A personal approach to later life lending is needed
24 September 2018
Marsden Building Society has recently delivered research into the later life market with mortgage intermediaries who revealed one of the key things for their clients is a more personal approach. Speaking to Head of Lending at the Marsden, Steve Robinson, the lender would agree.
“Older clients tend to have good affordability, however, the sticking point for many comes with their circumstances when it comes to getting a mortgage. From all sides, these clients need a personal approach and support to get the mortgage they need; the mortgage broker needs an understanding of client circumstances and needs to be able to trust that a lender will do the same. These cases can’t be looked at with a narrow lens and instead, later life lenders need to be taking an individual approach and assessing cases on merit- which is not do-able for all.”
The later life research delivered earlier in the year, highlighted that intermediaries were adamant that there’s a need for a more personal approach to underwriting when looking at older borrowers and that it’s not always straightforward placing a later life lending case as criteria can change significantly from lender to lender.
Sentiments from intermediaries highlighted that conventional mortgages are a ‘life line for elderly clients who are asset rich and cash poor’, ‘critical as clients are living and working longer so need options extending past the traditional retirement ages’ and ‘offer a great alternative to equity release’ for those who are looking for options. Combined with this, the top two concerns for brokers providing later life advice were around criteria and age barriers.
Steve continues, “It’s crucial that when providing advice for later life customers, intermediaries are confident in their relationship with the lender and their approach to this market. It is one of the reasons why we’ve separated our Older Borrower range and developed specific products, portfolios and criteria to make this process as straightforward as possible for intermediaries.”
The options available in later life are growing but the research highlights that the personal approach needs to remain in support of intermediaries and in turn, their clients.
