Yes, you may be able to use income from your investments to get a mortgage. Lenders tend to take one of two approaches: some count a set percentage of your portfolio's value as income, while others only count the income you actually draw from it and want to see that it could last for the whole mortgage term. Fewer lenders accept investment income than accept a salary, so the lender you choose can make a big difference to how much of your portfolio counts.
Key takeaway: Investment income is a specialist area, not a barrier. How much of it counts depends on which method the lender uses, how your portfolio is invested and how you can evidence the income, which is why the same portfolio can support very different borrowing from one lender to the next.
[[stats: 2 = Main ways lenders assess investment income | 5% = Of a managed portfolio's value counted by Metro Bank | 90+ = Lenders compared by Quanstrom Financial]]
What counts as investment income for a mortgage?
In this guide, investment income means money generated by investments you hold personally, such as:
- Stocks and shares ISAs
- General investment accounts and managed or discretionary portfolios
- Dividends from shares or funds you hold as an investor
- Interest from savings and bonds
It does not cover dividends from your own limited company, which lenders assess quite differently - our guide to mortgages for limited company directors explains how. Pension income, including undrawn pension pots, is covered in our guide to using your pension or SIPP to get a mortgage.
Can you use investment income to get a mortgage?
You can, subject to criteria. Lenders are more cautious with investment income than with a salary for one simple reason: it is not guaranteed. Dividends can be cut, interest rates change and a portfolio's value can fall, while your mortgage payments stay the same.
Some lenders will not use it at all. TSB does not accept investment income, and Nationwide only accepts investment income of a guaranteed amount that will continue for the foreseeable future, which rules out most portfolios. Others accept it but count only part of it, and they differ widely in what evidence they want.
That caution plays out in two broad ways of assessing your income.
The two ways lenders assess investment income
1. A percentage of your portfolio's value
Some lenders treat a set percentage of your portfolio's value as your income, whether or not you are drawing anything from it. Metro Bank, for example, will count 5% of the value of an investment portfolio as income, provided it is a managed portfolio worth £250,000 or more.
This approach can suit people who are leaving their investments to grow rather than taking an income, because a portfolio you are not drawing from would otherwise look like no income at all.
Cumberland Building Society takes a similar route, counting 4% of your most recent portfolio valuation as income, unless your fund manager confirms a different figure. Metro Bank also limits the mortgage term to 20 years where it uses this method, which affects the monthly payment.
Example: Suppose you hold a managed portfolio worth £600,000 and draw nothing from it. A lender counting 5% of its value would treat it as £30,000 of income a year. For illustration only, at 4.5 times income that could support borrowing of around £135,000 on its own, or more if you also have a salary.
2. The income you actually draw
Other lenders only count the income you actually take from your investments, and want proof that it is both regular and sustainable. NatWest, for example, asks for your last six months' bank statements showing the income being paid to you, plus a portfolio statement to show the investments can sustain that income over the mortgage term.
The sustainability point is the one that catches people out. A lender needs to be comfortable that you will not run the portfolio down long before the mortgage ends.
Lenders using this method also differ on how much of the income they count and how far back they look. Santander treats regular investment income as secondary income and counts 70% of it, while HSBC can count 100% where it considers the investment credible, backed by three years of tax calculations and portfolio statements.
Example: Suppose you draw £2,000 a month, or £24,000 a year. From a £200,000 portfolio, that would use up the whole pot in a little over eight years before any growth, so a lender is unlikely to see it as sustainable over a 25-year mortgage. From a £900,000 portfolio, the same £24,000 is under 3% of the value each year, which is a far easier case to make. These figures are illustrative only and each lender applies its own assessment.
How the two methods compare
[[table: | Percentage of portfolio value | Income you actually draw ;; What counts as income | A set percentage of the portfolio's value, such as 5% | The regular income paid into your bank account ;; Do you need to be drawing income? | No | Yes ;; What lenders typically look at | The size of the portfolio and how it is managed | Your track record of withdrawals and whether the portfolio can keep paying them ;; Typical evidence | Recent portfolio statements and details of who manages it | Bank statements showing the income arriving, plus portfolio statements ;; Can suit | People leaving a larger managed portfolio invested | People already living off regular withdrawals ;; Example | Metro Bank: 5% of a managed portfolio worth £250,000 or more | NatWest: 6 months' bank statements plus a portfolio statement]]
Neither method is better in every case. If you draw very little from a large portfolio, a percentage-of-value lender may count more of it. If you already draw a healthy income from a portfolio that can clearly sustain it, a drawn-income lender may suit you better. The right answer depends on your figures, which is why it is worth comparing both.
