Vida has announced changes to its products and criteria.
It has moved to support borrowers with affordability, enabling extended terms and raising the maximum age for those facing difficulties in securing the most suitable mortgage.
Vida has increased their maximum age at the end of mortgage term to 80 years old.
The specialist lender will consider lending up to an applicant’s 80th birthday based on their current income, where the following three conditions apply:
- The applicant is under 50 years old.
- They are at least 10 years from retirement.
- They are actively contributing to a pension scheme.
Additional applicants outside of this can be considered, but no income will be used for affordability. Repayment needs to be on a capital and interest basis.
Vida has also extended the maximum potential mortgage term from 40 years to 45 years.
Alongside the latest criteria enhancements, Vida has repriced its complete product range and launched new limited editions.
Buy-to-let initial rates are being cut by up to 0.70% with rates from 5.74% for five-year fixed and 6.84% on two-year fixed.
For residential, cuts of up to 0.55% see initial rates start at 6.79% for five-year fixed and 7.14% for two-year fixed.
New limited edition buy-to-let five-year fixed products are available at 75% LTV. The products will have a 6% fee with rates from 5.14%. These will be available for single units, HMOs and MUBs.
All products are backed by Vida’s Service Pledge, which allows brokers to request a refund of the £180 application admin fee if they feel they have received anything but excellent service.
Helen Cawthra (pictured), head of intermediary relationships at Vida, said: “We want to help as many people as possible move forward with realising their property ambitions at any stage in life.
“Affordability is becoming more and more challenging for many, and we want to try and help borrowers under the age of 50 where mortgage terms may take them into retirement, so these latest enhancements to our criteria and products will give intermediaries additional options to discuss with their clients.”
