Should I be a guarantor for my sons mortgage?

katy1950

I would say sorry but no we are in a terrible mess after doing something similar our son changed completely when he met his new partner she turned him against all his family and we ended up losing our home so please don't do it

So sorry to hear that Katie, how dreadful for you...???

Tell your son to get another extra part/time job on weekends

We all, unless millionaires, have to start somewhere and why cannot your son look lower when it comes to the price of a property .At least this will take the load off your shoulders.I would be very very reluctant to take on what son has in mind.

No!

A point which seems to be missed here is the posters sons partner. She says that the partner of her son doesn’t work as the child is still small. How many mums can afford to stay at home particularly as the family are struggling to buy a house ?Surely she could work a couple of nights in a care home or supermarket when the dad is home. I am sure that most of us grans did all sorts of jobs to contribute to the family income and to escape being mum for a while.

Just a mention about the £245 to buy a house, here in the south you just might get a studio flat for that, lounge/ bedroom/ kitchen with a separate shower room. It’s so difficult to get on the property ladder. Funny how it varies around the country isn’t it ?

My father agreed to guarantee my mortgage when I became divorced. I had three children and was getting on my feet and starting a new self-employed business. I've never forgotten his faith in me at a difficult time, it was a great morale boost, and he never had to pay a penny.

We loaned our son some money as a deposit on a shared ownership house as his salary was not quite enough to get the required mortgage amount. It had to be listed as a gift which was fine by us. As we have 4 children we told him he will inherit x gift amount less than his brothers when we die. He is saving up to pay us back and already has over half the amount put away. With shared ownership mortgage and rent together worked out £300 less a month than renting a similar property in that area.
I would never go as guarantor for anyone including family HTH

Sorry but I am another joining the "no" brigade for all of the reasons given. It is a very kind thought but one does not know what is around the corner and you could be homeless.

Not a good idea - solicitors are not keen to do this any more.

We did this for our son for 18 months - but my husband was working at the time and our son did very well and weaned himself off as soon as he could.

Very risky - he should stick within his budget..

No just no

Definitely not. You cannot predict the future, and could very easily lose your own home. Your son must live according to his means.

My Mum’s wonderful friends stood guarantor for her when she was widowed (aged 32, 4 small children and living in a tied cottage). None of my father’s family would help her. Her friends had no such qualms and they never had to step in to help. They remained friends until they died in their 90’s. A few years ago my friend asked my advice when a young friend of hers asked her to stand guarantor. I only had my mum’s experience to go by and if it’s all done legally couldn’t see any reason not help. She has never had to pay his mortgage and is now released from it.

You only get into trouble if you cannot to pay the debt off from liquid assets, if there is a default. It is when people put their houses on the line or simply sign things without really understanding precisely what they are undertaking.

Nowadays lenders will not accept a guarantor unless they can show they can bear the burden of default without undue problems, and selling your house to pay the loan is an undue problem.

The biggest danger now is people guaranteeing debt repayment or business loan, where checks are less thorough and the seccurity much less.

As he is a builder tell him to have a look at auctions you can get some great bargains to do up, and watch Homes under the hammer every morning on BBC 1, good luck to your son. I won't give you my 10 penny worth as you have decided not to do it ?

Can only speak for what we did which was give our daughter the top up she needed to buy a house. She moved from a flat with no garden to a house with a garden with her two children and husband . Result one happy family and thats all that matters in the end. The Covid situation made us decide this was best as that hot summer with no garden was Hell for them and we thought what use is money in the Bank?

Roseflower5

Tell your son to get another extra part/time job on weekends

Why would I do that? He works very hard all week.He knows nothing about this it was my idea and I have now decided against it...

sweetcakes

As he is a builder tell him to have a look at auctions you can get some great bargains to do up, and watch Homes under the hammer every morning on BBC 1, good luck to your son. I won't give you my 10 penny worth as you have decided not to do it ?

Thank you..?

It sounds like you really want to do it. If he were an only child, and you were wealthy, maybe. What happens if a wheel falls off and then one of your other children really needs help? Can you manage all that? Is he married? She will be a co-owner, right? What about her parents? Are they helping?

I feel sure your DS would not have liked to put you in that position anyway. He has a home and family and works hard and they have obviously agreed that it is better that she stays at home with the children. They have it all under control, you must try not to worry.

sweetcakes

As he is a builder tell him to have a look at auctions you can get some great bargains to do up, and watch Homes under the hammer every morning on BBC 1, good luck to your son. I won't give you my 10 penny worth as you have decided not to do it ?

The problem with houses that need renovation is that it’s difficult to get a mortgage on a house in poor condition, another is having the time to do it. OK for a self employed builder not so good for an employee.

Personally, I would say absolutely not! It could leave you exposed to having to pay out large amounts of money. Your son may have a good job at the moment but no one knows what might happen in the future for whatever reason. Hopefully things will always be good for you and your son, but please do not put yourself or your home at risk. Good luck.

I think you already know the answer. Never be a guarantor for anyone.....ever

If he needs help with a deposit then perhaps release a small amount of equity from your home. You can now get a variety of products one of which would allow you to repay the interest monthly. Before you do anything, take advice from a qualified financial adviser.

Don’t do it unless you can afford to gift it. It would be better to gift him a small amount if you want to help. My mother was always scrupulously fair between myself and 3 siblings plus grandchildren irrespective of our earning/ house situation. This meant we were all happy with whatever came our way as we knew it was shared equally. Nothing like money to start a family rift . I have given both my girls a financial helping hand - a gift after my mother died that I could afford. We also lent eldest daughter 25 grand to help buy her first house which we were meant to get back in 1 year and waited 7 .... it caused all sorts of problems between her and her ds
and every time eldest spent money on something unnecessary we thought ‘that’s our hard earned cash!’ Not to be once bitten twice shy we then promised to loan the second daughter the value of her small terrace so she could move quickly ....thinking it would be a couple of months ... it dragged on for over 7 months and still no move - then eldest came crying and begging for the money to help her buy her dream home so after a lot of heartsearching and agreement from younger daughter we agreed . This was all money we had only just got from retirement in our lump sums after a lifetime of work! Our eldest seemed to think it was hers ........ she even asked if we would re mortgage our home to help ! We love her dearly but that was a step too far. Eldest daughters dream home has fallen through to much unhappiness all round and youngest is still stuck in her tiny terrace but at least we have our money and think it’s time to spend it on us! The moral of this story is don’t be as soft in the head as us ( we are very lucky to have resources but they have been hard earned and a long time in coming ) you never know where lending money or standing security will lead and the potential for problems are enormous and unpredictable. I repeat only give what you can afford to lose and can make fair between your children . And don’t ever think you can keep it hidden from the rest of the family! It’s a practical and emotional minefield . Don’t do it.

I would say no, no and no!
In 2019 my youngest son had just gone through a divorce. He then met a new woman within weeks and they went off on a lovely holiday.
About 6 weeks later he called to ask if I could loan him some money as he was having very temporary cash flow problems with his business. Also found out two days later that new partner had just discovered she was pregnant.
I thought it over for days then told him I couldn't do it as he has two other brothers and if they came to me with the same request I couldn't match it for them.
Now, none of us could have foreseen the pandemic, but if i had dipped into my savings to help him and he had delayed repaying, I wouldn't have survived this last year financially.
It's only been because I had a 'rainy day' fund that I've been able to get by.