The Intermediary – September 2026 - Flipbook - Page 26
Q&A
Skipton International
The Intermediary speaks with Jo Phillips, senior manager
– mortgage sales at Skipton International, about launching
limited company lending, and BTL for expat borrowers
Why was now the right time to
Has the attractiveness of UK
launch limited company lending?
residential property changed?
The way landlords hold UK property has changed
considerably, and limited company ownership is no
longer a niche part of the buy-to-let (BTL) market.
Three-quarters of new BTL purchases are now
made through limited companies, with a record
66,587 BTL companies established in 2025.
Expat and international investors have
historically had access to fewer limited company
options than UK-residents. We heard from brokers
that they had clients who wanted to purchase or
refinance through a limited company, but were
struggling to find lenders able to accommodate.
The launch was a natural extension of our
existing expertise. It allows us to support eligible
non-UK resident directors using pure special
purpose vehicles (SPVs), while giving brokers clear
criteria and access to experienced specialists.
The initial response from intermediaries has been
encouraging and reinforces our view that there is a
genuine need for this type of specialist lending.
There is strong international participation in
limited company BTL, although the picture differs
between non-UK nationals living in the UK and
investors based overseas.
International investors consider many of
the same factors as UK-resident landlords,
including taxation, succession planning,
portfolio management and how they structure
their property interests over the longer term.
What is different is the additional complexity.
The borrower may live in one jurisdiction, earn
income in another, and use a UK, Guernsey, or
Jersey-registered company to hold the property.
That creates more questions around residency,
company activity, ownership, documentation, and
source of funds.
This will not be the right choice for every
investor, and borrowers should always take advice.
However, eligible international investors should
have options that reflect the different ways in
which UK investment property can be held.
Tax and regulatory changes mean investors
must look much more carefully at the costs,
responsibilities, and structure of property
ownership. Decisions tend to be more deliberate
than a decade ago.
However, complexity has not removed the
underlying reasons many international investors
are interested in UK property. These can include
existing family, educational, or professional
connections, as well as a desire for long-term
exposure to an established property market.
Investors are looking beyond the headline
purchase price and considering taxation, financing
costs, rental performance, currency movements,
and their longer-term objectives.
Our data shows stronger activity from Singapore
and Hong Kong than a decade ago, while activity
from some Middle Eastern markets has softened.
Hong Kong and Singapore both have wellestablished connections with UK property through
education, family, work, and investment. North
America is also an important market for us, while
wider market data suggests that interest from the
region is continuing to evolve.
Investors are weighing the UK against other
markets and examining stability,
currency, taxation, financing
costs, and long-term value.
That makes it important to
understand each customer’s
motivation rather than
treating international
investors as a single group.
The UK remains an
attractive destination for
the right investor, but the
proposition has evolved,
and investors are
often more
selective
and adopt
JO PHILLIPS
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The Intermediary | September 2026
