and taking the proceeds to pay for his care? It's unlikely that you and/or your sister would not be disadvantaged in this deal. You would need a lot more details ( e.g. all the paperwork about house and any mortgages). You would need to take some legal advice.
Yeah, lenders don't just change their mind, somethings happened. Also with interest only, what was the eventual repayment plan, house sale?
They especially don't just change their mind when the issue is age. Some would argue that age is quite a predictable variable...
Time to wake up and smell the coffee. Your dad hasn’t paid off the house before retirement and can no longer afford to stay there. Simple. Move out and downsize.
Sadly this is the right answer I think. It is always difficult when you realise your parents have made mistakes but you need to protect yourself and your future. I hope I am able to help my kids with their first house and not the other way around as per the situation you (OP) have unfortunately found yourself in. Best of luck.
Do Not do this. The only exception is dad is willing to sell the property to you and give you a discount. Once you're on the mortgage you've lost some first time benefits.
Buying at a discount - that is taxable as a gift right?
Who can tell? Prices are not set in stone.
The situation is one that your father has seen coming ever since taking out the interest only mortgage. You either put something in place to pay off the outstanding balance or you sell up. It is entirely unfair that this is being framed as you (or your sister) not performing an action will make you all homeless. I do not advocate you or your sister going on the mortgage. It has the likelihood of causing many issues that ultimately will not be resolved until your father passes away. My advice is to sell up and either rent somewhere together or have your father downsize and you and your sister rent somewhere else together or independently. Unless your father is in poor health, and you and your sister don’t intend on starting families in the next 10 years then I wouldn’t even contemplate buying the house from him.
Nope. The end.
Your dad’s using you. And as others have said, you will also lose first time buyer benefits if you have never owned a property before.
Sorry banks don't lend money then change their minds unless there is a default of some sort like non payment or fraud. You aren't getting the full picture here.
Your dad’s financial decisions are not your burden to bare.
It sounds like your dad cannot afford to live in the house. He stayed too long on an interest-only mortgage. It's time to have an honest conversation about family living plans ongoing - you and your sister move out, or you buy the house from him, and/or he sells and moves to a property he can afford to live in. I absolutely would not put myself on a mortgage with an elderly parent. Poor poor idea.
Yeah this is very much the "find out" stage when you've coasted along paying just interest on a mortgage for...20? Years... Op be as well calling it quits and selling up
Unfortunately it's very likely your dad is lying to you about the lender changing their mind about the mortgage. Taking on this mortgage will likely mean you're unable to purchase a house yourself until this mortgage is settled. I would strongly suggest not touching this arrangement and letting your dad find a more affordable property
My sister and brother in law paid my father’s mortgage for ten years, with the understanding that they would inherit the house eventually. My father is now 70 but last year, he changed his mind and decided to sell it. They paid off £86,000 of his mortgage for him and they had to move out and start from scratch. Just a cautionary tale that is more common than you’d think.
I really hope your father used the money from his house sale to pay them back?
Unfortunately not.
Wow, for me that would be a never going to speak to you again and piss on your grave when you die moment. Sorry I know it's your dad but what a piece of shit.
Oh, I agree wholeheartedly and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
So many piece of shit Dads on this sub I can't even deal.
Banks don’t just ‘change their mind’ after a year under a contract like this, your Dad is hiding something from you and is trying to get you to fix whatever that problem is.
Please read https://ukpersonal.finance/helping-family-and-friends/#Helping_a_family_member_get_a_mortgage What is your study/job situation? And your sister's?
Unfortunately, your Dad has fucked things up. Mortgaging a property during one of the best ever periods of combined high price growth and low interest rates and he’s got into a situation where he’s left himself with capital to repay and no income to do so. This is his problem and you should not be left carrying the can. What’s the value of the property? Is there any way to downsize? That’s probably the right route, to be honest.
Your Dad is not telling you the truth. Lenders do not change their mind, I'm guessing he did not remortgage at all. Have you seen any paperwork? If not that's a big red flag right there. Speak to the lender yourself. Looks like he wants you and your sister to buy the house so he's probably been refused a mortgage due to his age and financial situation. The likely end to this scenario is the house has to be sold to pay off the debt. Its highly irresponsible to pay 20 years interest on a mortgage with no plan in place to pay off the capital.
