Footballer Mortgages

How would a lender assess my income as a footballer?

As a professional footballer looking for footballer mortgages, it’s likely that you are on a salary and paid by the week. lenders will calculate what this salary equates to over a year. They will use this annual income to assess your borrowing potential and lend a multiple of it, for example five times income.

The individual multiple will vary depending on the lender, your income, your deposit amount, your debts and the monthly payments and your overall credit score.

In addition to the income that you earn playing football it may be that you have other sources of income on the side such as coaching, celebrity appearances or even advertising pay from being a professional influencer. If this is the case and you earn this money on a self employed basis, lenders would need to see tax calculations to verify that the income is declared and may be able to include this in your earnings to boost your mortgage capacity.

A mortgage adviser that is experienced in football and rugby players would be able to look at your full situation and work out how much you could borrow with different lenders.

I’m a professional footballer earning more than the average person, would I get higher income multiples as a result?

You would not necessarily be able to borrow more for being a professional footballer however there are some lenders that will lend more money to people on higher incomes. For example, with a large enough deposit, there may be some lenders willing to lend above five times income.

When calculating the mortgage capacity of a footballer, there are a large number of factors that need to be taken into account. If you are looking to find out what the maximum amount is that you can borrow, it would be prudent to talk to a mortgage adviser that is independent rather than just one lender. This will open up more options and likely allow you to find a lender that offers you the most.

A professional mortgage adviser will work with you to find lenders that can offer you the amount that you need and terms that suit your situation.

What age could I borrow until as a professional footballer?

Working as a professional footballer, and looking at footballer mortgages your expected retirement age maybe a lot younger than a person in another profession. Although you may not plan to play professional football beyond a certain age, for example 35 to 40, you may not be ready to fully retire.

Lenders will want to know what your plans are going forward following retirement age to make sure that your income is sustainable in the future and your mortgage will continue to be paid.

It may be that your plan is to manage a football team or to coach, if so, the lender would want to get an idea of the amount of income that would generate so they can be comfortable that you would still be in a position to afford your mortgage. Find out more about progressing as a football coach with the UEFA Academy.

If you have a clear plan of how you would generate an income that is similar to what you currently earn, lenders may be able to use their standard retirement ages such as 70 or 75 when deciding what term that they will offer you.

Being a professional footballer I’m very busy, would I have to deal with my own mortgage or could my agent assist?

If you’re a professional footballer, you may be very busy with training and match preparation feeling you do not have the time to spend organising your mortgage.

If you have an agent that is able to assist you, your mortgage adviser should be able to work with this person for your convenience. They would still need to talk to you too so they can be certain that you fully understand the financial commitment that you are taking and you agree the terms of the mortgage.

Regarding tasks such as arranging documents and admin work, your mortgage adviser should be able to work with your agent or whoever else you appoint to assist you.

I’m a professional footballer wanting to start investing in buy to let property, would I get a buy to let mortgage?

Absolutely, there are buy to let mortgage lenders that are more than happy lending to professional footballers. Many buy to let lenders require you to own your own home before they consider lending on a buy to let basis, but this is not always the case.

There are also buy to let lenders that will lend to first time buyers Looking to get into buy to let. Buy to let property investing could be a great way to invest your football earnings whilst they are still strong so you have a larger income in the future from your property investing that could top up the difference if your earned income reduces when you stop playing football.

The amount that you can borrow will be based on the rental income that the property is expected to generate, whether or not you are a higher rate taxpayer, the length of a product that you take and lender that you go with.

A professional mortgage adviser will work with you to understand your objectives and your overall situation to work out what you could afford to buy and the terms of the mortgage.

As a professional footballer, would I get a commercial mortgage?

You may be able to get a footballer commercial mortgage as a professional footballer depending on what you plan to buy and what it will be used for. For example, if you are playing professional football now but are looking to build up a commercial property portfolio to continue to pay you an income post retirement and plan to let these commercial units out to businesses, this could be an option.

Commercial lending is complex so best to talk to a commercial mortgage adviser if you’re planning to do this. They will look at the full scenario including your experience, the deposit that you have, the type of properties that you plan to buy, the commercial tenants that will occupy these buildings and your overall credit score to assess which lenders may be able to lend to you.

Many commercial mortgage brokers will be members of the National Association of Commercial Finance Brokers.

What would be my challenges in getting a mortgage as a professional footballer?

Although getting mortgages for professional footballers can be done, there are definitely challenges. These may be the type of contract that you have, the amount of time remaining on it and your retirement plans when you finish playing professional football limiting the amount of time that you can borrow until.

It is important to note though that something that is a problem to one lender may not be a problem to another. This is where selecting the right lender is essential.

If you think you have bad credit for example, best to look up your credit score and check what your score is on websites such as Experian, Equifax and Transunion. Check My File covers all of the three on one report and offers a free trial.

You should speak to a professional adviser who can look at both the positives and the negatives about your individual situation and look for a lender accordingly.

Make sure your mortgage adviser is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

How much time needs to be left on my contract for a lender to agree to lend to me?

The amount of time left on your current contract needed to get a mortgage will depend upon the lender that you go to. Some lenders will not use fixed term mortgage contracts and the position would have to be permanent whereas there are lenders that are happy with fixed term contracts on the basis you have been earning an income in this way for a certain amount of time, for example one year.

If your current contract is about to expire imminently, lenders will need to know that this is either being renewed or you have a new position about to start.

It is always best to talk to a professional mortgage adviser that can look at your contract and give you advice on what lenders may be able to accommodate best. I NEED ADVICE can arrange this for you if you complete the contact form.

What documents would I need to provide to get a mortgage as a professional footballer?

The documents that will be needed would depend upon the lender that you go to. For a professional footballer it’s likely that you will need to show your latest three pay slips from the football club, your P60, your contract from the football club, your latest three months of bank statements, ID and deposit proofs.

I’m a high-net-worth professional footballer wanting a large mortgage, would I only have access to high street lenders or would there be private banks as well willing to lend to me?

If you’re a high-net-worth individual wanting a larger mortgage, it may be that you are offered more or more suitable terms by a private bank rather than a High Street lender.

It is likely that this will be limited by the amount that you earn so private banks usually look for clients, but they consider to be high net worth. Different banks will have a different interpretation on what this would mean, but an example maybe an income of over £500,000 or a net worth of over £3 million.

In this situation it would still be worth talking to a qualified mortgage adviser so they can assess whether you should be looking at a high street lender or talking to private banks. Your mortgage adviser may have access to these private banks to introduce you to them, and generally a mortgage broker can get a bigger mortgage for you.

To search for your large home, great websites include Rightmove, Zoopla and On The Market.

Conclusion

As a professional footballer looking for footballer mortgages, you do have options when it comes to taking a mortgage whether that be a residential mortgage, a buy to let, or commercial mortgage.

When borrowing on a residential basis, your annual income and your plans for when you retire from professional football will be large factors to take into account when working out your mortgage capacity.

If you’re a professional footballer wanting to find out more about your borrowing options, we can put you in touch with a suitable mortgage adviser. Please complete the contact form if you would like I NEED ADVICE to introduce you to an experienced adviser.