NHS Mortgage
- A team of down to earth mortgage advisers
- Working for you to find the right lender from a huge panel
- Designed to save you time (and a few headaches!)
- Experienced in Bad Credit Mortgages
Get in touch for an initial fee free, no-obligation chat with an adviser about the most suitable mortgage option for you.
The Financial Conduct Authority does not regulate some Buy to Let Mortgages.
Your property may be repossessed if you do not keep up with your mortgage repayments.
NHS Mortgage
- A team of down to earth mortgage advisers
- Working for you to find the right lender from a huge panel
- Designed to save you time (and a few headaches!)
Get in touch for an initial fee free, no-obligation chat with an adviser about the most suitable mortgage option for you.
Your property may be repossessed if you do not keep up with your mortgage repayments.
The Financial Conduct Authority does not regulate some Buy to Let Mortgages.
NHS Mortgage
Anthony McQuilliam answers frequently-Googled questions on NHS mortgages.
Are there specific mortgages tailored to the NHS?
A lot of people believe there’s a particular mortgage set up just for NHS people – but this isn’t actually the case. But while there isn’t a particular lender that specialises in mortgages for people who work for the NHS, there are lenders out there that take a more modern approach on assessing NHS payslips, for example.
A lot of lenders will only accept 100% of your basic pay, and won’t assess any of your bank shifts, shift allowances or enhancements. The amount you could borrow may be much less with this kind of lender, compared with one that will accept this income for a mortgage.
Is it easier to get a mortgage if you work for the NHS?
One of the good things about working for such a huge organisation is that there is always work there for you. Lenders do obviously see the fact that you work for the NHS in a good light.
But you will still be assessed with the same criteria as a non-NHS worker. So you still need a deposit of 5% as a bare minimum and your income will need to ensure you can afford the mortgage. You also need to make sure that your credit’s still good and all your payments are up to date.
How do I know if I qualify for an NHS mortgage?
The application process is exactly the same. You need to get your Agreement in Principle arranged upfront. This pre-approves you and confirms how much you can borrow.
One of the things to look out for if you have shift enhancements and bank pay slips is that while you could get your Agreement in Principle upfront today, if your income is slightly higher or lower on your next payslip it could change the maximum amount you can borrow.
So the process may be slightly different because of extra shift enhancements, but in general it is still similar to somebody that doesn’t work for the NHS.
Can I get a mortgage worth five times my salary?
Yes, potentially, and this is exactly the same whether you work for the NHS or not. A lot of lenders will allow you to borrow five times your salary, but you usually need to meet a minimum income criteria to qualify, depending on the lender. They do vary massively.
The minimum income criteria can range from £50,000 up to £75,000 depending on the lender. With other lenders, not only do you need to match the income criteria, you also need to have a minimum deposit – usually in the region of 15%. So if you’ve got a high income and a 15% deposit it really does open your possibilities.
There’s also a particular scheme for First Time Buyers at the moment known as the Helping Hand scheme. If you earn the required income and match the affordability criteria, you can borrow up to 5.5 times your salary, which is a massive increase for you.
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How much can I borrow and what deposit do I need?
With borrowing, lenders look at the income per application. So, for example, if you earn £30,000 and your partner earns £50,000 they would take £80,000 for the affordability criteria. If you have no major commitments in the background you could usually borrow in the region of 4.5 to 5.5 times your combined salaries. Again this is massively dependent on which lender we approach.
If you’ve got a higher deposit as we mentioned previously and a good income, you’re going to have a better chance of getting accepted for higher income multiples. If you’ve got a lower deposit such as 5% or 10% and a lower income, you might get 4.5 times your salary.
The minimum deposit is 5%, but because the lender sees you as higher risk, they may charge you a slightly higher interest rate than if you had a bigger deposit of 10% or 15%.
For every extra 5% of a deposit you can get together you will qualify for for cheaper rates. So the bigger deposit you’ve got, the more you can borrow and the easier it is to get the mortgage. Plus, your interest rates tend to be slightly cheaper.
Can you use nursing bank shifts for a mortgage?
This is one of the big things for NHS workers. We end up helping out a lot of clients where they’ve gone directly to their bank or building society and are told that they can’t use any of the bank shifts as income. The bank wants to see the most recent P60 or 12 months worth of consistent bank shifts to get the mortgage agreed.
However, there are lenders out there that will look at an average of the last three months. So if you’ve been doing consistent nursing bank shifts for the last 13 weeks, the lender would calculate your earnings for the year based on that period. They would use 100% of that income – which can make a huge difference in how much you can borrow.
Can lenders use shift enhancements for a mortgage application?
Yes, they can indeed and again, this is one of the big benefits of working for the NHS. You get your basic salary, but if you’re doing your night shifts or weekends you get extra enhancements. That can substantially increase your income.
As with bank shifts, if you’re looking at a lender that will use 100% of your nursing bank and all your shift enhancements, it can make a huge difference in the quality of the property you can buy.
Do NHS mortgages have any restrictions or limitations?
No, there’s no more limitation on an NHS mortgage as there is on a standard mortgage. The only limitation is if you’re looking at an incorrect lender for your situation. The amount that you can borrow can fluctuate massively with a lender that will take 100% of your income compared to someone that will only take 50% of it.
The main restrictions are the same as everybody else. Just make sure the lender will assess 100% of your income.
How can a mortgage advisor help?
One of the big things that I want to highlight is that it’s important to speak to a mortgage advisor way in advance of actually going out and looking at properties. Because your income fluctuates so dramatically you need to know exactly how much you can borrow. The right broker will make sure to use 100% of your income and allowances and bank shifts. If you leave it too late it could result in you borrowing substantially less.
And again, going directly to your bank may not always be the best option because they only have access to one set of rates and one set of criteria. If that bank won’t use your bank shifts or allowances then it could massively reduce the amount that you can borrow. So do have a chat with a broker as soon as you start thinking about buying a home.
Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up with your mortgage repayments.
Approved by the Openwork Partnership on 28/02/2023.
Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up with your mortgage repayments.
