Our criteria is listed in alphabetical order to enable you to quickly find the information that you require.
If you do need further information then please contact our team on
0808 281 9309
Maximum acreage acceptable is 5 Acres. Up to 10 Acres considered on a case by case basis.
Missed payments
Secured & Unsecured Debt – A maximum of 1 month’s arrears on one account within last 12 months may be considered.
For secured debt the account must have been up to date for at least 6 months prior to application. For unsecured debt the account must be brought up to date prior to application.
Defaults & CCJ’s
CCJ’s/Defaults with a combined value of less than £500 can be considered if registered more than three years ago and settled at least 6 months prior to application.
Bankruptcy/IVA
Can be considered if discharged for at least 6 years.
Debt Management Plan
Unaccepted.
Applications must pass the Society’s affordability assessment with a surplus net disposable income.
Minimum age 18, maximum age at 85.
Maximum applicants 4 – we will consider the two highest incomes only.
Apprenticeship income may be accepted where the applicant has a minimum 12-month apprenticeship contract with at least 6 months remaining.
Subject to no other adverse credit, we will accept an arrangement for up to 3 months on one Communications, Credit Card, Mail Order or Utility account within the last 12 months. The account must have been brought up to date.
Any BTL properties in the background will be ignored where The ICR coverage meets 125% at 5.5%.
Can be considered if discharged for at least 6 years.
We can accept the following benefit income:
* Benefit income must be a secondary source of income and cannot form more than 50% of the total income being used for affordability
Guaranteed Overtime, Guaranteed Bonuses taken at 100% for affordability.
Commission Regular Bonus and regular overtime taken at 50% for affordability.
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Purchasing a residential property |
95% |
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Remortgaging a residential property (like for like) |
95% |
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Purchasing/remortgaging a residential property with BTL in the background |
95% |
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Purchasing/remortgaging a Shared Ownership property |
95%* |
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Purchasing/remortgaging a second residential property |
75% |
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Property extension |
80% |
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Non-structural home improvements |
90% |
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Structural home improvements |
80% |
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Buy freehold title or new extended lease |
75% |
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Buy a share in the freehold |
75% |
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Buy land to extend security |
75% |
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Buy out partner’s interest (non-borrower) |
95% |
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Buy land or property separate from the security |
75% |
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Repay Help to Buy Equity Loan |
95% |
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Personal consumption |
75% |
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Pay off second charge (if for debt consolidation) |
75% |
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Pay off second charge (not for debt consolidation) |
95% |
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Debt Consolidation |
75% |
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Right to Buy |
100% |
The broker fee must not exceed the lower of 1.5% of the mortgage loan amount or £1,500. Any fee above this limit will be reviewed on submission and may result in the application being declined.
CCJ’s/Defaults with a combined value of less than £500 can be considered if registered more than three years ago and settled at least 6 months prior to application.
We can lend up to 75% LTV, with up to £500,000 available for capital raising within the total mortgage amount, subject to criteria.
Guaranteed Overtime and Guaranteed Bonuses taken at 100% for affordability.
Commission, Regular Bonus and regular overtime taken at 50% for affordability.
Fixed-term contracts are acceptable where the applicant
A minimum of 6 months remaining on the current contract, or a new/renewed contract, is required in the same line of work.
The maximum amount of capital raising for debt consolidation purposes is limited to 30% of the property value and up to 75% of the LTV. Allowed once in the lifetime of the mortgage
Unaccepted.
CCJ’s/Defaults with a combined value of less than £500 can be considered if registered more than three years ago and settled at least 6 months prior to application.
Personal savings.
Non repayable gift from a family member.
Sale/remortgage of existing property.
Forces Help to Buy.
Where there are concerns about the external wall construction (cladding) for all flats then the valuer needs to obtain a EWS1 form which must be completed by a suitably qualified person, only options A1, A2 & B1 are acceptable.
Applicants must be in permanent full or part time employment and continuously employed for the last six months.
Applicants must not be under notice of termination of employment or notice of redundancy.
