How much can my client borrow?

We take a range of factors into account to determine how much an applicant can borrow. Our calculation aims to ensure each customer has a sufficient proportion of their income remaining, after taking account of their mortgage repayments, to cover their additional outgoings, including, on a generic basis, household and lifestyle costs.

Affordability calculator

This will allow you to check how much we might lend your client without having to undertake a full Decision in Principle which will involve credit scoring your client.

Go to affordability calculator

Accounts/Accountants' Certificate

• Sole traders and partnerships - use the applicant's share of the most recent net profit figure, as confirmed by the Accountant's Certificate.

• Directors of limited companies with more than 20% shareholding - use the relevant director's remuneration and any share of dividends quoted in the Accountant's Certificate. Treat remuneration and dividends as gross for tax purposes.

Drafts, estimates or projections of figures are not to be used in any circumstances

Fast Track

Fast Track eligibility is determined by a number of factors including loan amount, employment type, loan purpose, income source and application type.

Applications will only be considered for Fast Track when the LTV is 75% or less.

• Where one or more applicants are defined as self employed an application will not be Fast Tracked regardless of whether we are relying on their income. See above for definitions of self employed.

Applicants must be advised of our standard income and past payment history proof requirements (see below) in all cases but where a case qualifies for Fast Track, the following proofs are not required:

• evidence of income or
• evidence of past payment history

Please note we reserve the right to request income proofs where a case has been deemed Fast Track eligible. This includes our standard practice of checking a proportion of applications to verify income.

Where a director of a business owns 20% or less of the company they are regarded as employed and may be considered for Fast Track.

Sources of Acceptable Income

Proof of income is a requirement of Nationwide and we reserve the right to request proofs for any applications received.

*For applicants who are within 5 years of retirement, when we assess how much we are prepared to lend we will use the lower of the anticipated retirement income figure or calculated current income figure.

Proofs

Acceptable proofs of Payment history.

Please note, applicants must not have exceeded 3 months' arrears in the last 3 years.

Mortgage payment history can be evidenced using:

• The last annual mortgage statement (covering 12 months' payments)
• Where a statement covers less than 6 months payments and is over 6 months old. The last 3 bank statements are required 
• Where the above is unavailable. An existing lender's reference is required

Tenancy payment history can be evidenced using:

• A reference - where the landlord is a local authority, housing association, or commercial letting company
• A rent book or bank statements covering a period of 12 months - where the landlord is not one of the above

Clients with Additional Properties

Where your client will own more than one mortgaged property on completion of their new loan with Nationwide the maximum LTV is 85%.

Where your client will own only one other property in addition to their new purchase/remortgage through Nationwide, and that property is mortgage free, normal lending terms apply

For information about products please see our products, loan size and maximum LTV criteria.If your client owns more than one property, we require all addresses and mortgage details.

• Let properties are treated as self-financing where the rent received is at least 125% of the current mortgage payments.
• Where let properties are mortgage free a percentage of the total monthly rent received will be treated as income.
• Rent must have been received for a minimum of one month at the point the application was submitted and we will require up to date bank statements to confirm this.
• A copy of the signed tenancy agreement is required.

If the property is covered by an accountant's certificate/2 years accounts, no tenancy agreement/bank statements are required and rental income, mortgage payments and mortgage debt for the let properties can be ignored. The net profit/director's remuneration or dividends figure should be used as income.

For properties let abroad on a long term basis treat as self financing and no tenancy agreement or bank statements are required.

Note: If the new mortgage will be the customers third or more property in mortgage to Nationwide the application will need to be referred to our Risk Policy Department by your usual Service Centre for approval to proceed.