Right, the big question.
How much can you actually borrow?
You’ve probably heard the rumour. “Lenders will offer 4 times your income. Or even 4.5 times income.”
Nice idea. Not true.
Your income matters, sure. The more you earn, the more you can borrow. But lenders also look at your spending, your debts, your
commitments, even how long you want the mortgage for.
Let’s break it down properly.
What’s an “income multiple”?
It’s just your income times a number, to estimate borrowing.
Say you earn £40,000:
4 × £40,000 = £160,000
4.5 × £40,000 = £180,000
Two of you buying together, each earning £30,000? Combined that’s £60,000:
4 × £60,000 = £240,000
4.5 × £60,000 = £270,000
Handy for a rough idea. Not a promise. Some people get offered more. Some get less. It
depends.
So why can’t I just do the maths myself?
Because lenders don’t just want to know what you earn. They want to know what you can
actually afford.
Every lender has its own way of working this out, and they all now use an affordability calculator.
So the same two people, same income, same everything — one lender says yes to a bigger
number, another says no. That’s just how it works.
What counts as “income”?
Basic salary is the standard & 100% of this is accepted by every lender in the UK.
Other types of accepted income include:
Regular overtime
Bonuses
Commission
A second job
Self-employed income
Rental Income
Car Allowance
Pension income
Certain benefits
Here’s the catch: not every lender treats these the same way. One might barely count your
bonus. Another might count it fully. Annoying, but true.
Do my debts drag down what I can borrow?
Yep. They can. Things like:
Personal loans
Student loan
Car finance
Credit card balances
Hire purchase
Maintenance payments
Childcare costs
School fees
Any other regular commitment
Picture this.
Buyer A earns £40k, no debts.
Buyer B earns £40k too, but has a chunky car finance payment and a loan.
Same salary. Different story when it comes to what they can borrow.
The amount Buyer B can borrow will be reduced due to the loan payments.
That’s the whole point. Salary alone tells you nothing.
Does having a credit card wreck my chances?
No. Having a credit card is fine.
But your balance, and whether you’re paying it off in full or not, or how close you are to the credit limit, that gets looked at.
Your credit history in general matters too.
What about student loans?
Yes, that counts too. It eats into your take-home pay, so lenders factor it in. They look at the monthly payment deducted from your payslip, not the balance you owe.
Kids. Do they change anything?
They can. Dependants and childcare costs are part of the affordability picture.
Doesn’t mean having kids blocks you from a mortgage. It just means the cost of raising them is factored in before deciding how much you can borrow.
Does the mortgage term matter?
Yes, and here’s the trade-off.
Longer term = smaller monthly payments. Feels easier now.
But longer term also = more interest paid overall. Costs you more in the long run.
Your age and the lender’s own rules can also limit which terms you’re even offered.
Buying with someone else?
If you’re going in together, the lender looks at both incomes. Good.
But they also look at both sets of debts and commitments. So:
Income 1 + Income 2 should give you a bigger mortgage, however
the lender still runs the full affordability check on you both, together.
Okay, so what can I actually afford?
To work this out you need two pieces of information: the mortgage amount you can borrow, plus your deposit.
(A mortgage affordability calculator will tell you how much you can borrow).
Example:
Mortgage: £225,000 Deposit: £25,000 = £250,000 house price.
But don’t forget the extra costs — solicitors, surveys, moving. Don’t throw every last pound
at the deposit.
Just because you CAN borrow it, doesn’t mean you SHOULD
This one trips people up constantly.
Lender says you can have £250,000? Great. Doesn’t mean you should take it.
Think about what’s left over for:
Council tax
Gas and electricity
Water
Home insurance
Food
Transport
Repairs and maintenance
Savings
Just… living your life
You want breathing room. Not a mortgage that swallows everything.
How do I get a proper answer, not just a guess?
Online calculators are a fine starting point.But for something real, talk to a mortgage adviser. They’ll actually look at your income, your
commitments, your situation — and check it against real lender criteria.
And remember: even that isn’t a guarantee. It’s still not a formal offer. The lender checks
everything properly later, including the actual property.
Quick-fire FAQs
Can I borrow 4.5 times my salary? Maybe. Some calculations land there. But nobody’s
entitled to it automatically. Depends on you, and the lender.
Does a bigger deposit mean I can borrow more? It lowers your LTV, which can open up
better deals. But your maximum borrowing is still about affordability, not just deposit size.
If I pay off my debts, can I borrow more? Usually. But don’t rush to clear debt purely to impress a lender without thinking about your wider finances first. You can play around with figures using an online affordability calculator to see what difference this makes.
What’s the best way to actually find out my number? Rough online calculator first. Then dig
into your real situation and talk to a mortgage adviser, before you lock in a property budget.
The real question
Stop asking “what’s my salary multiple?”
Start asking:
“How much could I borrow, and how much would I actually be comfortable paying
back?”
Two very different questions. Only one of them matters long-term.
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