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Yes, but usually not on the mortgage you already have. Letting rooms or a whole property on Airbnb is short-term letting, and most residential and buy to let mortgage terms do not allow it. The product built for it is a holiday let mortgage, and for most people asking this question, that is where the answer ends up.
Can I Airbnb my home on a residential mortgage?
Not without your lender’s permission. A residential mortgage is priced on you living there, and paying guests change the risk. Some lenders will consent to occasional letting, others will not, and doing it quietly is a breach of your mortgage conditions that can also leave your buildings insurance not paying out when you need it most. If you want to let your home longer term rather than nightly, that is a different question, covered in my guide to renting out your house on a residential mortgage.
Can I use a buy to let mortgage for Airbnb?
Usually not. Standard buy to let terms are built around a tenant on an assured shorthold tenancy, typically six or twelve months at a time. Nightly and weekly lets sit outside that, so most buy to let lenders treat Airbnb use as a breach too. There are lenders comfortable with short lets, but that comfort is written into a different product.
A standard residential or buy to let mortgage usually does not allow short lets like Airbnb
The usual route is a holiday let mortgage, assessed on projected letting income
Plan on around a 25% deposit, the same working assumption as buy to let
Leasehold flats often ban short lets in the lease before the mortgage question even starts
In Greater London, whole-home short lets are capped at 90 nights a year without planning permission
What mortgage does an Airbnb actually need?
A holiday let mortgage. The lender expects the property to be let short term to a changing series of guests, and assesses the case on projected letting income, usually taking an average of low, mid and high season weekly figures from a holiday letting agency. That projection, not an assured shorthold tenancy rent, is what the borrowing is built on.
How much deposit does it need?
Plan on 25%, the same working assumption as buy to let, with some lenders wanting more. Pricing and criteria move around in this corner of the market more than most, which is genuinely a reason to compare whole of market rather than going to the first name you recognise.
What else decides an Airbnb case?
Three things beyond the numbers. First, the lease: if the property is a leasehold flat, many leases ban short lets outright, and no mortgage product fixes that. Second, planning: in Greater London, letting a whole home short term for more than 90 nights a year needs planning permission, and other councils are increasingly interested in short lets too. Third, the property itself: lenders want somewhere that would still work as a normal home or long-term rental if the holiday trade dried up.
Does Airbnb income count towards a mortgage?
For the holiday let itself, the projected letting income is the assessment. For borrowing elsewhere, established holiday letting income showing in your accounts or tax returns can count with some lenders, much like other self-employment income. New or irregular hosting income carries little weight until it has a track record.
Speak to an expert
Weighing up an Airbnb or holiday let? Call me on 01425 203055 or email info@htgmortgages.com. I will run the numbers before you offer.
Holiday let or buy to let: which should you actually run?
A short let can gross more per week than an assured shorthold tenancy, but it carries voids, cleaning, management and seasonality that a single tenancy does not. The mortgage follows the use: pick the model first, honestly, then finance it properly. My holiday let page covers the lending side, and the buy to let hub covers the tenancy route.
Check the boring things before you list
Lease, lender consent, insurance that specifically covers paying guests, and the council’s position on short lets in your area. Every one of those is cheaper to check before the first booking than after a problem.
Talk it through before you commit
If you tell me the property, the location and how you plan to let it, I can tell you which lending route fits and what the numbers need to look like. Book a call, phone 01425 203055, or WhatsApp 07731 675537.
Need Personal Mortgage Advice?
Every buyer’s situation is different. While this guide explains the general rules, the right mortgage for you depends on your income, deposit, credit history and future plans. If you’d like tailored advice, I’m here to help, with whole-of-market coverage.
