Vida Homeloans has widened its buy-to-let criteria, allowing intercompany loans as a deposit source for SPV applications and increasing its aggregate exposure limit to £7.5 million.

The specialist lender said the changes are designed to give brokers greater flexibility when structuring cases for portfolio landlords and to reflect the way many professional investors now organise their businesses.

Under the revised criteria, Vida will accept intercompany loans as a source of deposit for buy-to-let special purpose vehicle applications, where the applicant is an equal or majority shareholder in the trading company providing the funds.

The lender has also increased its maximum aggregate exposure per borrower from £4 million to £7.5 million, creating additional headroom for landlords seeking to scale their portfolios or consolidate borrowing.

INTERCOMPANY LOANS ACCEPTED

Vida said the decision to recognise intercompany loans acknowledges the funding structures commonly used by professional landlords operating through limited company arrangements.

By permitting such loans where there is clear shareholder control, the lender aims to provide a pragmatic route for brokers placing more complex SPV cases, without requiring applicants to restructure established business models.

HIGHER EXPOSURE LIMIT

The uplift in the aggregate exposure limit is intended to support larger portfolio landlords who may previously have reached capacity with the lender.

Increasing the cap to £7.5 million allows brokers to retain more of a client’s borrowing with a single funder, whether for refinancing, consolidation or further acquisitions.

The changes follow a series of recent updates to Vida’s Foreign National criteria, as the lender continues to adjust its proposition in response to segments of the market it believes are underserved.

Dani Hancock, proposition development lead at Vida, said: “These improvements are another important step in strengthening our buy-to-let proposition.

“Allowing intercompany loans as a source of deposit reflects the way many professional landlords operate and gives brokers a straightforward route to placing more complex structures with us.

“Increasing our aggregate exposure limit to £7.5 million also means we can better support growing portfolios and long-term investor ambitions.

“Our aim is to create a lending environment that works with, not against, the realities of today’s landlord market — and these changes form a key part of that mission.”