Joint Mortgage One Self-Employed, One Employed image
Contact Us

Joint Mortgage One Self-Employed, One Employed

  • 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.

Most buy to let mortgages are not regulated by The Financial Conduct Authority.

Your property may be repossessed if you do not keep up with your mortgage repayments.

Get in touch

1 Step 1


The internet is not a secure medium and the privacy of your data cannot be guaranteed. 

reCaptcha v3
keyboard_arrow_leftPrevious
Nextkeyboard_arrow_right
Joint Mortgage One Self-Employed, One Employed image

Joint Mortgage One Self-Employed, One Employed 

Anthony McQuilliam explains how a joint mortgage works if one person is self-employed and the other is employed.

Podcast approved by The Openwork Partnership on 20/10/2025.

Can we get a joint mortgage if one person is self-employed and the other is employed?

Yes, of course you can. Lenders assess each of you on an individual basis. For the employed person, they assess your income under the standard employed criteria. That means looking at the last three months’ payslips, and if you get a bonus, overtime or commission, potentially the last three months of those or your most recent P60.

They would assess the self-employed person under their self-employed criteria. If you’re with a lender that will look at the last two years’ accounts, they would assess that and add it to the total annual household income.

Or, it might be a lender that will just take the most recent year’s accounts, in which case they’ll go down that route to add all the income together and figure out how much to lend you.

Can you get a bigger mortgage if one person is self-employed? How much can you borrow?

The only way you’d get a bigger mortgage is by earning more money. It all comes down to how much you earn and the lender’s income multiple.

Ultimately if you earn more money, you can borrow more from the banks. You can’t just borrow more because you are self-employed – that just isn’t how it works. But if you earn more as a self-employed person than you would being employed, you’d be able to borrow more. It’s all about your income.

How does one person being self-employed affect eligibility for a joint mortgage?

It doesn’t. One of you being self-employed won’t reduce the chances of you getting a mortgage – or have any major impact.

There are, however, some joint schemes where first-time buyers can potentially borrow up to six times their salary if both applicants are employed. If one of you is self-employed, that wouldn’t be available to you.

Beyond that, though, other than certain lenders capping how much they can lend you or limiting their income multiple, being employed or self-employed shouldn’t make much difference.

Are there any specific requirements or restrictions on joint mortgages if one person is self-employed and one employed?

There aren’t specific requirements other than the documents involved. If you’re self-employed, rather than looking at your last two or three months’ payslips, they want to see longer documented proof of your income.

They need to check that your business is sustainable in the long-run. We would need 12 or 24 months’ income, as shown on your tax calculations and tax year overviews. That’s the only part that would be different.

Speak to an expert

Our highly experienced Advisers are ready to help you with either buying or remortgaging a home, protecting your property and lifestyle along with saving you time and effort, ensuring you have a competitive deal right for you.

What obstacles are there for self-employed individuals when applying for a joint mortgage with someone who is employed?

The obstacles would be the same as for two self-employed people applying. First, you need to have your accounts done to give you proof of how much you’ve earned and submitted to the tax man.

You’d also need to make sure that you have decent credit. Bad credit doesn’t necessarily stop you getting a mortgage, but it does reduce the options and the lenders available. They’re the main two potential hurdles if you’re self-employed.

What do the self-employed need to know about income assessment for a joint mortgage with an employed person?

If you’re self-employed, you need longer term, documented proof of your income. If you have only been self-employed for six months, for example, that may potentially cause an issue compared to having 12 or 24 months’ proof of income.

If you have an accountant or you can document how much you have put through the tax man, that should be enough to get yourself a mortgage.

What factors do lenders take into account when assessing affordability of a mortgage for joint self-employed and employed applicants?

There are a few factors they consider. They’ll look into your commitments, such as credit cards, loans, hire purchases and how many dependents you’ve got. They also take a look at the overall income.

If your partner’s employed and you’re self-employed, they want to document your total income on the application to calculate what mortgage is affordable for you.

The term comes into play as well. Having a 10-year mortgage term or a 35-year term may increase or decrease the amount you can borrow, depending on the situation.

Are there any specific types of joint mortgage products designed for where only one applicant is self-employed?

Not at the moment.

Can you benefit from any government schemes when applying for a joint mortgage when one person is self-employed?

No, at the moment there are no specific schemes from the government, either.

Are there many lenders or brokers for joint mortgage applications where only one is self-employed?

Whether you’re employed or self-employed, no lenders will turn you down for a mortgage just because of how you earn an income. Every lender will potentially be able to lend to you.

It’s just subject to you meeting their criteria, which might require one, two or three years’ accounts. As long as you’ve been trading for a certain period of time, you have access to a deposit, your credit’s okay and you’ve got documented proof of your income, you have access to the exact same lenders as an employed person.

It’s relatively easy to get you a joint mortgage in this situation – particularly because we’ve got the experience. We’ve been helping the self-employed get mortgages for many years.

Make sure you’re speaking to someone who’s dealt with a lot of self-employed people in the past – it can make or break the mortgage application. It could be the difference between you getting the perfect house for yourself or settling for a property that’s a lot smaller.

YOUR PROPERTY MAY BE REPOSSESSED IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP REPAYMENTS ON YOUR MORTGAGE.

Podcast approved by The Openwork Partnership on 20/10/2025.

Useful Links