We don’t accept contractors employed through an umbrella company.
Fixed-term contracts are acceptable where the applicant
A minimum of 6 months remaining on the current contract, or a new/renewed contract, is required in the same line of work.
Yes- up to 95% LTV
Only the placement income / fee element of the statement, which excludes maintenance payments, payments in respect of travel, clothing, Christmas etc., can be taken into account for mortgage purposes
Ground Rent must not be onerous and must adhere to the Renters Rights Act. Reasonability is subject to the Valuer’s professional opinion.
We can consider:
Lending into retirement, minimum income £20,000 (single or joint)
For lending in retirement there is a minimum income requirement of £20,000 and for lending into retirement there is a post retirement minimum income of £20,000.
Loan to Value restrictions apply where we are Lending in Retirement and Lending into Retirement, please see Maximum Age section for details.
5x main income or 5x joint income for loans up to 90% LTV.
4.49x main income or 4.49x joint income for loans up to 95% LTV.
6x main income or 6x joint income for loans of up to 95% LTV, can be considered subject to referral.
Shared Ownership applications are restricted to a 4.49% main income or 4.49x joint income.
We will allow up to 4 borrowers and will consider the two highest incomes only.
Acceptable Repayment Strategies
|
Repayment Vehicle |
What We Accept |
|---|---|
|
Investment Plan |
A plan with a projected maturity value that covers the interest‑only loan. |
|
Sale of Property (Downsizing) |
Enough equity to sell the current home and buy another mortgage‑free, based on today’s prices. Term must not exceed eldest borrowers 75th Birthday |
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Other Assets (Property/Land) |
Wholly owned, easily saleable assets in England/Wales with equity equal to or above the interest‑only balance. |
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Savings |
Accessible GBP savings in the UK with realistic growth to repay the loan. |
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Pension Lump Sum |
Projected pension lump sum equal to the interest‑only amount. |
We can consider leasehold properties where at least 50 years will remain on the lease at the end of the mortgage term.
For new build properties, the lease term at completion must be a minimum of 125 years for flats and 250 years for houses
We can consider employed and self-employed applicants whose mortgage term extends beyond their expected retirement date.
When lending past age 70 please note underwriting will complete additional checks on the appropriateness of the applicant’s role if earned income is used for affordability purposes. For more information see the Retirement Income section.
Residential
Shared Ownership
Right to Buy
First time buyers
Interest only
Second Residential
England (Including Isle of Wight) & Wales.
Shared ownership properties in England only.
For the purpose of the affordability assessment, if income will be reduced whilst on maternity/paternity leave, this reduced income rather than the current income will be taken into account when calculating affordability.
Where affordability cannot be proven during the maternity/paternity leave, this is acceptable subject to evidence of savings to cover any shortfall of income.
A further affordability assessment will also be carried out to take into account the income following return to work if applicable. This affordability assessment will take into account any reduced hours and the proposed childcare costs if the applicant is returning to work.
The term of the mortgage must not extend beyond the 85th birthday of the oldest applicant. We offer 80% LTV for lending into retirement and 70% LTV lending in retirement.
Maximum age 85.
Lending into Retirement is when either borrower is not currently reliant on a pension and will go beyond the sooner of their 70th birthday or stated expected retirement date before the end of the mortgage term.
Post retirement minimum income £20,000.
Lending in Retirement is when either borrower has stated they have retired or there is a reliance on the pension income to service the mortgage repayments at mortgage completion.
Minimum income £20,000.
Shared Ownership - up to the earlier of the elected retirement date or 70th birthday.
95%¹ - £500,000
85% - £600,000
80% - £750,000
75% - £1,500,000 (£500,000 for capital raising)
Capital Raising - 75% max £500,000 (debt consolidations limited to 30% of property value).
¹Applicants must have at least one (sole applicant) and two (joint applicants) active and satisfactory credit lines evident at the credit bureaux, excluding communications and mail order.
Loan to Value restrictions apply where we are Lending in Retirement and Lending into Retirement, please see Maximum Age section for details.
