Nationwide has expanded its Helping Hand mortgage, aimed at first-time buyers, which lends at up to six times’ income.

Eligible FTBs can apply for the home loan with a £30,000 salary from tomorrow, down from £35,000, and joint applicants with a £50,000 combined salary — down from £55,000.

The mutual adds that this will allow it to underwrite an additional 10,000 FTB loans a year.

The Chancellor picked out the product in her speech on freeing up the City from red tape at a summit of business leaders in Leeds this morning.

Rachel Reeves said: “I welcome the recent changes the Financial Policy Committee has announced to the loan-to-income limit on mortgage lending, which the Prudential Regulation Authority and the Financial Conduct Authority are implementing immediately.

“With an instant impact for consumers, such as Nationwide offering its Helping Hand mortgage to more FTBs — supporting an additional 10,000 each year.”

The move comes after the Financial Policy Committee last week confirmed that large and smaller lenders would be able to underwrite more loans at over 4.5 times a buyer’s income.

The Financial Policy Committee said that large lenders will be able to lend over 15% of overall new home loans at high loan-to-income levels, as long as the aggregate flow of this high loan-to-income lending remains under 15% among large banks overall.

Previously, no large bank could top the 15% rule. This left a situation where some banks threatened to breach this level, while others were comfortably under this level.

Nationwide said in January it was forced to curb its Helping Hand lending in order to stay within regulatory rules.

But Nationwide director of home Henry Jordan (pictured) now says the move by regulators, “has given us the confidence to respond quickly by relaxing our lending criteria on Helping Hand.

“Our changes mean more people, particularly those on lower incomes, could become eligible for a mortgage.”