Holmesdale Building Society is one of the longest standing providers in the UK, having been established in 1855. Holmesdale is a mutual building society which means that it does not answer to stockholders but rather makes all decisions based on the best interest of clients and customers. That being said, this lender provides a variety of rather unique products to those in retirement that are looking to financially secure the retirement life they want.
Holmesdale Building Society offers their Retirement Mortgage on both a single and joint basis. For single applicants, you must be at least 70 years old to qualify. If you are looking to qualify on a joint basis, your combined age with your partner must be 160.
There are other requirements that need to be met in order for you to qualify for this product. First, you must borrow a minimum of £25,000. There is a maximum amount that is applied as well. This amount is either 25% of the value of your property or £100,000, whichever is the lesser amount.
There are options that come with determining exactly what kind of Retirement Mortgage will serve you best. You can choose to have your Retirement Mortgage applied as an interest only lifetime mortgage or you can choose to have your mortgage based on a roll-up basis. This can be an in important decision as it will determine whether or not you plan on paying the interest on your retirement mortgage and how much you will need to pay back once your home is finally sold. The amount owed can also have a significant impact on what you are able to leave behind to your beneficiaries as an inheritance.
If you choose the lifetime mortgage option, your income, expenditures and credit history will be checked to ensure that you are in a position to make the monthly mortgage payments. If you do pay the interest as it is accrued, you will only end up needing to repay the original amount borrowed upon the sale of your home. There are also no early repayment charges with the Holmesdale Lifetime Mortgage so you are able to make extra payments without penalty.
There is no requirement to make the monthly interest payments with this lifetime mortgage. Instead, you may choose to let the interest accrue. Of course, this could have consequences for any potential inheritance you leave behind, as the total amount of the original loan plus accrued interest will need to be paid back upon the sale of the home.
