I can't get a mortgage
Guides for when you've been declined or can't get approved — credit issues, income problems, and what to do next.
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The best first guide for this situation.
Mortgages for Bad Credit: What Score Do You Actually Need?
Find out what credit score you really need for a UK mortgage. We cover minimum scores, specialist lenders, and how to improve your chances.
Credit issues
Mortgages for Bad Credit: What Score Do You Actually Need?
Find out what credit score you really need for a UK mortgage. We cover minimum scores, specialist lenders, and how to improve your chances.
Buy Now Pay Later and Mortgages: The Klarna Problem
How BNPL services like Klarna, Clearpay, and PayPal affect UK mortgage applications now that they report to credit agencies.
Getting a CCJ Set Aside: When and How
How to get a CCJ set aside in the UK. When you can apply, the court process, costs involved, and how it affects your credit file and mortgage prospects.
Credit Builder Cards and Tools: What Actually Works Before a Mortgage
Which credit builder cards, rent reporting tools, and strategies actually improve your chances of getting a UK mortgage.
How to Read Your Credit Report for a Mortgage
A visual walkthrough of every section of your UK credit report — what lenders actually look for, common errors, and how to dispute mistakes before applying for a mortgage.
DMP vs IVA: Which Is Less Damaging for Your Mortgage?
Comparing DMPs and IVAs for UK mortgage applications — how each affects your credit file, options during and after, and lender criteria.
Financial Associations: How Your Ex's Debt Can Sink Your Mortgage
How financial associations with ex-partners affect UK mortgage applications, how to check for them, and how to break them.
How Missed Payments Affect Your Mortgage Application
How missed payments are recorded on your UK credit file, which types matter most for mortgages, and how many is too many.
How to Check Your Credit Score for Free (UK)
How to check your UK credit score for free with all three agencies. What the scores mean, what to look for, and how to dispute errors on your file.
How to Improve Your Credit Score Before Applying
Practical UK guide to improving your credit score before a mortgage application. What actually works, what doesn't, and how long each step takes.
Mortgage After a Debt Management Plan
Can you get a UK mortgage after a Debt Management Plan? How DMPs affect your credit file, when to apply, and which lenders will consider you.
Mortgage After Identity Theft: Fixing a Credit File That Isn't Yours
How identity theft damages your credit file, how to remove fraudulent entries, and applying for a UK mortgage after cleanup.
Mortgage After Repossession: When Can You Try Again?
Getting a UK mortgage after having a property repossessed. How long you need to wait, which lenders consider you, and how to rebuild.
Mortgage After Voluntary Termination of Car Finance
How voluntary termination of car finance under the Consumer Credit Act affects UK mortgage applications and what lenders think.
Mortgage with No Credit History: Building from Zero
How to get a UK mortgage with no credit history. Why a thin file is a problem, how to build credit from scratch, and which lenders look beyond the score.
Mortgage with a Pending CCJ: What If You Have a Court Summons
What to do if you've been served a county court summons, how to prevent it becoming a CCJ, and the impact on your mortgage application.
Mortgage with a Criminal Record or Caution
How a criminal record or police caution affects UK mortgage applications. What lenders ask, what you must disclose, and which lenders are more flexible.
Mortgage with a CCJ: How Old Is Old Enough?
Can you get a UK mortgage with a CCJ? We explain how age, size, and satisfaction status affect your options with real lender criteria.
Mortgage with a Default: Settled vs Unsettled
UK guide to getting a mortgage with defaults on your credit file. How settled vs unsettled defaults affect your options and which lenders will consider you.
Mortgage with an IVA: During and After
Can you get a UK mortgage during or after an IVA? Timelines, lender criteria, what to do while you wait, and realistic expectations at each stage.
Mortgage with Missed Payments: How Many Is Too Many?
How missed payments affect your UK mortgage application. How many is too many, how recent is too recent, and which lenders are most forgiving.
Mortgage with Payday Loans on Your File
How payday loans on your credit file affect UK mortgage applications. Why lenders care, how long they show, and what you can do about it.
