Day: June 10, 2025

Standard Life Home Finance will pull out of the lifetime mortgage market, leaving rival more2life to integrate its Horizon equity release range into its own business.   More2life says Horizon loans from 7 July will sit as a separate product offering within its proposition.  The Horizon lifetime mortgage range covers Horizon plans — fee-free and fee-paid — and Horizon Interest Reward, with a 15-year repayment period, for borrowers who commit to set monthly interest payments.  More2life says the decision allows the group to move to “a one-brand structure while retaining the breadth of product offering”.  Standard Life Home Finance says it will no longer offer new lifetime mortgages from 6 July, however, all of its existing customer loans will continue to be managed and serviced by the business. Total annual lifetime lending fell 11.6% to £2.3bn in 2024, from £2.6bn the previous year, according to Equity Release Council data.  More2life chief executive Dave Harris says: “This is a significant milestone for more2life with an integration that not only strengthens our market-leading position, but also reaffirms our long-term commitment to the later life lending sector.  “At a time when operational efficiency and clarity are paramount, we think bringing the Horizon range under more2life will enhance both the adviser experience and market visibility.   “This move means we have a simplified, stronger proposition, whereby advisers can continue to access the fantastic Horizon products with no disruption, and clients will see no change to the excellent service they are accustomed to.  “We will continue to invest heavily in further product innovation, adviser tools, and service excellence, and to support the market in terms of delivering the solutions required for the growing range of homeowners who want and need access to the equity in their homes.”  The post Standard Life Home Finance exits lifetime market in more2life transfer    appeared first on Mortgage Strategy.

Building Society heads attended a Downing Street reception this morning as mutuals continue to campaign for higher loan-to-income flow limits to allow them to boost borrowing.  Skipton chief executive Stuart Haire (pictured) and Building Societies Association chief executive Robin Fieth were among the senior figures at a general No 10 meeting for mutuals and co-ops. However, the reception comes as building Societies step up their push to raise lending caps for borrowers.  Under the current LTI rules, set by the Bank of England Financial Policy Committee, new residential mortgage loans are capped at, or greater than, 4.5 times salary to no more than 15% of total home loans a year.    But last week, Nationwide, Skipton and Yorkshire building societies jointly wrote to Treasury Committee chair Meg Hillier “to collectively reinforce” the need for the limit to be raised to 20% from 15% to allow them to lend to more potential homeowners. The letter, dated 5 June, followed evidence given to the committee from the leaders of all three mutuals on 21 May.  Banking body UK Finance has also called for LTI caps to be raised.   In February, Nationwide called for a review of LTI limits, citing its Helping Hand mortgage, which accounted for 23% of Nationwide’s first-time buyer mortgages last year, which had to be curbed in January to stay within regulatory lending rules.   Nationwide director of home Henry Jordan said at the time: “We are at the limits of where we can take this product. We have not named a particular threshold but, if the limit was lifted to, say, 20%, we could fund another 10,000 FTBs over the next year.”  The Financial Conduct Authority launches its second consultation into relaxing the mortgage market this year this month, which its says will be more “wide-ranging” than the paper earlier this summer. However, both Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey and Financial Conduct Authority chief executive Nikhil Rathi told MPs earlier his year that raising LTI limits carries the risk of lifting home repossessions and raising house prices.   The post Mutuals attend No 10 reception amid push for higher LTI limits  appeared first on Mortgage Strategy.

