Which UK Lenders Count Lodger / Rental Income?
Around 70 UK lenders count existing rental income or lodger income in affordability. Rules vary on how much is counted (60-100%), whether it must be taxed, and whether ongoing lodger rent in the new property can count.
Data refreshed 2026-07-15. Information only — not advice.
Your situation
High Street Lenders
- AIB— Up to 95% LTV
- Barclays— Up to 95% LTV
- Clydesdale Bank— Up to 95% LTV
- Halifax— Up to 95% LTV
- HSBC— Up to 95% LTV
- Metro Bank— Up to 95% LTV
- Nationwide— Up to 95% LTV
- NatWest— Up to 95% LTV
- Santander— Up to 95% LTV
- The Co-operative Bank— Up to 95% LTV
- TSB— Up to 95% LTV
- Virgin Money— Up to 95% LTV
Building Societies
- Accord Mortgages— Up to 99% LTV
- Bath Building Society— Up to 95% LTV
- Beverley Building Society— Up to 95% LTV
- Cambridge Building Society— Up to 95% LTV
- Coventry Building Society— Up to 95% LTV
- Cumberland Building Society— Up to 95% LTV
- Darlington Building Society— Up to 95% LTV (80% for London/M25 remortgage)
- Dudley Building Society— Up to 90% LTV
- Earl Shilton Building Society— Up to 95% LTV
- Ecology Building Society— Green-gated lending only — every product requires the property to meet ecological/EPC criteria; LTV varies by product (Eco Home/Green Renovation 80%, Renovation 90%, Shared Ownership 95% of share)
- Family Building Society— Up to 80% LTV
- Furness Building Society— Up to 95% LTV
- Hanley Economic Building Society— Up to 95% LTV
- Leeds Building Society— Up to 95% LTV
- Leek Building Society— Up to 95% LTV
- Loughborough Building Society— Up to 95% LTV
- Mansfield Building Society— Up to 95% LTV
- Market Harborough Building Society— Up to 80% LTV
- Marsden Building Society— Up to 95% LTV
- Monmouthshire Building Society— Temporarily paused — not accepting new residential applications while they upgrade their systems. Previously: Up to 95% LTV
- Newcastle Building Society— Up to 95% LTV
- Nottingham Building Society— Up to 95% LTV
- Penrith Building Society— Up to 90% LTV
- Principality Building Society— Up to 95% LTV
- Progressive Building Society— Up to 95% LTV
- Saffron Building Society— Up to 95% LTV
- Skipton Building Society— Up to 100% LTV
- Stafford Railway Building Society— Up to 95% LTV
- Suffolk Building Society— Up to 95% LTV
- Teachers Building Society— Up to 95% LTV
- The Melton Building Society— Up to 95% LTV (interest-only 60%, London 60%)
- Vernon Building Society— Up to 95% LTV
- West Bromwich Building Society— Up to 95% LTV
Specialist Lenders
- Aldermore— Up to 95% LTV
- Atom Bank— Up to 95% LTV
- Bluestone Mortgages— Up to 90% LTV
- Fleet Mortgages— Up to 75% LTV
- Gatehouse Bank— Up to 80% LTV
- Generation Home— Up to 95% LTV
- Hodge Bank— Up to 95% LTV
- InterBay— Up to 85% LTV
- Kensington Mortgages— Up to 95% LTV
- Keystone Property Finance— Up to 80% LTV
- LendInvest— Up to 90% LTV
- LiveMore— Up to 80% LTV
- Molo Finance— Up to 80% LTV
- Pepper Money— Up to 85% LTV (75% above £750k)
- Perenna— Up to 95% LTV
- Precise Mortgages— Up to 95% LTV
- Skipton International— Up to 75% LTV
- Tandem Bank— Up to 90% LTV
- The Mortgage Works— Up to 80% LTV
- Together— Up to 75% LTV
- Vida Homeloans— Up to 97% LTV
Why some lenders say no
- Rent-a-room relief (up to £7,500/yr tax-free) is counted by some lenders, not all.
- Lodger income in the new property you're buying rarely counts — lenders typically want established rental history.
- Buy-to-let rental income is assessed under separate BTL criteria and doesn't usually support a residential affordability check.
Related reading: Let to buy guide · Joint borrower sole proprietor (JBSP)
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Run My Affordability CheckFrequently asked questions
Does rent-a-room income count?
Some lenders count 100% of Rent-a-Room income; others exclude it entirely because it's tax-free and untaxed. Halifax is one of the stricter ones — it does not include lodger or Rent-a-Room income in affordability at all — and Virgin Money's published residential income criteria don't cover it either. If lodger income is central to your case, check the lender list above rather than assuming a high-street name will count it.
Can I use lodger income to help buy my first home?
Usually no. Most lenders want a 2-year track record of lodger income from a previous property. A few specialist lenders consider projected rent-a-room income but it's niche.
What about income from existing rental properties?
Most lenders count 50-75% of gross rental income from existing BTLs. Some use surplus only (rent minus mortgage interest + costs). The Ltd company SPV route is assessed differently.
Do I need to declare rental income on my tax return?
Yes, always. Lenders will ask for SA302s or tax calculations showing the rental income and any relief claimed. Undeclared rental income found in bank statements is a guaranteed decline.