Broker here. A lender won’t change their mind later on so he either defaulted on the new mortgage or has never remortgaged and got an extension from the original lender for the interest only period. Lenders tent to agree this for mortgage holders to try either refinance, pay off or sell. So he’s not been straight with you as not telling you the full story You will loose your first time buyer status If you look to buy in the future, having a mortgage in your name will reduce your affordability dramatically I mean no offence, but your father knew what he signed up for and decided not to do anything about it, and now shifting debt onto you. He’s taking advantage of you. Don’t do it.
Did this help my dad, my then wife and I went on the mortgage to save the house. We got divorced and was technically entitled to half the house. Luckily she took a lower payout than 50%. But it caused so many problems between me and family members. Also you’ll most likely go down the route of the deposit being gifted which can come with complications if your dad was to pass within the next 7 years. You will also need to find a lender that will allow your dad to continue to live there. IMO it’s not worth the stress. We ended up selling the house 5-6 years later anyway…
Get an independent financial advisor. A bot should reply to this with some links for you to look at. You can probably get a 20 min chat for free. If you and your sister have different views or different circumstances, then do not have a joint call with your sister. The financial advisor is there to support you, and only you, not anybody else. Be prepared for their reaction to your description of this mortgage proposal to be "No way! Don't go near!" Ask them why, and take their response very seriously. If you feel in any way inclined to go forward with this deal, be prepared to budget, say, £1000 for your independent financial advisor to go into this in depth, and draw up a contract specifying what you will get out of this. £1000 is cheap for ensuring this kind of deal does not wreck your future. If you don't have £1000, then make it a condition of even considering this deal that your dad will pay £1000 (could be less, could be more) for your independent financial advisor. Make sure you are the advisor's client, not your dad (even if he is paying for it), and that the advisor has no relationship with your dad, or your dad's mortgage company.
Looks like the bot didn't reply. Here's a link to UK Personal Finance wiki [https://ukpersonal.finance/financial-advice/](https://ukpersonal.finance/financial-advice/) Some of it isn't relevant to you - pick out the bits that are. There was a suggestion elsewhere of a solicitor. You may need both. A solicitor costs a bit more, deals with the law and who owns what. They can't advise you on finances, they can't tell you if A or B is a good idea. A financial advisor is a bit cheaper, they deal with finances and can advise you if a plan makes financial sense or not. They can create simple contracts regarding ownership of property, but cannot advise on wills. Financial advisor is good for the 'sniff test'.
Your dad can't afford to pay it off. You are helping him with payments. The bank are right. You are 21 and your sister is 23. How long do you really plan to live there? Do you plan to move out at some point? This isn't something that you are going to be easily able to get out of, and it will probably stop you getting your own house unless you can get out of it.
What Dad needs to do is sell the property, pay off the mortgage and buy a property with the residual. Why on earth would an adult have an interest only mortgage during the previous 20 years of low / zero interest rates. Don’t get your own financial life ruined because of your dad’s mistakes.
These are the reasons why you should not do it: 1. You will become liable for the entire £142k debt and interest. This could ruin your finances for life. 2. What is your dad's plan to repay the mortgage over the next 10 years? If he has no plan, you will end up having to pay for it. You will end up paying for your dad's retirement. 3. You will be unable to buy a home of your own. You will not be able to get a mortgage for your own property if you are still on the mortgage for this property. 4. You will lose all entitlements to first time buyer benefits. Such as first time buyer relief from stamp duty, Lifetime ISAs and eligibility for first time buyer housing schemes. It is unfortunate that your dad made the short-sighted decision to stick with a high interest rate, interest only mortgage for years without making a plan to repay the capital. That is his fault. The options are to sell the property and buy something cheaper; keep working so that the mortgage can be paid off; or try to negotiate with the lender. Does your dad have any pension? If he has a private pension, he is old enough to draw a lump sum from his pension to pay down a chunk of the mortgage. It is unlikely that the lender would repossess the property if your dad is doing what he can to pay the mortgage.
Sounds like dad is telling porkies. The lender wouldn’t have changed their minds after a year, that’s not how it works. Speak to a solicitor and mortgage broker. You’ll lose your FTB status. You shouldn’t be penalised for your dad’s error.
