Editor's note: This brief was summarised by The Property AI Newsroom from a report by Mortgage Solutions. Read the original article for full details.

Fleet Mortgages Expands Lending Criteria for Landlords and Limited Companies

Fleet Mortgages has announced updates to its lending criteria aimed at supporting a wider range of landlord borrowers and limited company structures. The changes include new provisions for joint applications involving foreign nationals and expanded eligibility for company group structures across the UK.

The buy-to-let lender will now consider joint applications where at least one applicant is a British passport holder or has Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) or settled status. Additional applicants with eligible visas may also be accepted, provided they have lived in the UK for at least three years and have a minimum of 12 months remaining on their visa. Accepted visa categories include Skilled Worker, family/spousal, UK Ancestry, Health and Care Worker, British national (overseas), intra-company transfer, and EU settlement scheme visas.

Fleet Mortgages has also broadened its lending criteria for limited companies. The lender will now accept company group structures registered anywhere in the UK, including Scotland and Northern Ireland. Previously, companies were required to be registered in England and Wales. The lender stated that this reflects its willingness to lend to UK-incorporated special purpose vehicles (SPVs). However, the security property must still be located in England or Wales, and lending remains subject to English law and legal protections.

These updates follow earlier changes made in March, which included the removal of the minimum income requirement, reducing the trading history needed for self-employed applicants and contractors from two years to one full tax year, extending the maximum mortgage term from 30 to 35 years, increasing the maximum loan to value (LTV) on new-build flats to 75%, removing height restrictions on blocks of flats, and broadening both acceptable property types and construction criteria.

These changes may be relevant to letting agents and inventory clerks working with landlords who have complex ownership structures or who are considering joint applications involving foreign nationals.