Locum Surgeon Mortgage

Do surgeons get better mortgages? How does it work for a locum surgeon?

If you are a surgeon or locum surgeon, you will be seen as a professional. That means you can access different mortgages in a ‘professional mortgage’ range with some lenders.

It could give you a higher Loan to Income calculation, meaning you can borrow more with some lenders than others. Some lenders also offer greater flexibility with their criteria, enabling you to access mortgages that others might not be able to.

How does the mortgage process work as a locum surgeon? What happens if I’m a trainee surgeon?

Most lenders will treat a locum surgeon as self-employed, which tends to mean you need at least two years’ tax calculations. This can obviously be tricky because most locums are earning more money – and are potentially looking for that first house or maybe that next house, and want to borrow that little bit extra.

Some lenders could potentially use one year’s accounts, and a couple can actually look at your invoices. If you’re working predominantly at one practice or across a couple of different places, lenders may look at that invoiced income over just six or 12 months. If you’ve just recently gone locum, some lenders can look at a mortgage for you straight away.

For trainee surgeons, most of the time you’re going to be on a fixed-term contract. Some lenders require you to have at least 12 months’ history in that position. But again it’s a professional role, so some lenders may be more flexible on that and do it from day one. As long as you’ve started that role, they will look at it for you.

What eligibility criteria do I need to meet for a mortgage? Can a locum surgeon get a mortgage without a substantial deposit?

The eligibility criteria won’t really change from what you’d normally expect. You need to have a good credit score, for example. Work history is also a factor – if you’ve been a locum for more than two years, you will have a greater array of lenders to support you.

If you have only been doing locum work for three to six months, we can still help you, but there will be fewer lenders available.

It’s certainly possible to obtain a mortgage with as little as 5% deposit, and some lenders are offering schemes at the moment which can potentially be less. But if you’re looking to use the invoices to demonstrate your income, you’re likely at the moment to need at least 5% [information correct at the time of recording in October 2025].

The more deposit you have, the better, as it potentially gets you a lower rate. Your credit score also doesn’t need to be so perfect if you have a little more deposit.

How does the income of a locum surgeon affect the amount they can borrow for a mortgage?

If we’re looking at a lender that uses your last two years’ tax calculations, most take an average over the two years. Some just need your latest year – so if that’s higher, you could get more borrowing from those lenders.

The lenders that look at invoices will simply add them up. They look at what you’ve earned over the last six months, for example, and average it over a whole year. That would be the figure they use to calculate how much you could borrow.

Because you’re a professional, some lenders will also offer you a higher Loan to Income ratio. The standard is 4.5 times income, but some lenders will offer you five or 5.5 times your earnings – to really enhance your borrowing capacity.

What factors do mortgage lenders consider when assessing the affordability of a mortgage for a locum surgeon?

They will look at your expenditure and credit commitments. They’re going to look at the balance on any credit cards, and the monthly payment and how long is left on any loans.

If you have a student loan, which most surgeons will, that would also be deducted from your total affordability. Any dependents like children can also play a factor in how much you can borrow.

They then look at your income – over the last two years or your invoices from the past six or 12 months. There will be a figure at the end of it. It does really vary and some lenders will offer you a lot more than others. That’s why it can be quite tricky going into this on your own and approaching each lender individually.