Doctor Mortgages

What You Should Know About Doctor Mortgages

Whilst the stability and salary that come with choosing a career as a Doctor or similar medical professional are attractive to mortgage lenders, you may face a unique range of challenges you hadn’t considered, when applying for a mortgage.

Many lenders, particularly the more traditional high street banks, are not set up for job types that fall outside of the standard nine to five pattern. As you’re more likely to have complex employment circumstances as a Doctor, this can be a challenge. Those Doctors who are Self-Employed with a private practice, trainees or carrying out locum roles, may find it more difficult to adequately document a stable income pattern for lenders, as these job types are often viewed as less stable.

The other challenge largely unique to those in the medical profession is significantly higher student debts. These have the potential to affect both your available income and credit score.

Can these challenges be balanced against the longer-term earning potential of a Doctor?

The good news is that the trust, earning power and long-term stability associated with being a doctor largely outweigh the complications you can face when applying for a mortgage.

Newly qualified Doctors

The standard lender expectation is that applicants have been employed within their current job for a minimum period of time. However, Doctors experience more flexibility in this area. In fact, the majority of mortgage lenders will consider an application from Doctors as long as they are currently in or expect to be in paid employment within six months.

Trainee and junior Doctors

As a trainee or junior Doctor you will usually find that lenders are willing to calculate your loan based on your future, fully qualified salary. If you have a guaranteed, more senior role post-training some lenders will even consider using the rate attached to that role in your calculator.

Self-Employed Doctor or medical professional

For Self-Employed mortgage applicants, finding a lender is notoriously more difficult than it is for their employed colleagues. The usual requirement is at least three years of certified accounts. However, Self-Employed Doctors often only need to show one year of accounts.

Locum Doctors

If you work exclusively as a locum Doctor, it can be more difficult to meet the acceptance criteria of a standard residential mortgage with some lenders. There are independent mortgage lenders, however, who specialise in helping Doctors with less-stable work types.

How do Doctors prove their income?

Doctors will usually benefit from greater flexibility from lenders in terms of providing proof of income. As part of our mortgage advice we can help you determine the exact documents required, depending on your employment type.