Mortgages For Nurses

Learn about applying for a mortgage as a Nurse and see how expert advice could secure a mortgage approval.

Firstly, are you currently working as a nurse?

Pete Mugleston

Author: Pete Mugleston

Mortgage Advisor, MD

Updated: March 18, 2024

The UK has a nursing and midwifery workforce of around 360,000 and oftentimes the nature of the profession and respect people have for it allows for certain discounts and benefits by way of thanks.

Would that apply to a mortgage or could the lower pay, shift patterns and short-term contracts work against you?

This guide will let you know, breaking down all you need to factor in if you’re applying for a mortgage as a nurse in the UK.

Do nurses qualify for cheaper mortgages?

Not purely on the basis of their profession, but there are ways they can save money on their mortgages and housing. Nurses, like everyone else, have to meet a lender’s criteria and the interest rate set will be based on how reliable you seem. There are, however, certain lenders who look upon nurses favourably, offering a more flexible criteria.

There are also a handful of housing developers who provide key worker discounts and incentives. For example, Persimmon Homes takes off £500 for every £25,000 a key worker, including a nurse, spends on one of their new-build homes. For this type of nurse mortgage deal, you’d usually have to be active – so not retired – and have a current contract with the NHS.

Additionally, the UK Government’s First Home scheme gives nurses and other locals a helping hand onto the property ladder by offering a 30% to 50% discount on certain new builds if earning below £80,000 (or £90,000 in London).

Other government schemes that don’t have a specific nurse-related discount but that you still might qualify for include the Right to Buy scheme and the Shared Ownership initiative.

To find out what deals and discounts are currently available, connect to a broker specialising in mortgages for nurses.

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How much can you borrow?

Affordability for nurses is assessed in the same way as it is for other professions. Lenders typically look at your annual earnings and multiply those by either 4 or 4.5 times to get a rough figure. In unique cases, a lender might consider a higher multiple. They’ll then assess your regular spending and look at whether you have any excessive debt or other financial commitments to give a final figure.

Use our calculator below to get a rough idea of how much you could borrow based on standard income multiples.

Mortgage Affordability Calculator

Use this calculator to determine how much you could potentially borrow for a mortgage, based on the typical salary multiples used by most UK lenders.

Input full salaries for all applicants
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Your Results:

You could borrow up to 

Most lenders would consider letting you borrow

This is based on 4.5 times your household income, the standard calculation used by the majority of mortgage providers. To borrow more than this, you will need to use a mortgage broker to access specialist lenders.

Some lenders would consider letting you borrow

This is based on 5 times your household income, a salary multiple you might struggle to qualify for without the help of a broker. This income multiple is not widely available to customers who are applying directly with a lender.

A minority of lenders would consider letting you borrow

This is based on 6 times your household income, a salary multiple you will struggle to get without a broker. Six-times salary mortgages are usually only available under very specific circumstances.

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Example calculations

The average nursing salary, as of November 2022, is £33,384, which would equate to a mortgage of £133,536 if multiplied 4 times. But nurses can have various positions within the NHS, falling into bands 5 to 8, which come with different salary ranges.

The below table lists the median salary in each band and shows what mortgage size it would equate to when multiplied.

Median salary of NHS bands 4 times 4.5 times 5 times 5.5 times 6 times
Band 5 £29,994 £119,975 £134,973 £149,970 £164,967 £179,964
Band 6 £54,000 £216,000 £243,000 £270,000 £297,000 £324,000
Band 7 £65,495 £261,980 £294,728 £327,475 £360,223 £392,970
Band 8 £70,156 £280,624 £315,702 £350,780 £385,858 £420,936

Should you earn extra from overtime shifts or supplement your contract with NHS bank work, you should talk to a broker about how to have a lender factor that into your affordability.

How a broker can help a nurse get the best deal

Whether you’re a midwife or matron, newly qualified nurse or ward manager, the last thing you need is time wasted trawling through lenders and developers to find the best mortgage deals and discounts. Additionally, the mortgage process can mean stress, especially when a number of high street lenders don’t cater for the nuances that come with life as a nurse.

A broker can take some of that away by:

  • Looking over your finances to provide a realistic mortgage size estimate while factoring in any benefits being a nurse might bring to your application.
  • Working with you to ensure any overtime pay or bank work is included and helping to remedy any anomalies such as a series of short contracts so that you’re positioned to be the most reliable borrower you can be.
  • Tapping into their experience and database to recommend a lender who offers more flexibility for nurses and currently has the best rates and terms for someone in your position

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Can agency nurses get a mortgage?