Which lenders accept investment income?
The table below shows how a selection of lenders treat investment income, taken from their own published criteria.
[[table: Lender | How it assesses investment income | What it typically wants to see ;; Metro Bank | 5% of the portfolio's value, for managed portfolios of £250,000 or more, with a maximum term of 20 years | Proof of the current value and a breakdown of the investments ;; Cumberland BS | 4% of the latest portfolio valuation, or a figure confirmed by the fund manager | A portfolio valuation dated within the last 12 months ;; NatWest | Regular income actually received | 6 months' evidence such as bank statements and a letter of confirmation, or 2 years' tax calculations, plus a portfolio statement ;; Santander | 70% of regular investment income | 3 months' bank statements and evidence of the source, showing a consistent or improving return ;; HSBC | 100% of investment income where the investment is considered credible | 3 years' tax calculations, tax year overviews and portfolio statements ;; Coventry BS | The latest year's income from interest and dividends | 2 years' tax calculations and overviews, or an accountant's certificate ;; Accord Mortgages | Reviewed case by case by an underwriter | May be acceptable with a 2-year track record ;; Nationwide | Only investment income of a guaranteed amount | A letter from a solicitor, accountant or trust administrator ;; TSB | Not accepted | -]]
Criteria correct as at 21 October 2026 and subject to change. Lenders can also apply further conditions to individual cases, and this is not a complete list of lenders that may consider investment income.
Good to know: Some lenders, including HSBC and Coventry Building Society, evidence investment income through your tax calculations. Income from an ISA is tax-free and gov.uk confirms it does not need to be declared on a tax return, so it will not show up there. Lenders that work from bank statements and portfolio statements, or from the portfolio's value, can be a better fit if most of your investments sit in ISAs.
Why volatile funds and single shares can be a problem
How your money is invested matters as much as how much there is. If your investments are held in highly volatile funds, or concentrated in a small number of individual company shares, a lender is likely to decline to use the income at all. The value of that kind of holding can fall sharply in a short time, so the lender cannot be confident the income will still be there in ten or twenty years.
A diversified portfolio spread across many holdings, particularly one that is professionally managed, tends to be viewed far more favourably. Situations that commonly cause difficulty include:
- Most of your wealth in your employer's shares, for example from vested RSUs or a share scheme
- A handful of individual company shares, rather than a spread of funds
- Highly volatile or speculative assets, such as cryptocurrency
Metro Bank's criteria, for example, exclude highly volatile funds such as currency exchange, single stock and venture capital trusts, and Nationwide lists income from cryptocurrency, RSUs and stock options as unacceptable.
Whether to change how your investments are held is a decision for you and, where appropriate, a regulated financial adviser. Quanstrom Financial arranges mortgages and protection rather than investments, and what a mortgage broker at Quanstrom Financial can tell you is how lenders are likely to view your portfolio as it stands. If your shares come from your employer, our guide to RSU mortgages explains how lenders treat share awards while you are still employed.
Which situation are you in?
[[accordion: I have a salary and investment income on top|Investment income can sit alongside a salary on the same application. Depending on the lender, it could add meaningfully to what you could borrow, so it is worth checking how each lender would count both. If your salary includes a bonus or commission, that is assessed separately again. ;; I have retired early and live off my investments|You may still be able to get a mortgage with no salary at all. The key is a lender that either counts a percentage of a larger managed portfolio, or accepts your drawn income and is satisfied it can last the whole term. Your age and the length of mortgage you want both matter here. ;; I am 55 or over with a pension and investments|Some lenders can count both. Alongside investment income, a number of lenders will treat part of an undrawn pension pot as income, even if you have not started taking it. Combining the two could strengthen your application. ;; Most of my money is in my employer's shares|A concentrated holding in one company is usually the hardest type of investment income to use, because its value depends on a single share price. It may be more useful to you as a source of deposit than as income. ;; I want to use some of my investments for the deposit|Investments you have sold are treated much like savings, so lenders will want to see the sale and the money arriving in your account. Bear in mind that selling part of a portfolio reduces both its value and the income it can produce, which could reduce what a lender will count.]]
For more on the circumstances above, see our guides to bonus and commission income, using a pension or SIPP as income, and RSUs and share awards.
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What will a lender ask for?
