Self-employed mortgages with 1 year's accounts
This guide explains how to get a mortgage with 1 year’s accounts, including which lenders to approach, how much you can borrow, and the steps to take to improve your chance of success.
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Table of contents
7 minutes
Updated: March 16th, 2026
Mortgages with 1 year’s accounts: What you need to know
Can I get a mortgage with 1 year’s accounts?
- Yes – while high-street banks usually want 3 years, specialist lenders will consider your application with just 12 months of trading by looking at your professional experience and career consistency.
How much can I borrow?
- Lenders focus on your income amount, typically offering 3.5–5.5 times your annual income. You can often boost this limit by using projected figures from an accountant or, for directors, by using retained profits.
How much deposit will you need?
- The minimum is typically 10% of the property value. While you don’t need a larger deposit just because you are self-employed, moving to 15% or more can unlock lower interest rates.
How can I improve my chances?
- Organise your paperwork: Have your SA302 and Tax Year Overview ready.
- Audit your credit: Avoid new credit applications 6 months before applying.
- Lower your debt: Reducing small balances increases your affordability.
- Use a specialist broker: Access niche lenders that don’t deal directly with the public.
Can I get a mortgage with 1 year’s accounts?
Yes, it is possible. While most high-street banks prefer 3 years of history, specialist lenders consider applications with just 12 months of trading.
Because you have a shorter track record, lenders will look beyond just your latest tax return. They will use the “underwriting” process to look at your professional background, specifically:
- Your experience: How long you worked in this trade before going self-employed.
- Consistency: Whether your current business matches your previous career history.
- Previous earnings: Your income levels in the years leading up to starting your business.
Market Insight: Gross mortgage lending is forecast to reach £320bn in 2026 as the market continues to recover. Industry experts note that “complex income” scenarios – including self-employment and the gig economy – are becoming a standard part of the UK mortgage landscape, leading to a more borrower-friendly environment [1].
How much can I borrow?
Lenders primarily focus on your income amount rather than the age of your business. Generally, you can expect to borrow 3.5–5.5 times your annual income, though your specific “multiplier” depends on your risk profile.
Pro Tip: If you can provide a larger deposit, it lowers the lender’s risk (the “LTV ratio”), which can often open doors to more competitive rates even with only one year of accounts.
What influences your borrowing limit?
- Credit history: A clean credit score usually unlocks higher multipliers. If you have “bad credit,” lenders may limit the loan amount to reduce their risk.
- Deposit size: While you may only need a 10% deposit (the same as anyone else), a larger deposit often unlocks lower interest rates and higher borrowing limits.
Can I boost my borrowing limit?
Yes. You may be able to borrow more than the standard multiples if you meet certain criteria:
- High earners: If your annual income is above average, some lenders increase their multipliers.
Example: An income of £75k might jump from a 4.5x to a 5.5x multiplier, increasing a loan from £337,500 to £412,500.
- Using projected income: If your second year of trading is much stronger than your first, an accountant can provide “projected figures.“
The impact of using projections:
- Standard approach: £30,000 income x 5.5 = £165,000 loan.
- Projected approach: £40,000 income x 5.5 = £220,000 loan.
Note: Using projected figures requires your current year to show significant growth (e.g., hitting your previous year’s total within only 9 months).
The biggest mistake I see self-employed people make with 1 year’s accounts is accepting the initial advice from their bank that a minimum of 2 years is required for self-employed applicants.
How much deposit will you need?
You will be pleased to know that you won’t be required to put down a larger deposit than anyone else just because you have only 1 year’s worth of business accounts.
- The minimum: Typically, a lender will look for a deposit of at least 10% of the property value.
- The ideal setup: Pairing a 10% deposit with a clean credit history from the last 6 years will put you in a favourable position for an application.
- The long-term benefit: While 10% is the baseline, providing a larger than average deposit is a good idea. Lenders are more inclined to offer lower interest rates to those with more equity, as you are seen as a less risky borrower.
Even though you are putting down more money initially, the savings in interest could significantly outweigh this cost in the long run.
Deposit Accessibility: The share of new mortgages with a loan-to-value (LTV) ratio exceeding 90% reached 7.4% in late 2025 – the highest share recorded in over 15 years. This trend highlights a surge in accessibility for those with a 10% deposit, even as lending standards remain robust [2].
How can I improve my chances of mortgage approval?
Preparing your application before you speak to a lender can be the difference between a “yes” and a “no.” If you only have 1 year of accounts, follow these steps to strengthen your position:
- Get your paperwork in order: Ensure your accounts are signed off by a qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA, or CIMA). Lenders will want to see your SA302 form and your Tax Year Overview from HMRC for your first year of trading.
- Audit your credit report: Check your report with agencies like Experian or Equifax. Ensure there are no errors and try to avoid any new credit applications (like car finance or new credit cards) in the 6 months before you apply.
- Reduce outstanding debt: Lenders look at your “Debt-to-Income” ratio. Paying down small loans or credit card balances can free up your affordability and increase the amount they are willing to lend you.
- Keep your business and personal finances separate: Having a dedicated business bank account makes it much easier for underwriters to track your income and business expenses.
- Save a larger deposit if possible: As mentioned earlier, even moving from a 10% to a 15% deposit can significantly lower the lender’s risk and open up better interest rates.
- Consult a specialist broker: A broker can identify which niche lenders are currently most “friendly” to your specific industry or business structure, saving you from unnecessary credit rejections.
The Broker Advantage: Approximately 87% of all regulated mortgage lending is now conducted through brokers. IMLA reports that as the mortgage market grows more complex, the role of intermediary advice is “greater than ever” to help borrowers navigate evolving product choices and regulation [3].
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Who counts as self-employed?
