The society, which is due to rebrand to Suffolk Building Society later this year, said it would no longer be operating its ‘later life’ products.

Instead it is combining its ranges into one set of standard residential mortgages for all – with no maximum age caps. It said interest-only products would be capped at age 95 at the end of term.

The change is the latest improvement to the Society’s ongoing commitment to later life lending, which will still have an older borrower focus but is shifting towards a customer-led approach over a product-led one.

Charlotte Grimshaw, head of intermediary relations, at Ipswich Building Society said: “We remain absolutely committed to later life lending as we understand the challenges many older borrowers have faced in the past and continue to face today.

“In many circumstances, older borrowers present a low risk to lenders because their pensionable income is stable and guaranteed and therefore, it simply makes sense that they can select from the same products as other borrowers.”

The Society said it would be retaining an exclusive option for later life applicants with a minimum age of 55.

The two-year discount rate product comes with no early repayment charges, therefore providing older borrowers with flexibility should they have a sudden change in circumstances.

In line with its lending criteria, Ipswich Building Society operates maximum LTVs depending on borrower retirement status and repayment type.

– Maximum 75% LTV for applicants borrowing into retirement

– Maximum 70% LTV for applicants in retirement (maximum 50% if any element is interest only)

For working applicants, the Society will continue to accept self-employed manual workers, or those with an employed income, to age 70 (or declared pension age if lower), or those with self-employed non-manual incomes to age 75.

Grimshaw added: “We know that being tied in to any financial product later in life may be a concern for intermediary clients, which is why we’ve decided to retain an option for now which is specifically aimed at this group.

“With no early repayment charges, borrowers will have peace of mind that should they need to downsize or should their health take a downturn, they are able to pay off their mortgage with no additional costs.

“As part of the product redesign, we will also be introducing specific, separate products for borrowing taken out on an interest only basis (including part and part) and on a repayment basis. Splitting products by repayment type will make it easier for intermediaries to identify the different options available for their clients, as well as allow us to have closer monitoring and control over our product proposition.”

DIPs on withdrawn products will be accepted until 5pm Wednesday 12 May. All DIPs received prior to the deadline will be honoured and no deadline is set for subsequent fully packaged applications.