Should I be a guarantor for my sons mortgage?

Your feeling is right ! A bag of worms never to be opened in my view.
Fair enough to give your children a leg up if you can afford it from savings etc .but not to put your own property at risk.
There lies madness. Well, you did ask !

I'm with hazel93. I suspect you are too. It's a kind and understandable thought though. Is there any other way you could help out?

You know I’m going to say don’t do it!

Two things.

Most of us had to buy less than we wanted when we made our first purchase. What he can afford won’t be his forever home. If he’s in construction something that needs work but will sell well when it’s done?

Or consider a joint borrowing mortgage? That way your can add your borrowing power but it is his name on the deeds so you don’t pay the second home tax. He makes all the repayments. Worth considering?

If that’s the normal price in his area he needs to look at another area you can get practically get a small hotel for that price in my area I m not making light of it but that might be his answer

I thought being a guarantor meant you would agree to pay the mortgage if your son defaulted for any reason, is that what you mean Shinamae? Could you afford that out of your own income?
But you seem to be implying that you being a guarantor would mean he could borrow more moneyNot sure if that’s the case.
If he’s a brickie I would think his employment is guaranteed. We found out the other day that a local builder who we were thinking of getting a quote from is booked up for the next two years!
You don’t say if your son is self-employed or has a partner or if you have other children - all these would have some bearing I think.

As ever - get professional advice from a solicitor or IFA.
In the words of Red Adair - if you think it’s expensive to hire a professional, wait till you hire an amateur

Very good advice from you all as expected, thank you so much. ??? yes he is self-employed and does have a partner but she doesn’t work at the moment because their child is still quite small. I love the bit you said at the end about Red Adair!! My thinking is that my son would be able to afford the mortgage payments he’s been a bricky for 16 years and is very very good at his job it was just the fact that if my house was put up a security then he might be able to borrow more. I do realise it is a can of worms and would think very carefully about it before actually doing it would have to go to a solicitor as well I imagine and I have two other children to consider so certainly not straightforward ?‍♀️

BlueBelle

If that’s the normal price in his area he needs to look at another area you can get practically get a small hotel for that price in my area I m not making light of it but that might be his answer

He can’t move too far from this area I think he’s looking within a 15 mile radius but his work is here and the children are settled at school...ish with what’s going on!!

The purpose of being a guarantor is that you agree to pay the whole monthy mortgage if your son defaults.

To do that you need to have a large enough income to be able to qualify for the full mortgage yourself. That means your income would need to be equal to, if not larger than his.

We guaranteed our daughter's first mortgage. DH had to go through all the mortgage application procedure to check that he could afford the mortgage on his then income, if she defaulted. After 5 years, by which time she was settled in a career job and had a much larger salary, we applied to be released from the guarantee and we were. DD never once missed a payment and rented out the second bedroom to help pay it.

Please don't do it!! It could cause a lot of problems for your family.

He is going to get in touch with the mortgage advisor as soon as possible I will then come back with that outcome. The only other way I could help would be that I have some savings and could lend him £10,000, I know he would pay me back a certain amount a month probably £300 anyway until I have more information it’s all a bit up in the air...?‍♀️

Agree with hazel93.

I would only suggest this if, in the event your son became unemployed, it would be possible for you to finance his mortgage (or is it only mortgage interest now, I'm not sure?) for an unspecified period of time. Otherwise, it would seem too risky to me.

I've seen your comment re loaning him £10,000. That would seem a better option to me but, again, would you be OK about him being unable, for an unspecified period of time, to pay back the monthly sum agreed if he lost his job?

Another definite No I'm afraid for many reasons.
You could potentially lose both homes.
If - & this is a big If, but who knows what is round the corner - your son & partner were to split up he could lose the family home to his partner & children leaving you responsible.

Again many good points raised. Yes I am still working so could lend him £10,000 pounds and if for any reason he had to default on the payments I would still be okay and I would just knock it off his future inheritance but preferably I would like it back monthly

No you shouldn't

Not unless you can afford to pay, (or want to) the mortgage if your son can't keep up with payments

Being self employed he is very vulnerable, with little protection, if he were to become ill, or have an accident (God forbid)!

Could you use your money to buy him an insurance policy to cover loss of earnings, due to illness, or accident?

My DH is self employed and many years ago took advantage of a low cost offer from Aviva, to cover both scenarios. The amounts aren't huge, but would certainly cover immediate outgoings in the short term.

Your son is an adult . Therefore he is capable of making his own decisions. He needs to stand on his own to feet. Also how do you know in a few years he wouldn't turn his back on you. Don't think it can't happen. It did to me last year.

My children won't accept help towards their weddings and both brought their own houses all due to their hard work and saving. Which I very proud of.

If your son wants a more expensive house he needs to save and work for it .

You could lose your home.

Short answer, no, bad idea.

Could you afford the payments if he could not. Being a brickie means accident or illness could put him out of work.

Team dont do it

No no no no no.
no.
just to be clear,
no.
do NOT do it.

No sorry you shouldnt do it, sadly your son will probably have to find a cheaper property or move somewhere where the properties cost less.
You will be guaranteeing to pay his whole Mortgage payment with no end date.
If you loan him money he will have that to pay back too, so far better for him to stay within his means. We’ve all had to do it.

When my elder son wanted to get on the property market I agreed to be his guarantor. There were several reasons. He was working overseas and didn’t pay British tax and he was a first time buyer in his 20s; OH couldn’t help as he also worked overseas tax-free! Son had made shedloads of money after leaving the Royal Marines and working for an American security firm for a couple of years. He promised I would not have to pay a thing, all he needed was my signature. He was right. Many years later he owns three houses up north which he rents out. My name has now been taken off one of the properties, otherwise everything moves on smoothly.

I would speak to an independent financial advisor as well as a solicitor.