Why is mortgage offer so much lower than expected?

[ElementsOfAutumn]

I did the mortgage affordability calculator on the Nationwide website, which suggested I could borrow up to £130k. I filled out the form for a Decision in Principle and they've offered me £80k! I know there are a lot of factors that can affect this (especially credit score) but I'm pretty much a "perfect" applicant. My credit score is right at the top end and always has been, I've got no dependents or unusual regular expenses, and I've actually been overpaying my current small mortgage for years. Been in my job for almost a decade. So I can't work out why I don't qualify for the full £130k, or at least almost all of it! I totally understand that the calculator shows a MAXIMUM, but I can't imagine who could ever qualify for that if I can only get £80k when I couldn't be much of a lower risk. Any ideas?

I would never apply for a mortgage now without going through a broker. Not only will they find you the best deal across a number of lenders, but they'll also ensure your application goes to the one that's actually likely to accept you.

That would only be factored in during the application process once they valued the property OP was looking to buy, at which point they would reduce the amount they were willing to lend. It wouldn't impact the amount OP could borrow in principle.

Thanks all.

I'm a Legal Advisor on £32k, so thinking about it it's not surprising that they won't lend me over 4x my salary. I've always been with Nationwide so just went to them first, but looks like it's time for a broker

It's crazy how much things have changed! 22 years ago we were allowed to borrow 4 times our joint income with one child, one on the way, 15% deposit, interest rate 6/7% 😳 with Nationwide!

That surprises me. Almost exactly a year ago my daughter was offered a £130k mortgage by Nationwide (also as a sole applicant).

At the time she was earning about £29k and had been in her job for less than a month. She is a teacher so it is a safe job and her pay will
increase every year for the first few years, but she was only just starting so has to do two years induction. She has no dependants, no credit history at all and no debts except her student loan.

Interest rates were lower then of course (hers is 3.64%) but even so.