Yes, but the number of lenders willing to loan will be smaller and you’ll typically need to produce a minimum of 12 months’ payslips in place of a permanent contract to show work history in the same role. Skipton Building Society only requires 3 months’ worth but does need evidence of at least 2 years in the profession while Newcastle Building Society will only consider agency income if it’s secondary to another job.

If you’re self-employed, the more years’ worth of accounts you can present, the more reliable you will seem, boosting the number of lenders you can apply to. Typically, they’ll require 2-3 years’ as a minimum.

Having a big deposit, good credit history and no debt will help bolster your application.

Which lenders offer mortgages for nurses?

Most lenders will offer a mortgage to those in the nursing profession if they meet their criteria but the rate and terms may differ depending on how much flexibility they offer nurses when it comes to the affordability assessment.

For the First Homes Scheme, high street banks such as Lloyds, Halifax and Nationwide Building Society offer this type of mortgage, as do building societies like Chorley Building Society, Darlington Building Society, and Leeds Building Society. For this reason, these lenders are often used by nurses.

If you’re an agency nurse worker, the pool of lenders is slightly smaller. Metro Bank, MBS Lending and Gatehouse Bank, for example, aren’t open to applicants of this kind but Central Trust Limited, Scottish Widows and HSBC do consider nursing applicants on the NHS bank.

Should you want overtime factored into your mortgage equation, this is something most big lenders like Nationwide and Natwest and specialist lenders like Bluestone and Vida Home Loans will consider but the percentage of what they’ll count – usually 50% to 60% – will differ based on how much overtime you do and whether it’s guaranteed work. Given the current shortage of nurses in the UK, it usually is but a broker will be able to share which will likely use a bigger percentage of the overtime earnings.

Regardless of your situation, the most efficient way of finding the best lender for you is to engage a broker whose main focus is helping nurses to buy a house and matching them to lenders who can make that happen.

What if you have bad credit?

If you’re looking for a home loan as a nurse but have bad credit, it’s not ideal but not an insurmountable obstacle. With the right help, you might be able to improve your credit history before applying for a mortgage or find a lender specialising in bad credit mortgages for nurses.

If you have a strong deposit this could be one way of counteracting any sense that you may be unreliable but it’s best to seek professional advice in this case.

Get matched with a broker who specialises in mortgages for nurses

Undertaking your search alone, you’ll likely be able to find a mortgage but to guarantee you’re getting the best mortgage available for a nurse out there, you need expert help. Certain brokers we work with are specialists in the nursing mortgage market, understanding the complexities that come with working for the NHS and the mortgage incentives there can be.

After a quick evaluation of your finances, they’ll be able to point you toward a lender that’s right for you, increasing your chances of getting a home loan you’re happy with. From an initial free consultation right through to completion, they’ll be on hand to talk you through the process. Just call 0808 189 2301 or fill out our form to be matched today.

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We know everyone's circumstances are different, that's why we work with mortgage brokers who are experts in all different mortgage subjects.

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FAQs

Yes. If you received a bursary this can go towards your income along with any additional employment earnings you have.

Yes. As with agency work, it might be a little harder to find a lender as you won’t have that longer working history often required but a specialist broker would be able to advise how to navigate that as a newly qualified nurse.

If there are incentives or discounts to be had by providers or housing developers, oftentimes they will stipulate that an applicant has to have an NHS contract but there are some who don’t.

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About the author

Pete, an expert in all things mortgages, cut his teeth right in the middle of the credit crunch. With plenty of people needing help and few mortgage providers lending, Pete found great success in going the extra mile to find mortgages for people whom many others considered lost causes. The experience he gained, coupled with his love of helping people reach their goals, led him to establish Online Mortgage Advisor, with one clear vision – to help as many customers as possible get the right advice, regardless of need or background.

Pete’s presence in the industry as the ‘go-to’ for specialist finance continues to grow, and he is regularly cited in and writes for both local and national press, as well as trade publications, with a regular column in Mortgage Introducer and being the exclusive mortgage expert for LOVEMoney. Pete also writes for Online Mortgage Advisor of course!

Read more about Pete

Pete Mugleston

Mortgage Advisor, MD

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