18
Lending into retirement, minimum income £20,000 (single or joint)
£25,000.00
£50,000
5 years - 40 years.
Secured & Unsecured Debt – A maximum of 1 month’s arrears on one account within last 12 months may be considered.
For secured debt the account must have been up to date for at least 6 months prior to application. For unsecured debt the account must be brought up to date prior to application.
Any property which has been built/converted within the last 10 years must hold an acceptable guarantee/certificate.
Acceptable warranty providers for new build properties are:
Other guarantee/certificates are considered on a case-by-case basis.
Maximum applicants 4 – we will consider the two highest incomes only.
Applicants who have taken out a pay day loan within the last three years are not acceptable.
£50,000
Residential properties permanently affixed to land, which are not mentioned in the unacceptable security section, are suitable security for mortgage lending subject to confirmation from the valuation report.
Where the customer is looking to extend the property, consideration will be given subject to a maximum LTV of 80% at the outset, based on the current property valuation.
Minimum property value £50,000
Repayment.
Interest Only - up to 75% LTV.
Where a loan is taken out on an interest only basis, confirmation and evidence of a credible repayment strategy for the repayment of the capital at the end of the term is required.
Part & Part (Interest only element cannot exceed 75% LTV).
We accept applications from customers who are currently resident in the UK and have a minimum 3 years' UK address history.
Applicants must also be:
Applicants Currently Retired
We can consider retired applicants with:
Applicants Retiring in less than 10 Years
We'll require:
Applicants Retiring in 10 Years or More
For more information see our Lending in retirement section.
The Society may lend up to 100% of the purchase price with any fees being paid from the customer(s) own resources.
Home improvements can be funded by the mortgage, subject to estimates and providing the Loan to Value does not exceed 85% of the improved value.
Where LTV exceeds 80%, it is a requirement that the customer contributes at least 5%.
Unacceptable:-
Ex-Local Authority flats
Right to Acquire applications
Acceptable purpose for a 2nd residential property includes:
• Holiday home
• To live in during the week working away from the family home
• To accommodate a dependent relative’
Second Residential loans are capped at 75% LTV
Minimum trading period is 2 years.
An average income over the last two years will be assessed or the latest income will be applied if lower. Income is defined as:
Sole Traders and Partners - applicant’s share of the net profit.
Directors of limited companies (25% or greater shareholding). A total of applicant's share of net profit and their salary.
We don’t accept contractors employed through an umbrella company.
We only accept shared ownership properties in England for those eligible to take part in the scheme and who have the option to staircase until they own 100% of their home.
Applicants Share to be between 25% and 75%
Min loan £25k max loan £500k
Lending into retirement is not permitted
Max 95% LTV of the purchase share
Concentration per development is restricted to 20% of the shared ownership properties
Capital and interest repayment method only
Solar panels will be considered subject to the Valuer’s recommendations.
Where the panels are leased, a copy of the lease documentation will be required for submission with the application for approval by the Society. The lease must contain agreement for removal of the panels, at no cost to the Society, should the Society take the property into possession.
Freehold (houses only). Leasehold properties must have at least 75 years remaining on the lease at the end of the mortgage term.
Remortgage applications where the applicant has not owned the property for six months.
Capital raising for business or investment purposes or to fund living costs.
Loans are not available for investment purposes.
Purchase of land adjoining the Society 's unless the land to be purchased is covered by the Society's charge.
Applicants who have taken out a pay day loan within the last three years.
Purchase/remortgage of a property owned by applicant’s own business.
Bridging finance.
Foreign Currency Loans.
Self-build.
Lending to social landlords.
Lifetime mortgages.
The Society doesn't currently accept anyone on a visa.
The Society will consider zero hour contracts as an acceptable employment type on the following
basis:
• Restricted to stable, skilled/semi-skilled industries where employment opportunities are
stable – refer to the Society for acceptable industries.
The applicant must have been employed in the same type of employment/industry for the last two years.
We don’t accept contractors employed through an umbrella company.