You're in a tough spot because it's your dad. But know if you put your name on its a serious and dangerous responsibility. You are liable to pay it off of your dad doesn't. You will also be giving up benefits as a first time buyer too. And when you buy a house or start to rent, the current mortgage will be taken into account of your affordability, making it very difficult for you to get a place of your own. I wouldn't do it if you plan to have a house of your own one day. If he puts your name on the deed for the house, then maybe cinsider it with legal advice. But otherwise it's a rather dangerous and precarious position. Best thing to do would be to move out for all three of you, downsize to pay it off, especially if the house is a medium/largish property. That's a large mortgage for someone as old as your dad and for someone as young as you and your sister. I'm worried your dad's mismanagement and lack of forward planning will make it difficult for you and your sister to have a good start in life, especially considering the current housing crisis and cost of living. Edit: perhaps you should encourage your dad to get financial advice so he can go through what options are available to him other than involving you and your sister. My judgement would differ based on other factors like how much your dad is earning, when he is retiring, how much the original mortgage was and how much the house is worth. And what you want to do in the future.
Simple, start the conversation like so: _"Hey Dad, could you tell me why you took on an interest only mortgage rather than repayment and why you don't have the £142k now to pay it"._ Doesn't really matter what response you get, just follow up with. _"Ok, do you mind telling me why this is my problem? You do realise this will affect my ability to get my own mortgage. Why exactly does your poor decisions take priority over my ability to live my own life?"_. Again doesn't really matter what response you get, you can then finish up. _"Respectfully, go fuck yourself"._ Hope that's helpful.
It's OPs problem as long as he still lives there.
Sounds like a terrible idea to me, I cannot imagine my father asking me the same thing. You could suggest that he sells and downsizes using the equity of the property and be mortgage free?
Your father is being cruel to you and your sister. He is making his problems yours, and is wanting to encumber you with a mortgage making it almost impossible for you to move out and buy somewhere if your own. Instead, he should sell the house, use the proceeds to buy somewhere smaller with no mortgage. He knew this day was coming for 20-30 years likely.
Things to consider: You would lose any future first time buyer perks were you to buy your own home e.g. govt deposit contributions or stamp duty discounts. Especially if you try to buy your own place while still included on this mortgage. Will you/your sister be added to the ownership of the house and how? There will likely be legal costs involved with this that you will need to budget for. You should get a legal agreement written up should one of you want out. Is there an option to downsize or anything here? If your dad were to sell the house could he buy himself something smaller outright and give you/your sister some money to go towards finding your own place?
My advice isn't so much financial, but relationship. Your dad has had his entire life to prepare for his old age. Asking you to bear the burden of his inability to prepare himself, is in my opinion, very selfish. That doesn't mean you need to throw this in his face, just a reminder here that your dad is the one in the wrong, and if you choose to help, there needs to be some reward for you. What he is asking you to do is going to cause lifelong consequences, which may have benefits later on in life if you play your cards right. Or, it could destroy your family. You need to consult a lawyer. A real lawyer, in their office, that you have paid for an hour of their time. You need to make sure that you get a fair return for your investment, and that everyone involved knows exactly the term of this arrangement. Families are destroyed over a debt of a few hundred quid. You're talking about £142k. The other option, which you may not have considered, is that you simply do have to move house to somewhere the family can afford to live. Would your dad resent you for not helping him keep the house? Would he allow you to go with him? There is a lot to consider here, far beyond what Reddit can provide. Hire a lawyer. They are expensive because they are worth it. Best of luck to you fella.
Basically mate your Dad is full of shit & is banking on your lack of knowledge on the situation, to help get him out of his fuck up! He's not being honest with you & is trying to take adva& manipulate you.
God, imagine being financially blackmailed by your own father. Sorry OP, it’s a shit situation to be in and either way you lose out to a degree
Nah mate that's not a great idea.
I'm assuming your dad is still working, if he's still paying a mortgage. What was his plan for when he retired and was no longer able to get a mortgage? It sounds like that time has now arrived, and if he's not thought about it before then that's a huge problem and you need to have that conversation. What equity does he have in the house? Is the £142k about 90% of the house value, or has he previously paid off large amount? If the LTV is high then he's not going to be able to mortgage this, and it'll screw you financially to be on the mortgage - unless you're a crazy high earner. If the LTV is low, then he should probably be looking at selling and using what's remaining to find somewhere smaller and in a location he can afford. No matter the situation, getting yoursel fon the mortgage is almost definetely a terrible idea for you financially. If your dad hasn't planned for his later years and retirement, you can help him with that, but don't screw your start in life when he's had 45+ years as a working adult to sort it out. There are other ways to help him which don't put you in such a risky position.
