The Mortgage Works has made a number of enhancements to its application process, particularly on limited company borrowing.
In response to broker feedback, The Mortgage Works is introducing a decision in principle (DIP) for limited company purchase and remortgage applications.
TMW is further improving its limited company shareholder policy by allowing minority shareholders with a holding of 20% or less. A limited company can have up to four minority shareholders (with a maximum combined holding of 25%), and they do not need to be part of the mortgage and won’t be credit assessed or required to sign a personal guarantee.
In addition, the lender is making improvements to the existing DIP process to speed up the purchase and remortgage application process for brokers and landlords. This will give brokers certainty quicker and earlier in the application process.
Applications with The Mortgage Works will now see DIPs leave a soft footprint on a landlord’s credit file. A hard footprint will only be left on the credit file once the full application is submitted.
Dan Clinton, head of buy-to-let mortgages at The Mortgage Works, said: “As one of the country’s leading buy-to-let lenders, we always aim to make the application process as smooth and quick as possible to support brokers and their landlord clients. The changes we’re announcing today are based on feedback we’ve been getting from brokers in recent months. And, continuing our longstanding support for the limited company market, we’re also making enhancements to our limited company application process to ensure The Mortgage Works remains front of mind for those landlords.”
Nick Mendes, mortgage technical manager at John Charcol, commented: “The Mortgage Works’s move to offer a DIP for limited company cases is a practical win for brokers and landlords, giving earlier certainty and helping transactions progress faster. The switch to a soft footprint at DIP is a welcome bonus, letting clients test eligibility without denting their credit file. Easing the shareholder rules removes friction we often see in company structures and should reduce avoidable referrals. Taken together, these tweaks show a lender listening to broker feedback and backing portfolio and professional landlords with quicker, cleaner decisioning and a process that better reflects how the market operates today.”
