How Much Can I Borrow? UK Mortgage Affordability Guide 2025

Find out how much you can borrow for a mortgage in 2025. Learn income multiples, affordability rules, lender criteria and how to increase your borrowing power.

Understanding how much you can borrow is one of the most important steps in your mortgage journey. Whether you’re a first-time buyer, a home mover, or simply exploring your options for 2025, knowing your affordability early gives you confidence, direction, and realistic expectations.

This guide breaks down exactly how lenders calculate mortgage affordability in the UK, the rules they use, what impacts your borrowing power, and how to increase the amount you can borrow.

If you're a first-time buyer, you may find our dedicated first-time buyer mortgage support page helpful for understanding your options

What Determines How Much You Can Borrow?

Every UK lender uses two main methods to work out how much they can lend:

1. Income multiples

2. Affordability assessments

These are influenced by several factors:

✔ Your income

Salary, bonuses, overtime, benefits, or self-employed earnings.

✔ Your credit profile

Higher credit scores generally improve the lender options and borrowing amounts.

✔ Your monthly outgoings

Loans, credit cards, car finance, childcare, memberships, and regular spending.

✔ Your deposit size

Bigger deposits = better rates and potentially higher borrowing.

✔ Your mortgage term

Longer terms can increase borrowing (but increase total interest paid).

✔ Your age

Older applicants may be limited by maximum age at the end of the mortgage term.

Understanding Mortgage Income Multiples in 2025

Most lenders start with basic income multiples before adjusting for affordability.

Typical income multiples in 2025:

• 4x – 4.49x annual income → Standard range

• 4.75x – 5x → Good credit, stable income

• 5.5x → Certain lenders for higher earners, professionals, or very strong profiles

Examples:

• Income £30,000 → Borrowing approx. £120,000 – £135,000

• Income £40,000 → Borrowing approx. £160,000 – £180,000

• Joint income £60,000 → Borrowing approx. £240,000 – £270,000

• Joint income £80,000 → Borrowing approx. £320,000 – £400,000

Each lender has its own rules on bonuses, commission, benefits and overtime — which is where a broker becomes extremely useful.

How Lenders Calculate Affordability

While income multiples give a rough guide, affordability checks give the real answer.

Lenders assess:

✔ Income

• Basic salary

• Regular overtime (often averaged over 3–12 months)

• Bonuses (typically 50–100% depending on consistency)

• Commission

• Tax-free income

• Benefits (universal credit, PIP, child benefit — some lenders count these, some don’t)

  
  

✔ Self-employed income

• Sole traders: SA302/Tax Calculations + Tax Year Overviews

• Limited company directors: Salary + dividends OR salary + share of profit

  
  

✔ Outgoings

The lender will look at:

• Car finance

• Loans

• Credit cards

• Childcare costs

• Student loans

• School fees

• Committed subscriptions

• After-tax income remaining

  
  

✔ Credit behaviour

• Missed payments

• Overdraft use

• Payday loans

• BNPL patterns (Klarna etc.)

  
  

✔ Household composition

Children can reduce affordability due to living cost assumptions.

Every lender calculates affordability differently — which is why borrowing amounts can vary by tens of thousands of pounds between lenders.

Example Borrowing Calculations

Example 1 — Single Applicant

Income: £35,000No debts. Good credit.

• 4.49x → £157,150

• 5x (selected lenders) → £175,000

  
  

Example 2 — Joint Applicants

Combined income: £60,000Car finance: £250/month Credit card: £1,000 balance

Borrowing approx:

• £230,000 – £260,000 depending on lender

  
  

Example 3 — Self-Employed Buyer

Income: £28,000 (average over 2 years)No other commitments

Borrowing approx:

• £112,000 – £126,000

  
  

Example 4 — Higher Earner

Income: £55,000Clean credit Stable employment

• 5.5x available → Up to £302,500Not all lenders offer this, but it’s possible for certain professionals/high earners.

  
  

How Your Deposit Affects Borrowing Power

Deposit size affects:

• the interest rate you qualify for

• how willing lenders are to stretch affordability

• the risk profile (loan-to-value)

  
  

Typical thresholds:

• 95% LTV (5% deposit) → toughest affordability, higher rates

• 90% LTV (10% deposit) → improved options

• 85% LTV (15% deposit) → strong affordability position

• 75% LTV (25% deposit) → best rates + strongest affordability outcome

Increasing your deposit can sometimes allow lenders to offer a larger borrowing amount.