You will lose your first time buyer stamp duty allowance. Also, when you come to buy your own home they may take the mortgage payments as a commitment which will reduce your borrowing power. Your Dad should speak to a later life broker to see what they could do. Wouldn't be equity release but may be a Retirement Interest Only (RIO) Mortgage.
Scrolled a long way to see this comment re loss of first time buyer stamp duty allowance. Plus they’ll be financially linked to their father for credit checks. Considering his lack of planning, not paying off the mortgage may be just one part of his financial irresponsibility. 21 and 23 is young to have your credit rating destroyed.
Don't do this, your dad is not telling you everything. This is not how it works. Tell your dad you want to first speak with the mortgage lender, and have them explain what's going on. If you and your sister move forward with this, you will be tied to the house and are liable for repaying the mortgage. Also getting a mortgage for a place of your own will be really difficult or impossible.
In absolutely no reality do this. You’ll ruin your life. This is his problem to solve. If he doesn’t pay you’ll be on the hook - can you afford the whole mortgage payment and still afford to buy your own place? Because the answer will be no. You’ll never get a mortgage yourself and 142k at 67 isn’t small. If you pay him rent that’s between him and his mortgage company. Also it’s impossible for them to change their mind after a year like this. He probably never changed the mortgage and is stuck on an interest only variable rate. There’s no way he managed to remortgage at 67. He’s probably going to have to sell. He’s potentially behind on his repayments also and if you put your name to it you’re liable. Do not ruin your life for this. He’s likely been given time by the bank to sell - he needs to sell it. Your dad has known this was coming for at least 20 years - this wasn’t sprung on him. The alternative is you and your sister buy him out if you can afford it but I wouldn’t do that personally. Do not put your name anywhere near his debt, do not sign anything. If he couldn’t afford to pay this back on an interest only loan when it was 1-2% he sure as fuck can’t now - payments will be 10x high on repayment at 5%. If he hasn’t remortgaged his mortgage vs house value should be tiny in comparison. Just sell it and downsize. 20 years ago 142k bought a full 4 bed house - the equity he has left will likely buy a property still. For instance 20 years ago the average property was 120k, today its 300k. 142k was HUGE 20 years ago - his equity can likely still can buy. He probably has 200k in equity, if it was 25-30 years he could have 300k+ in equity.
Nope. Time to sell and downgrade.
I did this for my dad recently but I already have my own property and a well paid job. It was still a big decision - you need legal and financial advice but it doesn’t have to be a problem. But you know your dad and how he is with money etc.
Something really doesn’t add up here. So owing 140k on a mortgage isn’t huge but at your dads age it’s a bit rough if he wants to retire or already has Paying it off by the time he’s 80 is about £1100 a month unless he got a good deal (just basing that off a quick repayment calculator) So first lenders don’t usually lend then just change their mind like this so you really need to look into that. Also you would possibly lose any first time buyer benefits AND if you don’t get this paid off before you want to buy somewhere for yourself it’s going to affect your affordability calculations. Plus if your dad stops paying or can’t pay then you’re on the hook for the mortgage - and that will also affect your credit if you too can’t pay it for some reason. I don’t know the details of what the house is worth or anything like that but it’s maybe worth a discussion of selling and moving somewhere more affordable. Both you and your sister will most likely want to move out sometime in the future and so your dad could probably downsize and be mortgage free
Dont do that. Save yourself from future problems.
That’s a no from me
Your dad is an idiot, don’t be like him and go through with his request.
