Mortgage advice that understands service life

X-Factor is built into your published salary, so it rarely causes an argument. Where lenders differ is everything on top of it — Longer Separation Allowance, flying, diving, submarine and parachute pay, Recruitment and Retention Payments. Some count all of it, some take a percentage, some ignore it entirely. We look at your actual pay statement and match you to the lenders that treat your particular mix most generously.

Yes, and for most people it is the single most useful thing available to them — an interest-free loan of up to half your annual salary, capped at £25,000, repaid from your pay over ten years. The catch is that lenders treat it differently: some accept it as deposit without question, others reduce what they will lend because the repayment is a commitment against your income. Being matched to a lender that handles it well is most of the value, and it is exactly the sort of thing worth a call before you apply anywhere.

Often, but not always, and we would rather tell you straight. Buying and selling inside two years rarely leaves you ahead once stamp duty, legal fees and agent fees are counted. Buying and keeping the property — letting it out when you move on — is a different calculation and frequently a good one. Tell us where you expect to be posted and how long you plan to hold it, and we will run both versions of the numbers with you.

Not on its own, but it does need handling. Time at a BFPO address or in service accommodation often does not appear on the electoral roll, so an automated credit check can come back looking thin through no fault of yours — and a lender that only scores automatically may decline on that alone. Others are used to service applicants and will underwrite it manually. It is worth pulling your credit file before you apply so there are no surprises, and we will point you at the lenders who will actually look at the case.

Usually, with consent to let from your lender. Several lenders that have signed the Armed Forces Covenant grant it readily to serving personnel, and some without the rate change an ordinary borrower would face. If you are going to be away for longer, or you want to buy again where you are posted, let-to-buy or a buy-to-let remortgage may work out better. Please note that not all buy-to-let mortgages are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

Often yes — a mortgage offer usually comes through in two to four weeks once we submit. Tell us your dates at the very start rather than halfway through, because it changes which lenders we approach: some are far quicker than others, and some are much better at dealing with an applicant who is hard to reach. If a purchase is likely to complete while you are away, ask your solicitor early about arrangements for signing in your absence.

Not automatically, and this is worth checking properly. Some standard life and critical illness policies carry war-risk or active-service exclusions that would leave your family without the payout they are counting on — and the cheapest policy is very often the one with the widest exclusions. There are insurers who cover serving personnel properly. We read what each policy actually excludes, set it alongside any cover you already hold through the service, and tell you whether there is a real gap worth filling.

It changes how a lender looks at you, but it need not reduce what you can borrow. If you have a civilian job lined up, some lenders will work from the signed contract before you have had a single payslip, which is enormously helpful during resettlement. If you are drawing an Armed Forces pension, that income counts too and can support borrowing that runs past your last working day. The worst thing you can do is assume the answer is no and stop asking.

Yes — all three. Reservist income is treated differently again depending on how regular it is and whether you have civilian earnings alongside it, and veterans often come to us mid-transition. Spouses and partners buying in their own name or jointly are very welcome, including where one income is a service income and the other is not.

Yes — we do not charge you a broker fee for mortgage advice. We are paid a commission by the lender when your mortgage completes, and we will tell you what that is. You will still have the usual third-party costs like valuation, legal fees and stamp duty, and we will set those out clearly up front so nothing lands on you unannounced.