Every lender has its own list, but you can usually expect to be asked for:
- Portfolio statements showing the current value and the holdings
- Bank statements showing investment income being paid to you, where the lender uses drawn income (NatWest asks for six months)
- Confirmation of who manages the portfolio, where the lender requires a managed portfolio
- Tax calculations, if the lender evidences income that way, bearing in mind ISA income will not appear on them
- The usual documents for any application, such as ID, proof of address and evidence of your deposit
Getting these together before you apply helps the lender assess your case quickly and reduces the chance of delays once you have found a property.
How much could you borrow?
For a rough idea, work out your possible investment income first, for example 5% of a managed portfolio's value or your annual withdrawals, add any salary, and enter the total below.
[[calc:borrowing]]
This is an illustration only. Each lender counts investment income in its own way and applies its own affordability checks, so the figure a lender reaches for you could be higher or lower. Our guide to how much you could borrow explains how lenders treat other types of income.
How Quanstrom Financial can help
Investment income is the kind of case where going straight to your own bank can lead to a quick no, even when your finances are strong. Quanstrom Financial is a whole-of-market mortgage broker based in Eastbourne, East Sussex, and we know which lenders count investment income, which method each uses and how they view different types of portfolio.
Whether you are buying a new home, moving or remortgaging, a mortgage broker at Quanstrom Financial can compare these lenders for you in one place. We speak to clients across the UK by phone or video, as well as locally in Eastbourne and the surrounding area. Book a free consultation to talk it through.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use investment income to get a mortgage?
Yes, you may be able to. Some lenders count a percentage of your portfolio's value as income, such as Metro Bank at 5% and Cumberland Building Society at 4%, while others count the income you actually draw and evidence it with bank statements or tax calculations. Fewer lenders accept investment income than a salary, and some, such as TSB, do not accept it at all.
Can I get a mortgage if my only income is from investments?
You may be able to, provided the lender is satisfied the income is sustainable for the whole mortgage term. That usually means a lender that counts a percentage of a larger managed portfolio, or one that accepts your drawn income and can see the portfolio is big enough to keep paying it. Your age and the term you need also matter, and Metro Bank, for example, caps the term at 20 years where it uses this income.
Does stocks and shares ISA income count for a mortgage?
It can, with lenders that accept investment income. ISA income is tax-free and does not need to be declared on a tax return, so lenders that rely on tax calculations may not be able to see it. Bank statements and portfolio statements, or a lender that counts a percentage of the portfolio's value, can work instead.
How much of my investment portfolio will a lender count?
It varies widely. Lenders using the portfolio's value count a set percentage, such as 5% of a managed portfolio worth £250,000 or more with Metro Bank, or 4% of the latest valuation with Cumberland Building Society. Lenders using drawn income count some or all of it, from 70% with Santander to 100% with HSBC where it considers the investment credible.
How long do I need to have been receiving investment income?
It depends on the lender. NatWest looks for six months of evidence or two years of tax calculations, Santander asks for the latest three months' bank statements, Coventry Building Society uses two years of tax calculations, HSBC three years, and Accord Mortgages may accept it with a two-year track record. Lenders that count a percentage of your portfolio's value focus on its current value rather than a history of withdrawals.
Will a lender accept income from individual shares or cryptocurrency?
Usually not. Lenders want income that can last the whole mortgage term, so highly volatile or concentrated holdings are often excluded. Metro Bank excludes highly volatile funds, including single stock and venture capital trusts, and Nationwide lists income from cryptocurrency as unacceptable.
Can I combine investment income with my salary?
Usually, yes. With a lender that accepts investment income, it can sit alongside a salary on the same application, which could increase what you could borrow. Each type of income is assessed under its own rules before being added together.
What happens if my portfolio falls in value after I get the mortgage?
Your lender assesses your income when you apply, so a later fall in value does not change the mortgage itself, but the monthly payments still need to be made. That is why it is sensible to leave some headroom rather than borrowing the maximum a lender will offer, especially if the portfolio is your main source of income.
Can I use my investments to repay an interest-only mortgage?
With some lenders, yes, but this is a separate question from whether your investments count as income. Lenders that accept investments as a repayment plan often count less than their full value and usually limit which investments qualify, so it is worth checking both tests with the same lender.
Written by Toby Quanstrom CeMAP, Director at Quanstrom Financial, a whole-of-market mortgage broker based in Eastbourne, East Sussex.
Lender criteria in this guide were correct as at 21 October 2026 and are subject to change. This article is general information only and does not constitute personal advice, investment advice or a recommendation of any lender. Your circumstances will determine what is available to you.
Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.
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