The FCA’s decision to dedicate a full chapter of its Discussion Paper 25/2 on the future of the mortgage market to later life lending is both positive but, in all honesty, perhaps overdue.
This is a sector that’s been treated as niche, risky and separate for far too long, and the consequences of that have I think held us back. So it’s good to see the regulator now asking some of the right questions - about access, funding, product innovation and advice.
Later life lending has consistently been branded ‘high risk’ - not just in language, but in regulatory attitude.
The mainstream mortgage market and the lifetime mortgage market have been treated like distant cousins when, in reality, they live and breathe alongside each other. That separation has created a climate where many advisers - and some networks and clubs - have chosen to sit this market out, worried about compliance exposure or regulatory intervention.
That’s not theory, it’s lived experience. And while that may now be shifting, with firms like The Right Mortgage & Protection Network leading the way in embracing later life lending advice opportunities, they remain the exception, not the rule. We need other distribution businesses to feel confident in doing much more in this space, not fearful of it. This Discussion Paper is a real opportunity to bring about the change which will see that happen.
Yes, more homeowners should be using later life lending
One of the questions the paper asks is whether more customers should access later life lending to support retirement? Of course they should. With £2.6 trillion in property wealth held by the over-65s and 38% of working-age people under-saving for retirement, the case is obvious. The bigger question is: why aren’t they?
It’s not because these products don’t exist. It’s not because demand isn’t there. It’s because too many customers never get the advice conversation they need. Their adviser may not be qualified, may not be authorised, or may simply lack the confidence to step into the space. That’s a system problem, not a consumer one.
We’ve long advocated for the equity release qualification to be more widely held and we’d support a mandatory model. But it needs to come hand-in-hand with cultural change. This market only grows if every adviser has the tools and the backing to treat later life lending as a core part of their advice proposition, not an optional bolt-on.
Regulation must enable, not discourage, innovation
The paper also asks how regulation can better support innovation? There are various ways in which this can happen, for example through the way that lifetime mortgages and mainstream mortgages are presented in the FCA Handbook, putting these products on a level footing.
But the truth is that innovating is already happening. At more2life, we’ve built a product ecosystem that reflects where this market is, and where it’s going.
We’ve reintroduced high LTV lending. We’ve created a full suite of Interest Reward products to give customers meaningful discounts when they service interest, to run alongside more traditional lifetime mortgages. It’s about ensuring advisers have the broadest range of options to present to their clients, no matter their circumstances.
And we’ve delivered Pro View, a genuine game-changing underwriting proposition which brings together years of underwriting experience with cutting-edge technology. Pro View gives advisers real-time underwriting certainty and drastically reduces the back-and-forth between adviser/provider, which ultimately means the customer enjoys a smoother, faster journey.
However product innovation is only half the story. The regulator also questions why funding models haven’t diversified. The answer is simple: later life lending requires long-term commitment. These aren’t two-year fixes. These are products that may not redeem for decades, and which need funders who are willing to think long, not fast.
At more2life, we’ve stayed the course. We’ve backed the sector through the hard times. And we’ve kept investing in the tools and the products advisers and customers actually need.
Advice needs to catch up with reality
The silo between mainstream mortgage advice and later life lending has not been beneficial. It means many potential later life lending customers haven’t been introduced, or offered, solutions that could fundamentally change their financial future. The good news is, there’s now a growing recognition that this needs to change - not just from providers like us, but from regulators, trade bodies and advisers themselves.
We’ve always believed advice should be wider, so that options like lifetime mortgages are considered alongside traditional mortgages. At more2life, we’re doing more than just saying it, we’re enabling it. That means providing adviser education, ongoing support, and smart tech like ProView to make giving advice in this space simpler and faster.
Our brand refresh this summer is built around one idea: make more. More products tailored to more client needs. More support for advisers. More efficiency in the advice process. More ambition for the future of this sector in order to make more of the opportunity it undoubtedly will provide, both for advisers and the clients they work with. Because let’s be clear: customer needs are only getting more complex. It’s our job - as providers, advisers, funders and regulators - to simplify the journey, not complicate it.
Time to step up
The FCA says, quite rightly, that ‘we risk the market being unable to cope with the needs of future generations of mortgage borrowers’. That risk is real. But the opportunity is even greater.
Later life lending isn’t a niche - it’s now a necessity. If the regulator is serious about changing the trajectory, it needs to give providers the confidence to commit, advisers the support to advise, and consumers the knowledge to engage with and demand these products. The good news? Some of us are already doing just that.
At more2life, we’ve never stepped back and we’re not starting now. Let’s hope we can develop an environment that allows others to follow our lead.
