Self Employment, Re-Investing & Restricted Mortgage Options
Some business owners regularly re-invest in their companies in order for them to keep growing. In periods of growth, they don’t always pay themselves as much as they should and this can hold them back getting a mortgage.
For these types of Self Employed applicants, there is self employed mortgage advice in Coventry available if they feel they are illustrated by the following case study.
Minimal Expenditure Shouldn’t Mean Minimal Borrowing
Mike was an HGV driver who had been redundant and decided to start his own business within the crafting industry of all things, having spotted a gap in the market. He sold the family home and moved into his in-laws with his wife and children to set up from their garage.
He used the redundancy money and house sale proceeds to buy some stock and set off on his journey into self-employment. Things took their time to get going but after a couple of years, the business was making a small profit.
Mike and his family cut their cloth accordingly and aggressively minimized their expenditure to allow the business to grow quicker. Luckily, they had no rent or mortgage to pay each month, and Mike only paid himself a minimal salary in line with the annual tax-free allowance.
Fast forward 3 or 4 years and the business now had premises and was making almost £100,000 net profit. Still, with minimal expenditure, Mike continued not to pay himself properly. It was time for the family to buy a new home, but his Bank would only lend him £40,000 for a mortgage, and he approached us for assistance.
Affordability is Much More Than Just a Salary
Mike’s Bank had let him down because he was only paying himself around £10,000, and despite the profits, in the business, he and his family could just about live without a dividend from his Limited company.
Unfortunately, most high street lenders (with the odd exception) only assess affordability based on declared earnings. This usually is salary + dividends averaged over 2 years, but in Mike’s case, salary alone.
Retained Profit can be Just as Important
We managed to find a lender who would assess Mike’s profits in a completely different way. The lender took into account his “retained profits” and did not penalize him for his self imposed frugal lifestyle.
This lender was not interested in the fact Mike was not drawing out a dividend he did not need from his Limited company and agreed to lend him up to £400,000 (Mike did not need this much as borrowed a much lower amount).
A Low Salary Versus Difficult Lenders
Mike was not a Self Employed applicant looking to take out a Self Employed mortgage in Coventry while simultaneously seeking to minimize the amount of tax he paid aggressively. He made personal sacrifices in terms of income to grow a business from scratch.
He felt that his Bank was not interested in hearing the full story about the growth of his company and took a blinkered view of his financial situation based on income declared to the Inland Revenue.
Coventrymoneyman helped him find a lender that took a much more understanding view. Mike’s application was accepted and he now lives in a lovely family home with his wife and children, where they belong.
We’ll Try to Help You on All Accounts
If you are in a similar or the same position as Mike or are a Self Employed applicant who is looking to take out a Self Employed mortgage in the future and needing self employed mortgage advice in Coventry, please make contact with us. Sometimes you need specialist help from an expert Mortgage Advisor in Coventry like ourselves to help you secure that 1/1000 Self Employed mortgage deal.
We had a client some years ago who had sold his house and moved back into the family home to start up his business. They made lots of sacrifices personally to grow his business, and within a few years, it was starting to show good profits. He kept his expenditure down to the bare bones and kept re-investing in his Limited company.
He had a sound business with a six-figure profit but hardly any declared income because of his self-inflicted lifestyle choice. Surely this is the kind of frugal businessman all lenders should be considering (low LTV case too)?
Date Last Edited: December 6, 2023
