Career stage
Foundation dentist
You have qualified, you are earning, and the first lender you asked wanted three years of history you do not have yet. Here is what actually decides it.
Reviewed byColin WallaceLast reviewed
2 parts · one incomeIllustrative proportions
The answer bank
The questions asked at this stage.
9 filed at this stage. More added as they come up.
Usually yes, and often sooner than you have been told. Some lenders will work from a signed contract rather than a long payslip history, though the list of lenders who will is short and it changes. Checking which ones are on it today is the part worth doing before you apply anywhere – Wallace Home Finance can help you with this.
It is treated as a monthly commitment rather than as a debt held against your name, so it trims what you can borrow rather than blocking you. How much it trims depends on the lender, your repayment plan and how it is represented in your evidence documents. It is rarely the thing that decides the outcome.
Not necessarily. Waiting adds payslips, but it also adds another year of rent and another year of the market moving. It is worth finding out what you could borrow now before you decide to wait for something you may not need.
It depends on the lender, the property and how your income reads. Some lenders run ranges aimed at professionals early in their careers, and the criteria differ between them. Ask before you spend another year saving towards a figure nobody has confirmed.
Many lenders read a signed contract with a clear route into the next post differently from general fixed-term work, particularly for a registered profession. Others apply a blanket rule. Which camp your lender falls into matters more than the contract itself.
A gifted deposit is common and generally acceptable, provided it is genuinely a gift rather than a loan. Your parents will be asked to confirm that in writing and to evidence where the money came from. Lenders differ on who is allowed to gift it.
They are counted as monthly commitments and reduce affordability a little, the same way the student loan does. Clearing a card just before you apply is sometimes worth doing and sometimes not. It depends on the size of the payment against your income.
Typically your contract, recent payslips, a few months of bank statements, photo ID and evidence of your deposit. If you are also doing private sessions or locum work, bring those figures too. Gathering it early is the difference between a fast application and a stalled one.
There may be a fee for mortgage advice. The actual amount you pay will depend on your circumstances. Whilst the fee is up to 1% of the amount borrowed, a typical fee for working with a dentist is £749. You will be told what yours would be, in writing, before you commit to anything.
Nothing filed under that yet – ask a specialist directly.
Also in this hub
- Case studiesAnonymised cases at this stage, with the numbers.Colin to supply
- ReviewsVerified Google reviews from dentists at this stage.Colin to supply
- GuideThe stage in full, as one downloadable document.Next
- CalculatorWhat your income actually supports, before you apply.Next
- VideoAn adviser answering the questions people ask most.Later
Read next
Not quite where you are?
Careers move. The answers that matter move with them – so each stage keeps its own set rather than sharing a general one.
How it goes
- 01
A conversation
What you earn, how it actually arrives, and what you are trying to buy. No credit check at this point.
- 02
The income case
NHS contract, private work and dividends assembled into a picture an underwriter can accept, with the evidence attached.
- 03
The lender search
The panel searched on criteria as well as rate, so the application goes to a lender whose rules already fit you.
- 04
Through to completion
One adviser start to finish, with protection discussed alongside the mortgage rather than after it.
The next step
Ask for the
second opinion.
Tell us how to reach you and a specialist adviser will call back to talk through your income and what it should actually support. Your enquiry goes straight to the team.
Or call directly
0333 054 0747- A conversation first – there is no obligation to proceed.
- Bring your last two years of figures if you have them to hand.
Call me back
Four details. Nothing else needed to start.