What is a Gifted Deposit Mortgage?

One of the most important points at the start of your property journey, before you even get ready to make your purchase, is to ensure you have enough saved to cover the deposit. We regularly hear first time buyers in Birmingham that this part can sometimes be a little tricky.

Quite a common way around this, however, is for someone close to you to help you cover either a portion of the deposit or the full amount. This is called, quite aptly, a gifted deposit. In order for a gifted deposit to work, there will need to be an agreement that this is purely a gift and not a loan to be paid back.

How can a gifted deposit help get me a mortgage in Birmingham?

For many, they benefit a lot more from buying a property and obtaining their own mortgage, than they do when renting from a landlord or local authority. There are lots of reasons for this, with one being that your monthly payments could be a lot less than you might have been paying per month on rent.

If you have worked out that you’ll be able to afford these monthly mortgage payments but can’t afford the initial deposit, then this is where a gifted deposit can become useful. In some cases we even see a gifted deposit being added onto an already saved deposit, increasing the amount.

The more deposit that is put down initially, the better rates you are going to open yourself up to. This in turn offers quite the benefit to home buyers, as you are guaranteed to lower your monthly mortgage payments in doing this.

Who can gift the deposit?

We usually find that it is people’s parents, whether that be their birth parents, adopted or sometimes even carers, who are the ones that will gift a deposit. Across the industry, online and in person, you may see this with the tagline “The Bank of Mum & Dad”.

There are a few lenders out there who will possibly allow deposits to be gifted by some other family members such as aunties & uncles, though this will require your dedicated mortgage advisor to take more care when searching for the right mortgage lender to use.

If anyone over the age of 55 is willing to give you a hand, they may have the option of taking out an equity release in Birmingham as a means of gifting you a deposit.

Do your parents know you need help?

When we have our primary chats with customers who are in the situation where they are struggling to save for a deposit, we will usually ask if they are able to be gifted the deposit from someone they know.

In those instances we either hear that they didn’t even know their parents could help, or they do know but don’t feel like they can approach them about the topic.

The reality is that if they are able to do so, most parents are more than happy to help their children if they can. Inheritance can help them achieve this, with some parents opting to gift it early if they have enough saved. We have also had cases where equity release has been used to help them out.

Gifted Deposit vs Loans

Lenders are not particularly keen on working with customers who take out loans for a deposit. The reason for this is because it is an additional financial commitment that could possibly get in the way of your mortgage repayments.

It’s not like there aren’t lenders out there who will accept this, because some of them will, it just makes for a more difficult process.

Is there a maximum or minimum gifted amount?

The majority of lenders out there won’t give you a mortgage unless you have at least a 5% deposit. Some may want more than this though and is entirely dependant on the lender and the situation. Bad credit, for example, will usually mean you have to put down at least a 15% deposit.

When it comes to gifted deposits, there is usually no limit to the amount that can be gifted. As mentioned earlier, the more you have, the better the rates you open yourself up to and the more likely you are to save money on your monthly payments.

Who can benefit from a gifted deposit in Birmingham?

Gifted deposits will mostly be beneficial to a first-time buyer in Birmingham or a home mover in Birmingham.

Depending on the lender that your mortgage advisor in Birmingham selects for you to go with, the required 5% deposit can be paid via gifted deposit.

What proof is required?

As a general rule of thumb, all mortgage lenders will require a gifted deposit form. You may be asked to provide additional proof and ID (such as a donor ID or bank statements).

This all depends on the lender that your mortgage advisor in Birmingham feels is right for you and your personal circumstances.

Date Last Edited: October 29, 2024