Can I get a mortgage if I am freelance?
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The Financial Conduct Authority does not regulate Most Buy to Let Mortgages.
Your property may be repossessed if you do not keep up with your mortgage repayments.
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Can I get a mortgage if I am freelance? (Part 1)
Anthony McQuilliam explains how the mortgage process works if you are a freelancer. Episode one of two, recorded in April 2025.
Podcast approved by The Openwork Partnership on 24/4/25.
Can you get a mortgage as a freelancer? How difficult is it?
Of course. It depends on the way you’re set up, but it’s relatively simple. It’s not that different from a standard self-employed person applying for a mortgage.
As long as you’ve got historic proof that your business is earning a profit, be it one year’s accounts, or two with some lenders, it’s no more difficult to get a mortgage.
How do I know if I’m classed as a freelancer? How long do you have to be a freelancer before getting a mortgage?
You’ll know if you’re a freelancer, if that’s what you do for work. You might be helping a few businesses out with their social media or marketing, for example.
From a mortgage lender’s perspective, if you’re a self-employed freelancer you need to have been doing it for a minimum of 12 months on a mortgage application.
Can I get a mortgage if I’m employed with a part-time freelance income?
You can, but this massively depends on the kind of income. If it’s on a zero hour contract, lenders are going to want to see proof over a longer period, such as 12 months. Even though you’re PAYE, if it’s on a freelance zero hour contract, you may need to show your track record of work.
If you are working somewhere on an ongoing basis, it’ll be no different than for a standard employed person.
What types of mortgages can I get if I’m a freelancer?
There are no mortgages specifically for freelancers, although some lenders’ criteria naturally favour people in that particular route. For example, if you are freelancing and self-employed for the last 12 months, some lenders will lend to you – others won’t.
Again, if you’re freelance on PAYE for a couple of different companies, some lenders will take 100% of that income if you’ve been doing it for long enough.
How much deposit do you need for a mortgage as a freelancer?
You can still get a mortgage as a freelancer with a 5% deposit, subject to having good credit and the affordability all stacking up. You don’t necessarily need a bigger deposit to get a mortgage as a freelancer.
How do lenders assess mortgages for freelancers? What do I need to do to apply for a mortgage as a freelancer?
It depends if you’re a freelancer that’s employed or self-employed. If you’re self-employed, you will need your last two years’ accounts, for the majority of lenders, to show that your business is sustainable and has been profitable in the long term.
But some lenders will take you on if you’ve been self-employed for 12 months. It just limits the pool of lenders that you can go to.
If you’re employed, you need the last three months’ payslips. If it’s a zero-hour contract, you need 12 months proof of this. Ultimately, this is where speaking to somebody who specialises in mortgages for freelancers will pay dividends.
If you’re speaking to a particular broker or lender that’s not too fond of this criteria, you may be told you can’t get a mortgage or you can borrow less. In reality, that’s just not the case.
Can I get a mortgage as a freelancer with fluctuating income?
Yes, of course. We get asked this a lot, but you definitely can. A lender tends to look at the average of the last three to 12 months, depending on how your income is set out as a PAYE employee.
However, if you’re a self-employed freelancer, they just look at the average of your last 12 months to figure out how much profit you’ve earned. That’s how they calculate your income. If it’s fluctuating, you can still get a mortgage – they average out what you have earned.
YOUR PROPERTY MAY BE REPOSSESSED IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP REPAYMENTS ON YOUR MORTGAGE.
Approved by The Openwork Partnership on 24/4/25.
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Can I get a mortgage if I am freelance? (Part 2)
Anthony McQuilliam continues the conversation on mortgages and freelancers. Episode two of two, recorded in April 2025.
Podcast approved by The Openwork Partnership on 24/4/25.
Should I go freelance or wait for my mortgage to go through first?
If you are looking at going freelance, especially very close after getting your mortgage, you have to legally let the lender know about any potential changes in your future income. You do need to make your lender aware if that is something that you plan on doing.
Are mortgages for freelancers more expensive?
Not necessarily. It massively depends on your personal situation. Plenty of lenders will lend to you as a freelancer, as long as you’ve been doing it long enough and you have proof.
Some of these are high street lenders.
It just depends on your personal situation, how much deposit you’ve got and your credit, which is the main thing that dictates the interest rates you qualify for. It’s not so much about your employment status.
Can I get a Buy to Let mortgage as a freelancer?
You can. With Buy to Let lenders, as long you own your own residential property, many don’t need you to have a minimum income. You just prove you have an income, and many will lend to you regardless.
A Buy to Let purchase has much less requirement for a high income in comparison to a residential.
Can I get a mortgage as a freelancer if I have bad credit?
You can. A lot of lenders will be very strict when it comes to bad credit. But if you’re speaking to the right lender and you’ve got a big enough deposit, there are still options if you have bad credit plus freelancer income.
You may be paying a higher interest rate, because you’re seen as high risk to the lenders. In turn, they charge more for the money they lend you.
Can I get a joint mortgage as a freelancer?
Yes, you can. Let’s say, for example, you are a freelancer and your partner has just got a standard salaried job. Lenders would still assess your income according to how you’re set up as a freelancer, whether it’s employed or self-employed. Then they would just assess your partner’s income as a standard employed person.
It’s very normal, and taking out a joint mortgage also means you’ve got a second income to include in the affordability.
How can I boost my chances of getting a mortgage as a freelancer?
There are three main things – the trifecta of getting yourself agreed for a mortgage. The first one is your deposit. With all situations, the bigger deposit you’ve got, the more lenders may lend to you and the more attractive the interest rates will be.
Also, if you’ve had a couple of issues with your credit, a larger deposit will allow you to be accepted.
The next one is your credit. The better your credit report and your credit score, the higher your chance of the mortgage being accepted. That’s another element to work on to make it easier to get approved for a mortgage.
The third one is your income. You will need proof of your income, which could vary depending on the lender you go with and the way you’re set up is as a freelancer. If you’re self-employed, that means having your tax calculations, or if you’re employed it’s the relevant payslips.
Once you’ve got those three boxes ticked, most lenders will assess how much they’ll be able to lend you and get your mortgage agreed.
How do I apply for a mortgage as a freelancer? What do freelancers need when making a mortgage application?
Ultimately, if you are speaking to a particular lender direct, or a broker that hasn’t got experience in dealing with freelancers, you may be told you can’t get a mortgage or you can’t quite borrow the money that you need.
It’s much better to speak to somebody that has experience in freelancer mortgages. You’ve got a much greater chance of success because they’ve dealt with your situation in the past. They’ll know which lenders to look at to get your mortgage approved.
As a freelancer, before you even think about viewing properties, it’s worth sitting down with a financial advisor or mortgage broker for a conversation about your situation. If you’re not quite ready to buy yet, we can put a plan in place to get you prepared.
Then, when you’re ready to go out and start looking at properties, you’ve ticked all the boxes and you’ll be in a better position to purchase a property than any others looking at the same home.
MOST BUY TO LET MORTGAGES ARE NOT REGULATED BY THE FINANCIAL CONDUCT AUTHORITY.
YOUR PROPERTY MAY BE REPOSSESSED IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP REPAYMENTS ON YOUR MORTGAGE.
Approved by The Openwork Partnership on 24/4/25.