Mortgages After Bankruptcy, IVA or CCJ: How Long Do You Wait?
UK guide to getting a mortgage after bankruptcy, IVA, or CCJ. Timelines, which lenders consider you at each stage, and what to do while you wait.
Multiple Credit Issues: Getting a Mortgage When Everything Went Wrong
How to get a UK mortgage with multiple credit problems — CCJs, defaults, IVAs, missed payments — which lenders help and what you need.
Parking Fines, Council Tax Arrears, and Mortgages: When Small Debts Become Big Problems
How unpaid parking fines, council tax arrears, and other small debts can escalate to CCJs and damage UK mortgage applications.
Rebuilding Credit After Bankruptcy: A Step-by-Step Guide
How to rebuild your credit after bankruptcy in the UK, month by month, and when you can realistically apply for a mortgage.
Satisfied vs Unsatisfied Defaults: The Difference That Changes Everything
How satisfied and unsatisfied defaults affect UK mortgage applications differently, with lender criteria and strategies for each.
Why Your Credit Score Is Different on Every Agency
Why Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion give different credit scores, which one matters for your mortgage, and what lenders actually use.
Income problems
Agency Worker Mortgages: Temp Staff Mortgage Options
Can agency workers get a mortgage in the UK? Yes — here's how lenders assess temp staff income, what documentation you need, and which lenders are most flexible.
Contractor Mortgages: Day Rate vs Annual Accounts
How UK contractors can get a mortgage using day rate or annual accounts. Understand lender criteria, documentation needed, and specialist options.
Freelancer Mortgage: How Lenders Assess Multiple Client Income
How do mortgage lenders assess freelancer income from multiple clients? Learn about SA302s, IR35, income evidence, and which UK lenders are freelancer-friendly.
Ltd Company Director Mortgages: Salary vs Dividends vs Retained Profit
How UK lenders assess Ltd company directors for mortgages. Understand salary plus dividends, retained profit, and which lenders use which method.
Mortgage with Commission or Bonus Income
How UK lenders treat commission and bonus income for mortgages. Learn what percentage they count and how to maximise your borrowing power.
Mortgage with Cryptocurrency Income
Can you get a UK mortgage with cryptocurrency income? It's possible but challenging. Learn how lenders view crypto gains, trading income, and deposits.
Using Rental Income to Boost Your Mortgage Affordability
Can you use rental income from an existing buy-to-let to boost your residential mortgage affordability? Learn how UK lenders assess rental income alongside employment.
Mortgage When Your Income Is 'Too Low'
Think your income is too low for a UK mortgage? Explore options from Shared Ownership to guarantor mortgages and ways to boost your borrowing power.
Mortgage While on Maternity or Paternity Leave
Can you get a UK mortgage while on maternity or paternity leave? Yes — lenders look at your return-to-work salary. Here's how to navigate the process.
Mortgage with Multiple Income Sources
How to get a UK mortgage when you have multiple income sources. Learn which lenders combine PAYE, freelance, rental, and other income streams.
Mortgage While Receiving Benefits
Can you get a UK mortgage while on benefits? Some lenders accept benefit income for affordability. Here's which benefits count and how to apply.
Mortgage with Adult Industry or Non-Traditional Income
Can you get a mortgage with income from OnlyFans, adult content, or other non-traditional platforms? Yes — here's how lenders assess it and what you need to know.
Mortgage with Overtime and Shift Allowance Income
How do mortgage lenders treat overtime, shift allowances, and unsocial hours payments? Learn how much they include and which UK lenders are most generous.
Mortgage on Pension Income Only: What Lenders Accept
Can you get a mortgage with only pension income in the UK? Learn how lenders assess state and private pensions, age limits, and later life lending options.
Mortgage When Recently Changed Jobs
Can you get a UK mortgage after changing jobs? Yes — even during a probation period. Learn what lenders need and how to time your application.
Mortgage When You've Been Refused a Bank Account
How to get a mortgage if you've been refused a bank account in the UK. From CIFAS markers to basic bank accounts, here's the path from no banking to mortgage-ready.
