LiveMore has launched a series of criteria changes designed to give borrowers the ability to make more frequent overpayments on equity release mortgages as well as greater flexibility around LTVs across the entire product range.
Equity release customers can now make an unlimited number of overpayments within their early repayment charge allowance, typically up to 10% per annum. The minimum payment amount has been reduced from £200 to just £25.
This gives borrowers greater flexibility to make smaller, more frequent, payments when they have surplus income or capital, rather than having to wait until they have £200 available.
LiveMore has also introduced an ‘age next birthday’ capability into its equity release proposition.
The change allows borrowing to be assessed using a customer's next birthday where their birthday falls within 60 days. Often, the older a borrower is, the more they can borrow, so this will help eligible clients access higher borrowing amounts sooner, rather than having to wait until after their birthday to submit an application.
LiveMore is also introducing enhancements to LTV assessments on equity release mortgages, tailoring the amount it can lend more to individual loan circumstances.
It is also increasing the maximum LTV available on its non-equity release mortgage range from 80% to 85%. This will be available on every LiveMore mortgage with a repayment element, including capital and interest and part-and-part mortgages. This change is designed to help advisers support customers who may previously have fallen just outside lending parameters.
Leon Diamond, CEO of LiveMore, said: “LiveMore is growing rapidly and part of this is due to the fact that we continue to challenge norms and do things differently.
“Lending into retirement can now apply to people aged just 40 if they take out a 30-year mortgage. Fewer and fewer people now fit neatly into lending criteria that extends to age 70 plus, so changes like the ones we’ve made at LiveMore can make a meaningful difference to the options available to customers.
“It is part of our commitment to actively and consistently look for ways to improve access to funding for borrowers, to provide greater flexibility to borrowers and help brokers say yes more often.”