Lenders categorise self-employment in different ways depending on your business structure. Whether you are a solo freelancer or running a team, you can typically apply if you fall into one of these categories:
- Sole Traders: You own the business and keep all the profits after tax. Lenders will look at your net profit for the year.
- Limited Company Directors: You own at least 20–25% of the business. Lenders usually look at your combined salary and dividends, though some specialists can consider your share of retained net profit.
- Contractors & Freelancers: You work for various clients or agencies. Some lenders will assess you based on your day rate rather than just your annual accounts.
- Partnerships: You share ownership with one or more people. Your share of the business’s net profit is what counts toward your mortgage affordability.
If a lender is on the fence about your application, the one thing that usually tips them to a 'Yes' for a mortgage with 1 year's accounts – support from your accountant can be invaluable. Speaking to your accountant prior to an application and asking them to support any reasonable request from the broker or lender can make an application progress a lot more smoothly.
Proving your income if you have 1 year’s worth of accounts
As evidence of your self-employed income, mortgage lenders will refer to your business accounts. They will need accounts to be prepared by a certified or chartered accountant.
They are also likely to use your SA302 year-end Tax Calculation form (and accompanying breakdown) from HMRC. This will give a tax year overview of your businesses earnings, which is also crucial in helping a lender determine how much you can borrow.
Having both of these prepared and ready to go before you apply can speed up the application process.
Can I remortgage with 1 year’s accounts?
As with obtaining a normal mortgage, it can also be possible for a self-employed person to remortgage using just 1 year’s accounts. A number of lenders have become more flexible in their approach and moved away from the traditional view that self-employed borrowers should have at least 2 or 3 years’ worth of accounts in order to be trusted with a mortgage.
It will also be possible to remortgage later on down the line when you have another 2 or 3 years accounts. This could allow you to borrow more if your self-employed earnings have increased in more recent years.
Self-employed mortgages using last year’s accounts
As mentioned previously, most lenders average your income over 2 or 3 years. But what if your most recent year was significantly more profitable?
You don’t have to be held back by your past. It is possible to find lenders who will ignore previous lower-earning years and assess you solely on last year’s accounts. This works the same way as a 1-year application – if you meet the specific requirements of these niche lenders, you can secure a loan based on your current, higher strength.
Why work with a specialist fee-charging mortgage broker?
At The Mortgage Centres, we believe that non-standard financial situations require more than just an automated search. Our model is built on providing a “complex but cared for” experience that combines national reach with the accountability of local service.
- Success-based commitment: We invest a significant amount of time upfront, at our own risk, to review your situation and provide expert advice. Our fee is only payable once you decide to move forward with a mortgage application, meaning we must prove our value to you first.
- Specialist knowledge over generalism: While many brokers are “jacks-of-all-trades,” our team focuses on the niche corners of the market, such as Adverse Credit and complex incomes. We dedicate the necessary time to manually package your case for an underwriter, ensuring every detail is presented to give you the highest probability of success.
- Local accountability, national access: By charging a fee, we are able to sustain a network of local branches that offer personal, face-to-face or video support, backed by the panel-access and technology of a national firm.
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FAQs: Self-employed mortgages with 1 year's accounts
Yes. Minor issues like recent late payments are often manageable if your current finances are strong. However, serious events like CCJs or defaults within the last 2 years usually require a larger deposit (typically 15%+) or a higher interest rate to offset the risk.
Not necessarily. If you have a clean credit history and a standard deposit, you can access the same competitive rates as PAYE employees. Rates only increase if your “risk profile” is higher – for example, having a very low deposit or a history of credit issues.
While some high-street names have loosened their criteria, the most reliable options are Specialist Lenders like:
- <a “https://www.aldermore.co.uk/mortgages/” target=”_blank”>Aldermore
- Bluestone
- Precise Mortgages
- Pepper Money
- Kensington
Note: These lenders often work exclusively through brokers and aren’t available directly to the public.
You will typically need your SA302 Tax Calculation and an Overview from HMRC covering your first 12 months. Most specialist lenders also require at least 3 months of business bank statements to verify that your current trading matches your tax return.
It comes down to risk and regulation. Following the 2014 Mortgage Market Review (MMR), UK regulators banned “self-certified” mortgages (where you could declare income without proof) to ensure responsible lending.
Since then, traditional banks have used a 3-year history as their “safe” benchmark to prove your income is stable. While this 3-year rule is outdated for many modern businesses, specialist lenders have developed more sophisticated manual underwriting processes that allow them to verify your affordability with just 12 months of trading.
References
- https://www.imla.org.uk/news/post.php?s=2025-12-16-imla-forecasts-sustained-growth-in-mortgage-lending-through-2026-and-2027
- https://www.imla.org.uk/perch/resources/publications/imla-the-new-normal-prospects-for-2026-and-2027.pdf
- https://www.fca.org.uk/data/commentary-mortgage-lending-statistics-q3-2025
About the author
Phil Scott: Director
Phil Scott is the Founder and Managing Director of The Mortgage Centres, one of the UK’s leading independent, whole-of-market mortgage brokerages. With over 30 years of experience and a network of specialist branches, Phil has built a firm defined by manual advocacy and comprehensive market access.
Under his leadership, The Mortgage Centres provides high-touch advisory services for the full spectrum of UK borrowers – from standard residential moves for first-time buyers to complex specialist lending for portfolio landlords. Phil’s institutional approach ensures that every client receives a level of scrutiny and lender access that automated platforms cannot match.
Qualifications:
- FCA Regulated: Leading compliant, high-trust advice since 1992.
- Financial Planning Certificate: 1, 2 & 3 | Year Attained: 1992
- Certificate in Mortgage Advice and Practice (CEMAP) | Year Attained: 2001
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