If a couple separates and one of them comes off the mortgage and is bought out of the property, and the remaining spouse doesn’t have sufficient income on their own, leveraging the JBSP option makes sense. This is also a scenario where Family Building Society’s unique approach to later life lending comes into play, because at this stage couples are often more established and their parents — who are often the ones assisting them — are also older. Well-known as later life specialists, Family Building Society can take the supporting borrower in their 70s, 80s, or even 90s.
“Lending up to 95 is something we shout about a lot,” Deacon said, noting the lender’s manual underwriters look at these borrowers past working age, considering things like pensions, pension pots, rental income and investments.
“We’ve got the ability to take a more holistic view than perhaps your high street lenders would on a credit score basis.”
Another developing situation is adult children supporting parents, where the reverse-JBSP can assist. Whether a grey divorce, a spouse that passed away, or reaching retirement and seeing a drop in income, “it’s no longer just the Bank of Mum and Dad helping out,” Heavens noted.
“There are a growing number of reasons that people later in life might need that help,” he said. “We cater to that situation as well and given that someone can be 95 at the end of the mortgage term, the older parents can have that mortgage for as long as they need in theory.”