Limited Company criteria

You can submit a Further Advance application on your client(s) Limited Company account. Make sure to also check our Further Advance criteria.

Key criteria

Our Limited Company products are only available to Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs), set up solely for the buying, selling and letting of their own residential property.

  • Only SPVs with one or more of the following Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) codes are considered:
    • 68100, 68201, 68209, 68320
    • To find which SIC codes are associated with a company you can search here
  • Partnerships or LLPs aren’t accepted
  • Companies must be registered in England, Wales or Scotland. SPVs are considered from day one of being set up.
  • A floating charge over assets of the company isn't required
  • SPVs that have associated commercial property/assets are not accepted.
  • Personal guarantees are required from all directors in all cases.
  • Applications where a property is owned by the director(s) and is being purchased by their Limited Company will be considered. Please note such applications must be submitted as a purchase.

Please be aware that all guarantors will need to obtain Independent Legal Advice prior to completing the Deed of Guarantee.

Company structure

  • Companies must be a SPV; company structures outside of this aren’t acceptable
  • The maximum number of directors/shareholders is two and they must be the same people.
    • Directors/Shareholders on a TMW application must match records at Companies House
  • All shareholders must be directors and own 100% shareholding in the limited company between them.
  • We’ll accept two directors where only one is a shareholder, providing they hold 100% shareholding.
  • Directors may only have one limited company financed to The Mortgage Works
  • The Company must advise us of any proposed changes in the directors of the Company or shareholding. If your client fails to comply, this may lead to legal action against them.
  • Directors must meet our standard lending criteria.
  • Make sure to input the Company/Person with Significant Control (PSC) Director details correctly, as we're legally obliged to tell Companies House if there’s a discrepancy between beneficial owner details and the information on the people with significant control (PSC) register.

Portfolio landlords

  • Portfolio landlord criteria applies if the company and its directors own four or more mortgaged properties, either separately or altogether.

Source of deposit

  • We don’t accept Business Bounce Back Loan and other coronavirus related support as deposit
  • Loans from another company won’t be accepted, however a repayment of a director’s loan or dividend payment from another limited company will be considered
  • A gifted deposit from individuals to director(s) are acceptable, however gifts to the company are not.
  • Non-UK gifts and funds from non-UK companies or trusts are not accepted. If directors of the SPV have funds overseas, these can be considered subject to a satisfactory audit trail.
  • We'll accept a gift of equity if the property is already owned by the director(s) and is being purchased by their Limited Company. Please note such applications must be submitted as a purchase.

Product and loan criteria

  • Products available up to 80% LTV
  • Maximum loan amounts will depend on the application, please see our Maximum loan per property table for more detail
  • Buy to Let products have a maximum loan of £1,500,000
  • 125% Interest Cover Ratio (ICR) for Buy to Let
  • First Time Landlords (Subject to standard criteria) are accepted.
  • We don't accept Let to Buy applications. 

Download our product guide to view our product range and information, including stress rates.


Underwriting requirements

Our specialist underwriting team will confirm the case requirements when your client’s application is submitted. In most cases, we’ll request:

  • Proof of deposit (purchase applications)
  • Property schedule (Please note: where a property schedule is required, the application will not be reviewed by an Underwriter until it is received)
  • 3 months' personal bank statements for all directors.

If you haven't met with the directors 'face to face' then you'll be required to certify documents used to support your client's application.

If we're unable to verify your client electronically, we'll ask you to provide the Certificate of Incorporation.

We reserve the right to request additional information to satisfy requirements.


Company restrictions

If your client is planning to make changes to the directors or shareholding of their company, they must let us know directly in advance.

If the company changes have already been made, your client will need to re-instate the structure we originally agreed to, or redeem their mortgage.

To apply for our consent for other company changes, please complete and ask your client to sign our Change of Director/Shareholder form. You can email the completed form to SLDirect.Debits@nationwide.co.uk

All applications will be subject to a risk assessment.

The following changes aren’t acceptable:

  • Conversion of the company to a Charity, Trust or Foundation.
  • Restructuring the company so it becomes part of a layered company, including subsidiaries, parent and sister companies.
  • Having any links to offshore companies, including the Channel Islands and Isle of Man.
  • Addition of directors or shareholders under the age of 21.
  • Having more than two directors/shareholders in the company. The maximum number of directors/shareholders is two and they must be the same people.

Products offering the free standard legal fee service

We sometimes offer products which will include the free standard legal fee service. Please check that your clients are eligible for this service and that none of the exclusions apply.

Find out more about our products that offer free standard legal fees.


How to apply

You can apply for Limited Company products through TMW Online.

You can't obtain a Decision in Principle (DIP) through TMW Online. Mortgage Illustrations should be obtained from your usual sourcing system.

TMW Online is updated every 10 minutes, so you can get an up-to-date case update online.


Limited Company FAQs


Useful guides and forms

If you need a suitable PDF reader, we recommend Adobe Acrobat.


We're here to help

We hope we've answered most of your questions, but if you’re still unsure about something, you can contact your BDM or one of our experienced advisers on Broker Chat.