Marsden Building Society has announced a significant enhancement to its Expat Residential mortgage range, doubling the maximum permitted overpayment from 5% to 10% for new applications.

The change applies specifically to Expat Residential products that are subject to early repayment charges (ERCs), providing greater flexibility for overseas borrowers seeking to repay more of their mortgage without incurring penalties.

This adjustment follows a series of broader updates to Marsden’s expat lending criteria, aimed at increasing accessibility and flexibility across the product suite. Among the recent changes, UK nationals returning from overseas are now eligible for Expat Residential mortgages whether they are rejoining the same employer or taking up a new role in the same field, provided the employment has a future start date.

Professional sportspeople have also been brought into scope, with applications now considered up to 80% loan-to-value (LTV), subject to a maximum age of 40 at the end of the mortgage term. Applicants who can demonstrate sufficient post-retirement income or investments may be considered beyond this age threshold.

In addition, Marsden has raised its income multiples from 4.5x to 5.5x for higher earners, with sole applicants required to earn more than £75,000 and joint applicants more than £100,000. All applications remain subject to affordability assessments.

Katie Broome, product manager at Marsden Building Society, said: “We’re confident that the increase in overpayments on Expat Residential solutions will be a welcome addition to our recently enhanced criteria.

“We understand that borrowers are looking for fair solutions that offer good flexibility, which is why we regularly review our criteria and introduce changes, such as this, to better support our broker partners and their clients.”