Independent information site — we don't arrange mortgages or give regulated advice. Important information
Buy2LetMortgagesKnow what's behind the door
Get your briefing
Buy-to-let, unlockedUK

Know what's behind the door before you knock.

Independent, plain-English guides to UK buy-to-let mortgages — plus a free 3-minute Broker Briefing that tells you which questions to ask, what to gather and what to flag. Don't get sold to. Get briefed.

Start my Broker Briefing Browse the doors
  • No sign-up, nothing stored
  • No made-up rates
  • No approval promises
2L
Brightly painted terraced townhouses in Notting Hill, London
Pick a door

Seven doors into buy-to-let

Each type of buy-to-let has its own rules, lenders and traps. Hover to peek inside, then open the one that matches your plans.

A green and a red front door side by side on Alderney Road, London

Buy-to-let basics

How BTL lending actually works — rent-based affordability, deposits, interest-only.
Colourful painted houses on Lancaster Road, Notting Hill, London

Types of BTL mortgage

Fixed vs tracker, interest-only vs repayment, let-to-buy and remortgaging.
A brick terrace of houses on Wynyatt Street, London

Limited company (SPV)

Buying through a company: Section 24, Corporation Tax and the trade-offs.
Red-brick student houses on Headingley Mount, Leeds

HMO mortgages

Room-by-room lets: licensing, specialist valuation and lenders.
Cottages on the hillside above Mousehole harbour, Cornwall

Holiday lets

Seasonal income assessment — and the April 2025 tax change.
Rows of brightly coloured houses on the hillside at Clifton Wood, Bristol

Portfolio landlords

Four or more mortgaged properties: whole-portfolio underwriting.
Colourful terraced houses along East Street

First-time landlords

Legal duties, safety certificates and money to plan for.
The Broker Briefing

Walk into any broker conversation already briefed

Most sites try to hand you straight to a broker. We'd rather you arrive knowing which questions matter for your situation — so you can judge the advice you're given.

  1. No1
    Answer 9 plain questionsWhy you're letting, how, whose name it's in, roughly your deposit. No personal details.
  2. No2
    Get your briefing sheetThe doors that apply, flags to raise, documents to gather and questions to ask.
  3. No3
    Print it or save it as a PDFTake it to any broker, even one you found elsewhere. It all runs in your browser, and nothing is sent to us.
Start — it takes about 3 minutes
Every street is different

A Cornish harbour cottage isn't a Leeds student house

Lenders treat each property type differently. Here's where each guide starts.

Fishing boats on the sand at St Ives harbour, Cornwall St Ives, CornwallHoliday lets: seasonal income, new tax rules Red-brick Victorian terraces in Headingley, Leeds Headingley, LeedsHMOs: licensing comes first The Bank of England building on Threadneedle Street City of LondonIs buy-to-let regulated? Colourful houses on the hillside at Clifton Wood, Bristol Clifton Wood, BristolPortfolio landlords: four or more properties
Our four promises

What you'll never see on this site

No invented rates

We never quote a "current" rate or APR. Rates change daily, and that's the lender's job to tell you.

No approval promises

Only a lender can decide whether to lend to you. We'll never suggest otherwise.

No data harvesting

The Briefing and calculators run in your browser. No sign-up, and your answers aren't stored.

No hidden deals

Outbound links are labelled, and any future referral fee will be disclosed right next to the link.

Free tools

Run your numbers, not ours

A Georgian doorway with columns and a black front door in Abingdon
Start here

The Broker Briefing

9 questions, then your printable prep sheet.

Get briefed
A red-brick terrace with painted front doors
Calculator

Rental yield

Gross and net yield from a price, a rent and your costs.

Open calculator
A row of Victorian red-brick houses on a tree-lined street
Calculator

Rental cover / stress test

See whether a rent passes a lender-style test at a rate you choose.

Open calculator
A sensible order

How to use this site

No1

Get briefed

Take the Broker Briefing to see which doors apply to you, and whether your case might be regulated consumer buy-to-let.

No2

Read your doors

Open the guides your briefing points to, then test a real property with the yield and rental cover calculators.

No3

Talk to a checked broker

Take your sheet to an independent broker, and check them on the FCA Register first.

Read this before you act on anything

Mortgage rates, fees and lending criteria change often and vary by lender and borrower. Everything here is general information, not advice. Always confirm current details, and whether you're likely to qualify, with a lender or an FCA-regulated broker. Important information.