Mortgages For Cabin Crew & Airline Staff

Mortgages for cabin crew/flight attendants

Often, your ability to secure a mortgage is down to your occupation and job type.

Because of the typically unconventional – and sometimes quirky – pay structures and routines of airline crew, including flight attendants and cabin crew, getting a mortgage can prove more of a challenge than for those in other walks of life.

Let’s consider why a mortgage for cabin crew/flight attendants might call for a greater degree of persistence.

Why is it difficult to get mortgages for cabin crew and airline staff?

You already know that any mortgage lender will be interested in how much you earn – that is one of the tests of your ability to repay any loan. And the fact is that you may earn an attractive salary – but that fact might not be immediately apparent.

The only snag is that what you earn is probably more than it appears on paper. Though it’s not an insurmountable problem, it does mean that you’re likely to have a more challenging time making your case in any cabin crew mortgage application.

Cabin crew mortgage and income

On paper, the salary for flight attendants and other cabin crew typically appears among the lower reaches of average pay scales. That is a problem, of course, when it comes to making your application for a mortgage – and a problem that is further complicated by the fact that your shift work probably gives the impression of an irregular income.

A lower income, with erratic earnings, typically does not go down at all well with the traditional mortgage lenders, who may flatly reject your application.

Mortgages for flight crews

But there is a growing band of more realistic airline mortgage lenders who are prepared to make a broader appraisal of your actual earnings. They will be aware of – and consider when assessing your ability to repay any loan – the many variables affecting the rates of pay received by cabin crew.

The complexity of pay rates is known. These vary from one airline to another and according to your seniority – but are invariably supplemented by many sources of additional remuneration, such as:

• night pay/long haul – if you work the so-called “red-eye” flights, you’ll be likely to qualify for additional night pay and most long-haul journeys will qualify you for a bonusIncome received as a bonus, which may affect a borrower's ab...;
• Language of Destination (LOD) bonus – if you have a flair for foreign languages and learn that of the country to which you are flying to or from, airlines may add a bonus to your pay packet;
• layover allowances – when your shift patterns require it, you will often need to overnight at a hotel paid for by your airline but also qualify for a daily layover allowance to cover your meals and necessary expenditure;
• transport allowance – offered by some airlines as compensation for your travelling expenses to and from home to your airport of departure; and
• type of aircraft/seniority – you might get bonuses for working aboard certain aircraft types, in different classes of the same aeroplane, or as the head of cabin crew or chief steward/stewardess.

Not only is there considerable potential to enhance your basic pay as cabin crew, therefore, but the occupation is widely regarded as providing secure employment and a long-term career. Even during the course of making your cabin crew mortgage application, for instance, you might have been promoted or come in line for further bonuses.

Can I get a flight attendant mortgage?

Yes, mortgages for cabin personnel are available. But it may improve your chances of getting the most suitable mortgage by consulting a specialist mortgage broker – such as ourselves here at NeedingAdvice.co.uk – with experience in providing advice on mortgages for airline crew personnel.

With the appropriate advice and guidance – and even without the regular flow of identical payslips – you could be pointed in the direction of cabin crew mortgages offering attractive rates of interest and borrowing limits.

How is airline income assessed by lenders for a cabin crew mortgage?

Even within the same airline, aboard the same aircraft, crew members may work different shifts, earn different bonuses, and take home different incomes. If a member of the cabin crew makes a mortgage application, therefore, you can be certain that his or her circumstances will be different to a colleague’s.

Not only is every mortgage application different, but so too are the policies of each lender – the manner in which any one of those lenders will appraise your application, therefore, will also vary.

Typically, though, the information on which that appraisal is based will follow a similar outline:

• the whole of your income earned by way of your contract of regular employment is likely to be considered;
• different lenders, however, are likely to treat the bonuses and extras you earn in slightly different ways – some might disregard such income altogether, but others might give you credit for 50% or even 100% of such income if it is regularly earned.

In one area, your chances of a successful application may have been improved by the Bank of England’s recent decision to lift the requirement for mortgage affordability “stress testing”. As a result, you’ll no longer have to prove to your prospective mortgage lender that your income would continue to provide sufficient cover even after a 3% increase in the lender’s standard variable lending rate.

Next Steps

Therefore, it only remains for us to stress the importance of consulting the experts if you seek advice on mortgages for airline crew personnel. Here at NeedingAdvice.co.uk, we can offer precisely that guidance, point you in the direction of appropriate lenders, and help you through the formal cabin crew mortgage application process.

FAQs –

Can I get a mortgage on working as a cabin crew?

The short answer is yes, you can apply for a mortgage on working as an air hostess or stewardess. However, you should be aware that the wide range of banks and building societies do not currently lend money to people who work in this capacity. This means that you will need to find a bank or building society willing to lend to you. The good news is that many banks and building societies now make their own rules clear about what they consider to be acceptable reasons why someone cannot borrow from them. If you are interested in getting a mortgage as a cabin crew you can contact our team for expert mortgage advice.

Which airline staff are eligible for mortgages?

If you are a cabin crew member with a regular contract then you are normally eligible for a mortgage. You must have worked for the company for more than six months before being able to apply for a mortgage. It is important to note that there are differences between lenders regarding how much time you need to work for the company before you can apply for a loan. Some companies require you to have worked for the company for three years whereas others will accept just two years.

There is also a wide range of lenders who can offer you a mortgage while on probation period but you may need to contact a market broker before starting your mortgage application with any lender.

What does my employer need to know when applying for a mortgage as an airline staff?

Your employer needs to know whether you have previously had a mortgage, and if so, what type of mortgage it was. They also need to know if you have ever defaulted on a previous mortgage. In addition, they need to know your salary and other earnings. If you have never had a mortgage before then your employer will need to complete a form called “Employee Disclosure Statement”. This statement details all the information required by the lender.