How Much Can I Borrow? Mortgage Affordability Calculator

The answer to this will entirely depend on your individual circumstances.

Assessments are based on your income - lenders will want to review your income (or combined income if you’re purchasing with a partner or friend) to ensure that the mortgage is affordable for you. If you are a key worker you might even be able to access more competitive mortgage products from some specialist lenders.

As a general rule, lenders will offer around 4.5x the total applicant income, but our expert brokers may be able to help you access more. Visit our ‘how much can I borrow’ calculator for an estimate of what size loan you could access.

The higher a deposit you can put down, the better, as you will be able to access more competitive interest rates, and lenders may view your application more favourably. That being said, there are many residential mortgage products at 95% LTV, meaning you would need to put down a deposit of just 5%. If you’re looking to secure an Interest-only loan, be aware that most lenders would expect a much lower LTV.

Yes. Many lenders will combine employed and self-employed income when calculating affordability.

Each buy to let mortgage lender has their own criteria for deciding how much you can borrow. However, they will all consider these two primary factors:  

 Loan to value (LTV) 

This is the ratio of how much you wish to borrow in relation to the value of the property you’re buying or remortgaging.  

For example, a 75% LTV mortgage on a property valued at £100,000 means you are borrowing £75,000. 

The higher the LTV, the greater the risk to the lender. Generally, the more of your own money you invest, the lower the mortgage interest rates you can access.  

Rental income 

Technically, buy to let properties should be self-funding. The monthly rent should cover the mortgage repayment and any other costs associated with running the property. 

Lenders use a rent-to-interest (RTI) or interest coverage ratio (ICR) calculation for affordability. We explain how these calculations work below. 

Expected rental income is normally the main factor in buy-to-let affordability. However, some lenders impose minimum personal-income requirements or consider an applicant’s income, expenditure and credit commitments as part of their wider assessment.

Criteria vary significantly between lenders, so applicants who do not meet one lender’s income requirements may still have options elsewhere.

It's likely lenders won't stretch beyond 4.5x your income however in this situation it's best to speak to a broker who can advise on which lenders maybe more receptive than others.

Lenders will assess the combined income of both parties and could still apply a 4x - 4.5x.

For example, if combined income is £100,000, this could mean borrowing at 4x is £400,000.

However, it's not always as straightforward as that, as both parties will need to have their credit history, debts, expenditure etc considered.

As we have access to whole-of-market lenders, we can advise on lenders to approach and what your borrowing potential maybe. 

You can still borrow from 4x to 4.5x your income if you're self-employed, however criteria varies from lender to lender.

Typically you will need to provide:

• Last 2 years’ SA302s
• Last 2 years’ tax overviews
• Last 2 years’ business accounts
• Last 3 months' business bank statements

And how your business is structured (for example, whether it’s a Limited Company, you’re a sole trader or a contractor, etc) will impact the documents you’ll need to provide. Our brokers can help you gather and review these before we submit to your lender. 

The short answer is yes they do but some lenders view the income in different ways.

If your income includes or the vast proportion comes from bonuses, commission, or overtime, then please speak to one of our brokers. Once we understand the full picture we can advise on the best lenders to approach.

Each lender will assess your borrowing potential by taking into account your income and expenditure. Some lenders have different criteria to others, so speak to one of our brokers who can best advise on the most suitable lender based on your circumstances.

The calculator will provide an estimate based on information entered and does not constitute a mortgage offer, agreement in principle, or financial advice. It is intended to be used as a guide.

As each lender has their own affordability criteria we can best advise on the right mortgage rate for you after reviewing your individual circumstances.

Yes there are different criteria for buy-to-let mortgages, Speak to a broker or use our dedicated buy-to-let mortgage calculator to begin with.