Calculator
How much can I borrow?
UK lenders generally cap at 4–4.5× income. Some stretch to 5× or 5.5× for specific professions or products. The slider lets you model all of them, and the take-home-pay check shows whether the resulting monthly payment would actually clear typical affordability tests.
Your income
Borrowing picture
- Combined gross income
- £45,000
- Net monthly take-home (est.)
- £2,993
- Est. monthly mortgage at 5.75%
- £1,163
- Mortgage as % of take-home
- 38.9%
A rough guide based on income multiples. Lenders also run detailed affordability checks (committed expenditure, dependents, student loan, pension, council tax, rent, childcare) and stress-test payments against a hypothetical higher rate. Net take-home uses 2025/26 England income tax and Class 1 NI bands for a single employed person. Not regulated advice. Read the affordability guide →
Income multiples are only half the picture
The income multiple is a ceiling: "we won't lend more than 4.5× your income." Affordability is the floor: "we need to be confident you can pay each month." Most UK first-time buyers get turned down on affordability, not on multiples — typically because of committed expenditure (loans, credit cards, childcare, student loan repayments) rather than raw income.
Products and lenders that go above 4.5×
Nationwide's Helping Hand allows up to 5.5× for first-time buyers (subject to affordability and product criteria). Some lenders operate professional schemes with higher multiples for doctors, solicitors, accountants, teachers and a few other roles. None of these are universal — assume 4.5× is the planning number unless you've confirmed a specific product.