Heron Financial arranged a £307,000 mortgage at 69% LTV for two joint home movers in Scarborough, both education professionals, purchasing a £447,000 three-bedroom semi-detached family home with £140,000 of equity rolled over from the sale of their previous property. The strong deposit position landed the case comfortably inside the 75% LTV pricing tier, one of the sharpest bands on the high street. Heron Financial placed the case with Coventry Building Society (Coventry Intermediaries), and the mortgage completed May 2026.
The clients
The clients were a couple in Scarborough, on the North Yorkshire coast, both working as education professionals. They were home movers, upsizing from a previous home into a three-bedroom semi-detached family house at £447,000. The £140,000 deposit came entirely from the sale of their existing property, a substantial equity position built up over time on two steady education sector careers.
They came to Heron Financial wanting a clean, well-priced mortgage on what was a meaningful step up. The brief was straightforward: deploy the sale equity sensibly, land the case in a strong LTV band, and lock in payment certainty for the early years in the new home.
The case at a glance
- Buyers: Joint home movers, employed
- Nationality: British
- Occupations: Two education professionals
- Property type: Three-bedroom semi-detached house
- Location: Scarborough, North Yorkshire
- Purchase price: £447,000
- Deposit: £140,000 from property sale (31% of purchase price)
- Loan amount: £307,000
- LTV: 69% (68.68% specifically)
- Lender: Coventry Building Society (Coventry Intermediaries)
- Repayment method: Capital and interest
- Completion: May 2026
The challenge
There’s a clean piece of strategy at the heart of this case.
LTV at 69% sits in the 75% pricing tier. Lender pricing improves in steps, typically at 95%, 90%, 85%, 80%, 75% and 60% LTV. The case landed at 68.68%, comfortably inside the 75% LTV pricing band and one of the most competitively priced tiers on the high street. Putting in less of the sale equity (say, retaining £40,000 as a cash buffer and depositing only £100,000) would have nudged the case to 78% LTV, over the 75% threshold and into a worse pricing tier. The deposit size mattered.
The borrow-less vs cash-buffer trade-off. With £140,000 of sale equity available, the clients had a real choice, deploy more of it into the property, or retain some as liquidity for moving costs, renovations or emergencies. Depositing the full £140,000 maximised the LTV benefit; retaining some would have kept more cash but at a worse rate. The right call depends on the rate trade-off, the household’s other savings and how much liquid cash is wanted post-completion.
Joint affordability on two education sector incomes. A £307,000 loan on standard 4.5x lending implies combined income of c.£68,000+. Two mid-career education professionals comfortably support a loan in this range, particularly with any additional responsibilities, TLR payments or role uplifts factored in. Several lenders also offer enhanced criteria for qualified teachers (higher income multiples), which can stretch borrowing further when needed.
Sale equity coordination. £140,000 of equity flowing from the sale completion into the purchase deposit needed clean chain coordination. Exchange and completion timings had to align so the deposit was available when the mortgage drew down.
A family home upsize. Three-bedroom semi-detached upsizes are typically driven by family circumstances, growing children, working from home, space considerations. The mortgage advice needs to factor in how long the household expects to be in the home, which shapes the right product length.
How Heron Financial approached the recommendation
The Heron adviser worked the case through three lenses: LTV positioning, lender fit, and product choice.
LTV positioning. Heron Financial discussed the borrow-less vs cash-buffer trade-off with the clients. Depositing the full £140,000 landed the case at 68.68% LTV, comfortably inside the 75% pricing tier, and the rate benefit at that band relative to 80% LTV was meaningful enough to justify deploying the full equity rather than retaining a portion as cash.
Joint affordability check. The adviser confirmed how Coventry Building Society would treat the two education sector incomes, including any role responsibilities, allowances and regular variable elements alongside basic pay. The £307,000 loan sat comfortably within affordability.
Sale coordination. The mortgage application timeline was aligned with the sale completion of the previous property, so the £140,000 of equity flowed cleanly into the new deposit at exchange.
Lender choice. Coventry Building Society was the right home for this case. They offer competitive pricing at the 75% LTV band, take a clean approach to education sector income on joint applications, and provide a smooth intermediary-lending process. Coventry is a mutual building society with a long track record of straightforward residential lending.
Product choice. A fixed rate gave the clients payment certainty in the early years of the new home, particularly valuable on a family-home upsize when the household has just absorbed the costs of moving and is settling into the new space.
The outcome
The mortgage completed in May 2026. The clients moved into their new family home with:
A £307,000 mortgage at 69% LTV
A fixed rate on capital and interest repayment
The full sale equity rolled cleanly into the new deposit
Strong high-street pricing inside the 75% LTV tier
A clean chain coordination between the sale and the purchase
What this means for buyers in a similar position
If you’re a home mover with meaningful sale equity to deploy, the LTV band you land in matters as much as the size of the loan you can afford. Putting just enough equity into the new deposit to drop into a sharper LTV tier, often the 75% LTV band, where pricing improves meaningfully, can save real money over the life of the mortgage. The trade-off is keeping less cash on hand post-completion. For households where the move is settled and the new commitment is comfortably affordable, depositing more and borrowing less is often the right call. A broker walks you through the maths on your specific numbers so the decision is informed rather than instinctive.
FAQs
Can two teachers get a £300,000+ joint mortgage?
Yes, subject to affordability. Two education professionals with combined income of c.£68,000+ can typically support a £307,000 loan under standard 4.5x lender income multiples. Several lenders also offer enhanced criteria for qualified teachers, with higher income multiples (sometimes up to 5x or beyond) for stronger profiles. TLR payments, additional responsibilities and regular variable elements can strengthen the affordability picture further.
What's the best LTV band to aim for as a home mover?
For most home movers, 75% LTV is a popular target. It’s one of the most competitively priced tiers on the high street, meaningfully better than 80% or 85% LTV, and only modestly worse than 60% (the sharpest tier). Putting in enough deposit to drop into 75% LTV, without overcommitting cash, often produces a strong combination of rate and liquidity.
Should I deploy all my sale equity into the new deposit?
It depends. Deploying more equity reduces LTV, which usually unlocks a better rate. Keeping some cash as a buffer protects against moving costs, renovations and emergencies. The right balance depends on the rate trade-off, your other savings, and how much liquid cash you want post-completion. A broker can model the trade-off on your specific numbers.
Can I use sale proceeds from my previous house as the deposit on the next one?
Yes. Sale proceeds (your equity after the existing mortgage is paid off) are the standard source of deposit for home movers. The sale and purchase typically complete on the same day, with the equity flowing through your solicitor to fund the new deposit.
Why might my mortgage end up with Coventry Building Society rather than a bigger high-street bank?
Lender choice depends on which lender’s criteria fit your case at the best terms, not on brand recognition. Coventry Building Society is a mutual lender with a long track record of straightforward residential lending, competitive pricing in mid-LTV bands, and clean criteria for joint employed couples. They’re a lender brokers regularly use because they consistently deliver strong outcomes on cases like this.
