Pepper Money has made a series of criteria improvements to make its mortgages more accessible to customers who just miss out on a high street lender.

The specialist lender is now able to accept up to 5% Builders deposit on residential new build applications to help more applicants.

Pepper Money has also expanded its AVM tolerance so more remortgage customers will save time and money on their valuation.

In addition, it has increased the maximum age at the end of term to 80 years old, with earned income accepted up to 75. Pepper Money has previously extended its maximum term to 40 years, and these combined criteria changes will help more customers to overcome the affordability challenge and spread the cost of their mortgage over a longer period.

Paul Adams (pictured), sales director at Pepper Money, said: “At Pepper Money, we know that the economic environment over recent years has put unprecedented strain on the finances of the nation’s households and we’ll soon be launching our latest Specialist Lending Study, which shines a light on the scale of the challenge. So, we are doing all we can to help those customers who just miss out on a mortgage from a high street lender to continue to be able to achieve their goals.

“Last week, we introduced significant rate cuts right across our range, and this week, we can announce these new criteria enhancements, which will make our mortgages even more accessible to a wider range of customers. We are clear that just because a customer misses out on a high street mortgage, they shouldn’t miss out on competitive pricing, products with added value and exceptional service.”