United Trust Bank has boosted criteria for residential and second charge mortgages to provide more flexibility on benefits income, later life lending and automatic valuations.
The lender will now allow a wider range of benefits as part of its residential affordability checks.
Following the update it will now consider Universal Credit, Child Benefit, Pension Credit, Personal Independence Payment (PIP), Employment Support Allowance, Disability Living Allowance, Attendance Allowance, Carer’s Allowance, Maternity Allowance, Child Tax Credit and Working Family Tax Credit.
UTB says its new approach to later life lending offers greater flexibility and clarity where the mortgage term extends beyond planned retirement age or age 70.
It has removed the requirement for applicants aged 75 or over at the start of their mortgage term to obtain independent legal advice, which it says will save them time and money.
On second charge applications, it has updated its policy to allow more deals to progress on the basis of automated valuations.
UTB commercial director of mortgages Andrew Ferguson says: “These latest changes are all about giving brokers more opportunities to place specialist cases with UTB when applicants rely on benefits or are borrowing into retirement, both of which are growing customer sectors.
“When you add these to the enhancements announced over the last ten days, you can see that we’ve transformed much of our mortgage and second charge loan criteria and given brokers even more reasons to choose UTB for speed, flexibility, simplicity and certainty.”
