A mortgage is a loan used to buy a property. You borrow money from a lender (like a bank or building society) and pay it back monthly, with interest, over a set number of years (typically 5–40 years).

Lenders typically offer 4 to 4.5 times your annual income. This can vary based on your financial circumstances, credit history, and deposit size. For joint incomes above £60,000, you may borrow up to 5 times your income, and for incomes above £100,000, up to 5.5 times with some lenders.

You'll typically need at least 5–10% of the property's value. A larger deposit (e.g. 15–20%) can unlock better interest rates. Usually for each 5% increase in deposit size the interest rate will drop slightly.

There are several types of mortgages available: Fixed-rate mortgage – Your interest rate stays the same for a set period (e.g., 2, 5, or 10 years). Variable-rate mortgage – Your rate can change, meaning your payments can go up or down. Tracker mortgage – Follows the Bank of England base rate plus a set percentage. Offset mortgage – Links your mortgage to your savings to reduce interest.