Buy-to-let mortgages

The amount you can borrow for a buy-to-let property can’t be more than 75% loan to value.

If you have more than one buy-to-let property mortgaged with us, your borrowing across these properties can't be over £2 million.

The property must be:

• In the UK
• Worth at least £75,000
• Let under an assured shorthold tenancy (AST) or a company let agreement

The minimum energy performance certificate (EPC) we accept is E or above. The valuation will determine the rating.

We don't offer mortgages for houses in multiple occupancy (HMOs), such as student lets.

The annual rental income must be at least:

• 125% of your mortgage payments, if all of the mortgage applicants are lower-rate tax payers
• 145% of your mortgage payments, if any of the mortgage applicants are higher-rate tax payers

If your mortgage payment is £100 each month, you'd need to charge rent of at least:

• £125 (125%) if the lower-rate tax payer status applies
• £145 (145%) if the higher-rate tax payer status applies

View our factsheet to understand the costs, responsibilities and risks of buy to let.

Buy-to-let factsheet (PDF, 54KB)

Buy-to-let mortgages work differently from residential mortgages. When we think about how affordable a buy-to-let mortgage is, we consider the expected monthly income you'll get from renting out the property, not your personal income.

Lenders have their own criteria when it comes to buy-to-let mortgages. For example, to be eligible for a buy-to-let mortgage with HSBC:

Additional criteria apply.

You can apply for your mortgage over the phone, in a branch, or online. We'll ask you to provide supporting documents so that we can evaluate your mortgage application. We'll also want to know about the rental income you're expecting and potential running costs for the property, as well as details of any other buy-to-let properties you own. Have all this ready as it will help the process go as smoothly as possible.

Applying in a branch or over the phone

Arrange an appointment with one of our mortgage advisers. We are not able to provide any advice on buy-to-let mortgages but we can take you through your application.

Applying online

You can complete your mortgage application online.

Use our Mortgage Document Uploader service to provide your supporting documents. We'll email you the link for this after you've completed your mortgage application.

Once we've got all the information we need, we'll review your application and let you know the decision as soon as possible by phone, email or text.

Deposits for buy-to-let properties tend to be higher than they are for residential properties. While most mortgage lenders require a deposit of at least 25% of the property purchase price, some lenders require as much as 40%.

Customers are allowed 3 buy-to-let mortgages in total with HSBC.