The Parents Supported by Juniors mortgage has no maximum age limits and the term can be based on the younger applicant’s retirement age therefore it offers housing security for older borrowers.

The mortgage is arranged in joint names between the parents or grandparents and their child or children. The property will be made out in the name of the parents or grandparents, who are the proprietors, and the children become joint borrowers but are not on the title deed – this means they are not liable for the stamp duty on second homes.

Buckinghamshire said it was able to offer this kind of mortgage because of its bespoke human underwriting approach

And it flagged up a recent case in which it was able to employ this strategy. The applicant was an 86-year-old woman who had been recently widowed and was struggling to meet the repayments on a £53,000 because her husband had left his share of the property to their grandson.

The building society arranged an interest-only mortgage in joint names over 17 years to run to the grandson’s retirement age of 66. The grandson was able to demonstrate that he could afford his own residential mortgage, as well as supporting the new mortgage with his grandmother.

This arrangement allowed his grandmother to remain in the family house, which had been her home last 34 years.

Tim Vigeon, head of lending at Buckinghamshire Building Society said: “We are pleased to be able to offer a flexible lending solution, in order to help those coming to the end of their interest only mortgages, remain in their properties.

“This is another example of how Buckinghamshire Building Society’s human and bespoke approach to underwriting supports those in challenging situations.”