Chorley Building Society has introduced a range of professional mortgages, offering borrowers up to six times loan to income (LTI) ratios. The range includes fixed and variable options, up to 90% LTV on five-year terms. Chorley BS is also offering a ‘low start’ option where the mortgage is available on an ‘interest only’ basis for the first five years. The range includes; Professional Mortgage five-year discount rate – 80% LTV – 5.20% (initial interest rate) Professional Mortgage five-year discount rate – 90% LTV – 5.65% (Initial Interest Rate) Professional Mortgages five-year fixed rate – 90% LTV (fixed until 28.02.2030) 5.29% (initial interest rate) All of the products include a £250 cashback and do not have a scheme fee or application fee. Commenting on the product options head of operations Liz Pearson said: “Our new range of products includes a ‘low start’ option where the borrower pays the ‘interest-only’ for five years. “We know that the first few years forging a new career can be demanding and this ‘low-start’ can help reduce some of the financial pressure a young professional may face, setting up on their own for the first time as their income is increasing over the early years of their career.” She added: “To help brokers understand if this type of mortgage is suitable for their clients, we have developed a new affordability calculator, which will provide a result (for illustrative purposes) to indicate whether their client meets the affordability requirements for our professional mortgage.” The post Chorley BS unveils professional mortgage range at up to 6 times LTI appeared first on Mortgage Strategy.

High house prices, the stress of moving, a shortage of suitable homes and stamp duty were all cited as reasons why homeowners had put moving plans on hold, HomeOwners Alliance reveals. Research from HomeOwners Alliance found that one in five UK homeowners considered moving in the last two years but decided not to go ahead with plans. Of those surveyed, 35% cited high house prices as an obstacle. HomeOwners Alliance explains that house prices have consistently outpaced wage growth, making it increasingly difficult for homeowners to afford the next step on the property ladder. The moving process, which 35% cite as a barrier, is in need of reform, according to HomeOwners Alliance, and suggests it must be part of any serious housing policy. It found that 27% stated a shortage of suitable homes as the reason for not going ahead with moving, while stamp duty was cited by 24% of UK homeowners. For a family wanting to upsize to a home worth £400,000, stamp duty adds £10,000 to the upfront costs. It reveals stamp duty is stopping around 800,000 homeowners from right-sizing. HomeOwners Alliance chief executive officer Paula Higgins says: “Our research reveals a housing market in crisis – not because people don’t want to move, but because they simply can’t afford to.” “With over 800,000 homeowners shelving their moving plans, we’re seeing families trapped in unsuitable homes, unable to upsize for growing children or downsize as they age. While house prices are difficult to control, the government does have levers it can pull and we hope to see this reflected in the Spending Review and the long-awaited housing strategy.” “Stamp duty is acting as a handbrake on the housing market. When a family faces a £10,000 stamp duty bill just to move to a £400,000 home – before they’ve even paid for surveys, legal fees, and removal costs – it’s no wonder a quarter of potential movers are staying put.” “We also need the right mix of homes. Older homeowners need step-free properties, growing families need larger homes, and everyone needs options they can actually afford. Government needs to look at the existing housing stock and how to help people move into homes that better suit their needs.” “Finally, although it may not grab headlines, making the home buying and selling process less of a Russian roulette game and more certain and streamlined would give people the confidence to move.” Last month, Compare the Market found that almost half a million (469,192) homeowners who took out mortgages in 2020 are facing a substantial increase in monthly payments as they come off five-year fixed rate deals that had an average interest rate of 2.11%. The post Homeowners staying put due to house prices, stress and stamp duty: HomeOwners Alliance appeared first on Mortgage Strategy.

Royal London has appointed Setul Mehta to its protection proposition team. Mehta brings experience and strategic insight to the business, having previously worked across a number of senior roles at AIG Life and The Openwork Partnership. He joins Royal London having most recently founded SM Advice, a social media management company. Mehta will be the ‘take to market lead’ for protection and will report to Royal London head of proposition Fi Wynn. Wynn says: “Setul is a great enhancement to our protection team and further strengthens the breadth and depth of talent we have. He will bring new perspective and energy to complement our existing team to help deliver our ambitious plans.” Mehta adds: “Royal London has a powerful story to tell in protection and I’m thrilled to step into this role to bring that story to life, connecting with advisers, their clients, the industry, and the mutual as a whole.” “This role will support closer alignment with our pensions and investments teams, helping to unlock holistic protection advice whilst complementing core client needs, in turn reducing the protection gap.” In May, Royal London Equity Release launched a new broker portal to streamline the case management process for advisers. The post Royal London appoints Mehta to protection proposition team appeared first on Mortgage Strategy.