Accord Mortgages has removed its minimum background income requirement of £25,000 for landlords and will lend to first-time buyer landlords in certain instances.
The change comes into effect from Wednesday, and it said that income would still be verified in other instances including top slicing or to validate the tax status of lower rate taxpayers.
Accord introduced the minimum background income requirement in August 2013.
The lender said it would also consider lending to first-time buyers, adding that it was encouraging brokers to speak to their business development managers about such cases.
The changes will improve the application process for brokers and clients and gives underwriters more “discretion” to evaluate cases on individual merit.
Nicola Alvarez (pictured), senior manager for new propositions at Accord Mortgages, said: “These latest criteria changes reflect our commitment to investing in our buy-to-let proposition to make it easier for brokers and their landlord clients to do business with us.
“Removing minimum income requirements and considering cases where first-time buyers want to become landlords demonstrates our approach to common-sense lending and means we’re able to extend our offering to brokers and ultimately support more people on to the property ladder.”
Anna is currently the deputy editor for Mortgage Solutions and editor for Specialist Lending Solutions. She has worked as a journalist since 2019, having secured her Gold Standard NCTJ diploma from News Associates in a fast-track six-month course.
She started her career as a report at specialist publication The Insurance Insider covering a wide range of areas before joining Mortgage Solutions and Specialist Lending Solutions in 2021.
In her role, she helps put together and structure the news agenda for the day and writes up press releases, reports, interviews, analyses and exclusives across both titles. She also commissions blogs for Specialist Lending Solutions and hosts online masterclasses and in-person events across the business.
She has been shortlisted for three journalism awards, which include BIBA Journalist and Media Awards Scoop of Year Award in 2020, Headline Money Mortgage Journalist of the Year Award (B2B) in 2022 and 2023.
Prior to being a journalist, Anna worked in ecommerce across Snow + Rock, Cycle Surgery and Runners Need websites, and before that worked at specialist financial PR firm Rostrum.
In her spare time, Anna enjoys reading, seeing live music, and cooking for friends and family. When she gets a chance, she also enjoys hiking, skiing and indoor rock climbing.