Documents You Need for an Affordability Check

Getting the right paperwork prepared early can streamline everything.

For employed applicants:

• 3 months’ payslips

• Latest P60

• 3 months’ bank statements

• Photo ID

• Proof of deposit

• Credit report

  
  

For self-employed applicants:

• SA302 tax documents

• Tax Year Overviews

• 1–2 years' accounts

• Business bank statements

• Accountant’s reference (if required)

Accurate documentation prevents delays and reduces the chance of affordability being downgraded by the lender.

How to Increase How Much You Can Borrow

If your borrowing amount isn’t quite where you need it to be, here are ways to increase it:

✔ Reduce debt

Paying off or reducing:

• car finance

• loans

• credit cards

…can significantly increase borrowing.

✔ Extend the mortgage term

A 30–35 year term reduces monthly payments, which can increase the amount a lender will allow.

✔ Improve your credit

Removing missed payments, reducing balances, and showing stable spending patterns all help.

✔ Increase your deposit

An extra few thousand can unlock better lenders and more borrowing.

✔ Use regular overtime or bonuses

If consistent, many lenders will count these.

✔ Joint Borrower, Sole Proprietor

Parents/partners can help improve affordability without owning the property.

✔ Speak to a broker

Every lender has different affordability rules — some may lend £30k–£60k more than others for the same applicant.

A quick broker assessment can show your best-case scenario.

If you're looking to switch your existing deal, our guide to remortgage options can help you understand when and how to secure a better rate.

Use Our Mortgage Affordability Calculator

To get an early idea of how much you could borrow, try our:

👉 mortgage affordability calculator, It gives you an instant, helpful estimate — and we can provide a more accurate figure based on your documents and lender criteria, to get a quick idea of your borrowing power, you can click mortgage affordability calculator.

Get a Personal Affordability Check

If you want a clearer understanding of your maximum borrowing power, we can run a personalised affordability check based on:

• your income

• your deposit

• your credit file

• your outgoings

• your goals

This gives you a true picture of your buying potential for 2025.

Book your free mortgage affordability chat with PD Finance today

Frequently Asked Questions

1. How do lenders decide how much I can borrow?

Lenders look at your income, regular outgoings, credit behaviour, deposit size and your monthly financial commitments. They use both income multiples and a detailed affordability assessment to work out your borrowing limit.

2. What income do lenders count towards borrowing?

Most lenders include basic salary, regular overtime, commission, bonuses, and some benefits. For self-employed people, lenders usually use your average income from the last 1–2 years of SA302s or company accounts.

3. Can I increase how much I can borrow?

Yes. Reducing debt, extending your mortgage term, improving your credit score, increasing your deposit, or using regular overtime/bonus income can all help increase borrowing power. A broker can also identify lenders with higher affordability limits.

4. What income multiple do lenders use in 2025?

Most lenders use between 4x and 4.49x your annual income. However, some lenders offer 4.75x, 5x or even 5.5x for certain professionals, strong credit profiles or higher earners.

5. Does debt affect how much I can borrow?

Yes — even a small car finance payment or loan can significantly reduce borrowing. Lenders include monthly repayment commitments in their affordability models, so clearing debt can increase the amount you can borrow.

6. How does my credit score impact my borrowing limit?

A stronger credit score usually gives access to more lenders and potentially higher income multiples. A weaker score may limit your borrowing options, or increase the deposit required.

7. Do lenders look at my bank statements?

Yes. Lenders review the last 3 months of bank statements to check spending patterns, committed transactions, regular bills, loan repayments, and affordability behaviour.

8. Should I use a mortgage calculator or get personalised advice?

A calculator gives a good starting point, but lenders all calculate affordability differently. A broker can provide a personalised, accurate borrowing figure based on your credit profile, income, and outgoings — which is often very different from calculator estimates.

When you're ready for tailored advice, you can book your free affordability chat and we’ll calculate your true borrowing limit based on your documents.

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The information in this article is for guidance only and does not constitute personal advice. Mortgage recommendations will depend on your individual circumstances.

We do not charge a fee when you stay with your current lender (a Product Transfer). Our typical fees are £250 for a remortgage, £500 for a purchase mortgage, and £750 for adverse credit mortgages. The exact fee will depend on your circumstances and will be confirmed at your free initial consultation.

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