Mortgage in Retirement: Age Limits and Options
Can you get a mortgage in retirement? UK lenders have upper age limits but options exist. Learn about retirement mortgages, equity release, and RIOs.
Mortgage on Universal Credit: What Counts as Income
Can you get a mortgage while on Universal Credit in the UK? Learn which UC elements lenders accept, how to combine UC with work income, and practical strategies.
Mortgage as a Visa Holder or Non-UK National
Can you get a UK mortgage as a visa holder or non-UK national? Yes — here's how residency status, visa type, and deposit requirements affect your options.
Mortgage While on Sick Leave or Long-Term Disability
Can you get a mortgage while on sick leave or with a long-term disability in the UK? Learn how lenders view SSP, employer sick pay, disability benefits, and your rights.
Mortgage on a Zero-Hours Contract
Can you get a mortgage on a zero-hours contract in the UK? Yes — here's how lenders assess your income and what you need to prepare.
Mortgage When Newly Self-Employed (Under 2 Years)
Can you get a mortgage with less than 2 years self-employment? Yes, some UK lenders accept 1 year of accounts. Here's what you need to know.
Self-Employed Mortgages: How to Prove Your Income
How self-employed people get UK mortgages. SA302s, tax overviews, company accounts — what lenders want and which ones are most flexible.
Self-Employed Under 1 Year: Can You Still Get a Mortgage?
Getting a UK mortgage with less than 1 year self-employed is tough but not impossible. Discover your options, from specialist lenders to alternative routes.
After rejection
Mortgage Declined at Underwriting: Why It Happens After AIP
Mortgage declined at underwriting after getting an AIP? Why it happens, what went wrong, and how to recover and get approved.
Your Lender Is Leaving the Market: What Happens to Your Mortgage
What happens when your mortgage lender stops lending, gets bought, or leaves the UK market. Your rights, your options, and what changes.
Mortgage Arrears: The Actual Timeline Before Repossession
What actually happens when you fall behind on mortgage payments. The real timeline, your rights, lender obligations, and how to stop repossession.
Mortgage Offer Expired: What to Do When Time Runs Out
Mortgage offer expired before completion? What happens next, how to extend it, and what to do if you need a completely new application.
Solicitor Found a Title Issue: Will It Kill Your Mortgage?
Your solicitor found a title issue on the property. What it means, which issues kill mortgages, and which are fixable with indemnity insurance.
Voluntary Surrender vs Repossession: The Real Differences
Voluntary surrender vs repossession: what each means, how they affect your credit, future mortgages, and which is actually better.
Niche situations
Interest-Only Mortgages: Who Still Offers Them?
Who still offers interest-only mortgages in the UK? Understand the criteria, repayment vehicles needed, and alternatives for residential borrowers in 2026.
Specialist Lender Criteria: What Changed This Month
Monthly tracker of UK specialist mortgage lender criteria changes. Stay updated on which lenders have loosened or tightened their rules in March 2026.
Mortgage with Neurodivergent Spending Patterns
ADHD, autism, and other neurodivergent conditions can affect spending patterns. How UK mortgage lenders assess bank statements and what you can do.
Mortgage After a Failed Business or Liquidation
Can you get a UK mortgage after a failed business, liquidation, or company dissolution? Understand the timeline, what lenders consider, and your options.
Expat Mortgage: Getting a UK Mortgage While Working Abroad
Can you get a UK mortgage while living and working abroad? Understand expat mortgage options, which lenders help, and the unique challenges you'll face.
Mortgage with Gambling on Your Bank Statements
Gambling transactions on your bank statements can derail a mortgage application. Understand how UK lenders view gambling and what you can do about it.
Does Student Loan Debt Affect Your Mortgage?
How UK student loan debt affects your mortgage application. Understand how Plan 1, 2, 4, and 5 loans impact affordability and what lenders consider.
Mortgage on a Pre-1900 Property with No EPC
Getting a mortgage on a pre-1900 property with no EPC or low energy rating. Understand how older UK homes are assessed and which lenders are flexible.
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