Mortgage for Complex Shareholding

Can company profits I haven’t taken out be used to help me borrow more?

Sometimes, but not always. Clients might decide to retain company profits rather than take dividends, to reduce their tax liability.

But we can’t use these to bolster the next year’s earnings. You’ll be taking this figure into the new tax year on the company accounts, but it’s not part of the overall net income for that tax year. Sometimes clients get that wrong.

For a director of a limited company, we can however use the salary and share of net profit as shown on two years’ finalised company accounts. If excess earnings weren’t taken as income and dividends, it will show on these documents anyway.

Retained profits won’t directly improve the borrowing position, but if your director’s salary and share of net profit is higher than your director’s salary and dividends, that will help you borrow more.

Will having more than one business make it harder to get a mortgage?

I wouldn’t say it automatically makes it harder to get a mortgage. We’d discuss your position to understand what you’re looking for and how best to achieve your goals.

Within that discussion, we talk about your personal tax returns, which show all dividends taken in a tax year across multiple companies, where applicable. The tax return doesn’t itemise where this is all coming from. There’s a single total for dividends taken that particular tax year.

We’ll see whether that is an accurate portrayal of your income or if it’s better to look at the share of net profit from the finalised company accounts.

With multiple businesses, using the personal tax return is very straightforward. It can be more complex if you’ve got multiple finalised company accounts, just in terms of admin.

We do occasionally have clients whose businesses are based abroad, and their accounts are in a foreign currency. That’s more complex because UK mortgages predominantly use UK income – although there are a few exceptions.

It can be more complex, but it doesn’t have to be, depending on the earning position of the client and their needs.

What documents do I need to get ready?

For the initial discussion, nothing in particular is needed, as long as you have a good understanding of your income as reported to HMRC.

There’s a list of documentation required for Financial Conduct Authority regulation and compliance, but it’s needed later down the line, when you submit an application to a lender. That doesn’t happen until you’re happy and we’ve discussed everything in detail.

To get started, it’s an informal conversation. We would talk about your most recent self-employed earnings. If you have the documents ready for the discussion, it’s helpful, but just for information as part of the chat.

Will my personal credit history matter as much as my company accounts?

The two aren’t directly linked. A stronger credit history doesn’t mean less income is needed, and a higher income doesn’t alter the credit scoring requirements for a lender.

That being said, lenders’ scorecards are less sensitive at a 60% Loan to Value, where there’s 40% in deposit or equity. That’s where things are more lenient on credit history. They are harshest and most sensitive at the other end of the spectrum, at 95% Loan to Value.

Credit history and company accounts don’t offset each other.

We would review the position overall and explore what’s happening with the credit file. There might be ideas and strategies to rebuild the score where possible. You can then come back to us when that’s done.

Can we apply based on my latest year’s income if it’s higher than the year before?

Absolutely. In this specific scenario, one high street mortgage lender can calculate affordability based on the latest year’s income.

This, of course, can have a huge impact on a client’s purchasing or remortgaging potential.

It doesn’t always have to be an average of two years, but just one lender in the entire marketplace allows that. As it’s a high street bank, they still offer quite competitive rates [information correct at the time of recording in April 2026].

How long does it usually take to get approved with this setup?

The timescales are the same. On average it takes around two weeks from application to mortgage offer, and often much faster. Working out what can be done just takes an hour’s conversation.

You’ve demonstrated this already, but how can a mortgage broker help with a complex shareholding?

We’re onboard to help clients navigate all areas of complexity in the mortgage field. Your situation might drive a need to speak to a professional for expert guidance on how to achieve your mortgage goals.

There’s also natural complexity in dealing with the mortgage market, because every bank and building society has entirely different mortgage lending criteria. It’s our job to know and understand that.

We couple that knowledge with details of the client’s position and their goals, to confirm exactly what can and cannot be done. We’re here to avoid mistakes that could cost you money and stress, while working towards the best outcome.

We manage all of this with transparency and a fee-free structure. We offer meetings all the way up to 9pm, as clients in a complex position are often very busy during office hours.

We hold evening meetings to discuss things with you – and we’re always happy to help.

Key Takeaways:

• Mortgage affordability for complex shareholdings is primarily based on the income generated from the shares (salary and dividends), not the value or equity of the shareholding itself.
• Owning more than 20% or 25% of a company often classifies an applicant as self-employed, meaning you do not need 50% or more ownership to utilise the income for a mortgage.
• Lenders typically look at a combination of salary and dividends for limited company directors and usually require a minimum of two years of tax calculations to average out fluctuating self-employed income.
• One high street mortgage lender can calculate affordability based solely on the latest year’s income if it is higher than the year prior, which can significantly impact purchasing potential.

YOUR HOME MAY BE REPOSSESSED IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP WITH YOUR MORTGAGE REPAYMENTS.

For specialist tax advice, please refer to an accountant or tax specialist.