Spicerhaart Corporate Sales, which offers an asset management service for lenders including repossessions, part- exchanges, relocation and quick sale schemes, has enhanced its proposition for lenders in relation to interest-only mortgages.

The firm can introduce lenders to later life specialists who will buy up interest-only portfolios and transfer the customers concerned onto a lifetime product on the same terms.

Mark Pilling (pictured), managing director of Spicerhaart Corporate Sales, said: “There are currently thousands of interest-only mortgage customers coming to the end of their loans, with no repayment plan in place.

“These customers tend to be older, and as a result, lenders are understandably reluctant to take action – which could result in repossession – due to the reputational risk involved.

“That is where Spicerhaart Corporate Sales can help. We can offer a bespoke portfolio sales service to lenders who wish to sell a proportion of their portfolio of interest-only loans that are both approaching and also gone past their maturity date.

“Following the sale of the asset the lender will then have seen the outstanding debt recovered, the potential reputational risks mitigated and ultimately from a customer perspective, their loan will now be ‘owned’ by a specialist lifetime lender who can offer them a variety of options.”

The recent thematic review found that many lenders were ignoring the interest only issue and letting borrowers continue to make payments after the end of the term.

But this, says Pilling, brings its own challenges, as once the payment date has passed then the borrower is effectively out of contract unless another agreement has been put in place.

“While selling the property is an option, most people want to stay in their homes so need an alternative and many lenders do not have the expertise to be able to offer the right solution.

“The most successful lenders are engaging with professional third parties who look after their interest-only book for them; whose job it is to ensure every borrower is engaged and a solution is reached.

 “This enhancement to our proposition allows lenders to group interest-only books together and find a solution for the entire portfolio, which protects the lenders’ reputations while also achieving the best outcome for the borrowers concerned.”