• Bankruptcy Search

    By Guest on 18th Dec 2013

    Hiya, I was declared bankrupt in 2007 and since have worked really hard to get my credit rating up to the point where I have been accepted for a mortgage with the Halifax. I am scared stiff however that my bankruptcy will come back to haunt me on the conveyancer searches. I was asked the question 'are you bankrupt' by my mortgage advisor not 'have you ever been' so I have answered truthfully, but don't want to get caught out, in your opinion do I have anything to worry about?

  • 1 Answers

    By Guest on 19/12/2013

    Hi,

    Thanks for your question. Your conveyance will carry out a "Bankruptcy Search" following exchange of contracts but prior to completion. This may bring up entries relating to your bankruptcy even though you have been discharged. If so then your conveyancer will need to report the entries to your lender which could ultimately lead to withdrawal of the mortgage offer. As you will be under contract at this point this would lead to you defaulting on the contract and losing your 10% deposit. You shouldn't worry too much however, your lender will have carried out credit checks and clearly they are satisfied if they have issued a formal mortgage offer. To protect yourself you should do 2 things:

    1. Speak to your broker (or to the Halifax if you arranged the mortgage direct) and explain the situation. If you don't then if and when the bankruptcy is reported by your conveyancer the lender might think you deliberately concealed it which could be reason in itself to withdraw the offer even if the fact of the bankruptcy isn't.

    2. Tell your conveyancer now and ask him/her to carry out a bankruptcy now and make any report to the lender that they need to make AFTER you have spoken to the lender about the fact you have previously been bankrupt. This will allow your conveyancer to deal with any special requirements your lender has before you are under contract thus reducing the risk to you.

    It is possible that the lender will withdraw its offer as a result of this but whilst I'm sure that would be incredibly disappointing for you, if it is to happen it is far better that it happens prior to exchange of contracts and this would prevent you from being liable to the seller for breach of contract.

    I hope this helps.

    Best regards

    Admin

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