Which UK Lenders Use Contractor Day-Rate Income?
A specific contractor underwriting method uses your day rate x 46 weeks as gross annual income — often letting contractors borrow more than they would as self-employed. Most major UK lenders now offer it with 6-12 months of contracting history.
Data refreshed 2026-04-22. Information only — not advice.
Your situation
High Street Lenders
- Bank of Ireland— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
- Barclays— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
- Clydesdale Bank— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
- Halifax— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
- Metro Bank— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
- Nationwide— Up to 95% LTV, min 24 months history
- NatWest— Up to 95% LTV, min 6 months history
- TSB— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
- Virgin Money— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
Building Societies
- Accord Mortgages— Up to 99% LTV, min 6 months history
- Beverley Building Society— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
- Buckinghamshire Building Society— Up to 90% LTV, min 7 months history
- Coventry Building Society— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
- Darlington Building Society— Up to 95% LTV, min 24 months history
- Dudley Building Society— Up to 90% LTV, min 12 months history
- Earl Shilton Building Society— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
- Family Building Society— Up to 80% LTV, min 24 months history
- Furness Building Society— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
- Godiva Mortgages— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
- Hanley Economic Building Society— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
- Harpenden BS— Up to 80% LTV
- Hinckley & Rugby Building Society— Up to 95% LTV, min 6 months history
- Loughborough Building Society— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
- Market Harborough Building Society— Up to 80% LTV, min 12 months history
- Marsden Building Society— Up to 95% LTV, min 6 months history
- Newcastle Building Society— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
- Nottingham Building Society— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
- Penrith Building Society— Up to 90% LTV
- Principality Building Society— Up to 95% LTV, min 24 months history
- Saffron Building Society— Up to 95% LTV, min 3 months history
- Skipton Building Society— Up to 100% LTV, min 12 months history
- Stafford Railway Building Society— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
- Suffolk Building Society— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
- Tipton & Coseley Building Society— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
- Vernon Building Society— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
Specialist Lenders
- Aldermore— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
- Atom Bank— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
- Bluestone Mortgages— Up to 90% LTV, min 6 months history
- BM Solutions— Up to 80% LTV, min 12 months history
- Cynergy Bank— Up to 90% LTV
- Fleet Mortgages— Up to 75% LTV, min 12 months history
- Gatehouse Bank— Up to 80% LTV, min 12 months history
- Hodge Bank— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
- Kensington Mortgages— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
- LendInvest— Up to 90% LTV, min 3 months history
- Norton Home Loans— Up to 80% LTV, min 2 months history
- Pepper Money— See lender criteria
- Perenna— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
- Tandem Bank— Up to 90% LTV
- The Mortgage Lender— Up to 95% LTV, min 12 months history
- Vida Homeloans— Up to 97% LTV, min 12 months history
- West One Loans— Up to 97.5% LTV, min 12 months history
Why some lenders say no
- Some lenders require 12+ months of contracting history; specialists accept 6.
- Minimum day rate thresholds apply (usually £200-£500 per day).
- Gaps between contracts of over 4-6 weeks can disqualify you with stricter lenders.
Related reading: Self-employed affordability · Changing jobs during a mortgage application
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Run My Affordability CheckFrequently asked questions
How is day-rate income calculated?
Day rate x 5 days x 46 weeks = gross annual income. Lenders use 46 weeks rather than 52 to account for realistic downtime between contracts.
Do I need to be a limited company?
No. Most lenders accept both Ltd company contractors and umbrella / PAYE contractors. Ltd company directors can often choose between the day-rate method and the self-employed method, whichever gives a better result.
Is there a minimum day rate?
Yes. Most lenders set a floor of £200-£500 per day or a minimum £50,000 annualised. Halifax is £500/day; Accord is £300/day.
What about gaps between contracts?
Short gaps (2-4 weeks) are fine. Gaps over 6 weeks can trigger questions. Some lenders want to see 2 back-to-back contracts to evidence continuity of income.