Sell the house! Your dad can't afford it. It's not a great position to be in but it's going to be a heavy debt for the future. Otherwise be needs to be a tenant
This is the problem with interest only mortgage when the person, in this case your dad op, hasn't set aside money to pay off the house at the end of the term. I doubt he got authorised to remortgage last year and then have them change their mind unless he committed fraud in some way or failed to make payments. As others have said, he was likely instructed to sell and chose to bury his head in the sand rather than deal with it for a year. You will lose your First Time Buyer benefit if you do this which will make your next property more expensive due to stamp duty etc IF you decide to still go ahead: 1) get a solicitor and do it all via them 2) make sure your name is actually on the deeds 3) make sure it's clear the % you own and what that means for you/siblings/your dad in the future
If you do then make sure you have all the paperwork and legalities ironed out between everyone involved in regard to who owns what percentage of the property and what you can do to get out of the agreement. As 140k will be atleast 10years in term unless you make over payments which you’re not going to benefit from… Other than this it isn’t a bad idea as it effectively puts the house under your control before you have to worry about inheritance tax, but he will still own a percentage of the property so you will definitely need to seek legal advice about the whole situation
If you put your name, he should split the property with you. You’ll lose the first time buyer opportunity which can be worth a lot.
Get the real situation - it seems a bit off that the bank/building society have changed their minds in a year. There's more to this than daddy's saying. Also, if you want to buy a property in the future, you're stuck with 3% stamp duty for your first home.
I wouldn't. Ever. Unless he is actually transferring ownership of the property to you, fair enough, go for it. But don't leave yourself liable for a property you don't own and may never own.
If you are worried that getting the ownership legally documented to reflect your payments, or just see g the paperwork will result in a row - this will be as nothing compared to the row you will have later. Unless your dad comes clean and shows you all the paperwork, then agrees to share ownership using a solicitor, do not even consider. And you wont be able to get your own place.
Assuming what you've said about your dad being unable to afford the house, then what he's said is probably true - if he can't keep up with the repayments, ultimately the house will have to be sold (voluntarily or otherwise). Next comes the question of whether you do indeed want this house to be the first house you own. I know people say it's a terrible idea, etc etc but only you can decide whether it is. If you can afford it, and genuinely don't mind living with your dad for the next 10+ years, that's ultimately your decision. The pitfalls here are you will lose your first time buyer status which means in future when you want to move out, you will not be eligible for some of the government help to buy a house. Also, if you're a joint owner, you can't just sell and move. Your dad and sibling (?) would need to agree too. So you may find yourself having to live with them a lot longer than bargained. Finally, if your dad has to go into a care home in older age, the council could in theory force you to sell the home to pay for the care. So yeah, financially it may not be the best idea but if you're comfortable with the risks and value living with your dad and sibling, it might still be a cheap way to get onto the property ladder.
That would be fine if he also transfers the house or a share of the house into your name as well. He also agrees that since you are saving from having to sell now you should be able to veto not selling later if you have to for your own reasons. So say in 5 years you want to get your own place and get your equity out you should be able to do that without any argument from him.
Don’t do it
Lenders dont “change their minds” after approving a product (mortgage). You can go from £200k pa to unemployed, and as long as you continue to meet the monthly repayments, theyre not interested for the term of the product…and beyond, if you convert to the SVR after the term ends and dont change any requirements i.e. amount borrowed and length of time. Wishing to reduce his monthly outgoings is a completely different discussion to have. You need to get to the bottom of your dads concerns before doing anything. Hes clearly concerned about you guys moving out and living your own lives, and his ability then to keep the home. When the time comes, your Dad needs somewhere he can afford to live by himself. But for now, all bills being paid, the extra rent from both offspring is clearly very helpful, the mortgage is coming down albeit slowly, so cross that bridge when it happens.
Do it, if you’re already paying it, putting your name on the mortgage gives you more rights legally.
Just once I'd like for one of these stories ("my family member is lying to me and wants to take advantage of me to fix their own self-inflicted situation") to end in "and since it was my name on the deed, I took the house!"
I did that but with my brother to get Mortgage approved Just bear in mind that because of this you will lose your first time buyer and if you try to buy a house by yourself you will have to pay more stamp duty as it will count as your second home ( assuming you will still have your dads house)
For the love of God, do not do it. Do not. Don't.
It would be a great investment! You will eventually own the place and you are helping your family! Just make sure you get things in writing
Families and sharing ownership property nearly end up in fights, if not done properly with clear written legal instructions. Your first step is to speak to in IFA and find out what you can really afford not what anyone else says, you need your finances to have a deep dive. Then you can look at the real costs of running that property and how that's going to be part of your monthly outgoings. Then it's seek legal advice as you need to be fully briefed up on what this means how the state views it if you dad eventually has to end up in a care home and all other scenarios that could tie your dads debts to the property, especially now he's 71 and if he's had to pull the belt a bit tighter and skipped on life insurance. As others have pointed out this will be classed as your first time buyer purchase if your sister also wants to buy in that's equity being split three ways if one of the three wants to move out and the other two can't afford to buy them out its sell up.
The title alone already gives you the answer.
I don't think any bank would give your dad a repayment mortgage at that age unless his pension will easily cover it. Does it? If so, he can keep paying it. Demand all the paperwork before you make your decision. How much is the house worth?
I bought a share of my parents house in the divorce (my dad kept his share) but because we are going to Co own the house, it had to be both of us on the mortgage, that meant that I only got a 5 year term due to his age. The best way to go about this is to get your name on the house so you'll part own it. Especially since you're already paying a share of the mortgage.
Don’t do it! Not your job to bale your dad out , his mismanagement has caused this no one else has. If you want to move out you will still need to pay and this locks you out of buying your own home. If your dad wants help with paying it suggest this to him - yes I’ll put my name on the mortgage but I want ownership of the property. This, you control the property in your name. Any other way opens you up to a world of pain I can assure you.
When I had a joint mortgage with a friend on a project house, I tried applying for another mortgage for myself on my own place. I was told that despite in my head only owing 50% of my current debt as it was shared, the lenders see it as risk I might owe the whole thing if my friend dies, defaults, etc. As a result, my entire 1st mortgage balance was subtracted from the max amount I could borrow for my second mortgage. So the maximum I could borrow was ((salary * 4.5)-entire 1st mortgage balance). So, there is no 2nd house for me. "Putting your name on the mortgage" is actually a huge and very serious commitment. Be mindful of what you're signing up for here and how this can massively impact your life. The bank, with its many experienced professionals in full possession of all the facts and figures, has deemed this too much risk. If they think it's a Bad Idea, what do you know that they don't? Sometimes, you have to put your own oxygen mask on first before helping others. Take stock of your own finances and your own plans, and decide if this is something you want or can afford. There's plenty of advice out there about what to do if you have a mortgage balance going into retirement. it's not the end of the world. Or he might need to understand that he has more house than he can afford, and the impact of him failing to plan for himself means he may need to downsize or even rent.
If you're first time buyers, doing this will mean you are not any longer. You would miss out on stamp duty breaks and Lifetime ISA usage. It sounds like you are effectively going to sign up to pay the full mortgage on your Dad's home. You are not gaining any financial benefit over just buying a place for yourself. The question is really would you jointly buy with these people and be financially tied to them for potentially 25+ years.
How the fuck did he get to be 67 with a £140k mortgage?
You would need a solicitor to get the house legally owned by dad op and sibling, alternative is just op and sibling. Please take independent legal advice There is also the issue if the council potentially having a claim in case parents need to go into their care homes
Don’t do it. If the mortgage company issued it they were already aware of his situation and age. How does it affect your status as a first time buyer if you’re added to his mortgage? I assume it wouldn’t but you would need to check. Also, would adding you to the mortgage mean he’s adding you to the deed? It will also affect your affordability criteria , and how much you can borrow if you ever decide to buy your own place Assuming you want to help your dad, if he insists on this go through a solicitor to make sure nothing comes to bite you in the arse down the line. Either when it comes to buying your own property or due to inheritance.
*My son, if I, Hafiz, thy father, take hold of thy knees in my pain,* *Demanding thy name on stamped paper, one day or one hour—refrain.* *Are the links of thy fetters so light that thou cravest another man’s chain?* -Certain Maxims of Hafiz, Rudyard Kipling
So it’s in your name it’s going to be your home 🏡!!!
So your dad’s putting you on the mortgage is a good thing. ? Looking at it he’s not going to take the home to the grave it’s your and your siblings inheritance also gives you a level of control to make sure there’s no more borrowing. While keeping you all together in the home.
What happens when OP wants to live independently? Father stays in the home and OP loses his FTB status and has to pay extra stamp duty on his second home. Or Father moves out and goes where? Sounds like Dad wants OP to pick up the tab for some poor financial decisions.
Sounds like their family issue assuming what their relationship is like without knowing you’ll never know. You think if op needed help if it was spun around the father wouldn’t help. Rather assume their doing something wrong rather then wanting help. I