Scottish Building Society, the world’s oldest remaining mutual, has expanded its mortgage lending across mainland UK, giving brokers in England and Wales access to a wider intermediary offer that combines standard mortgages with specialist lending for clients who do not fit conventional criteria.
The move builds on the Society’s existing mortgage offering in Scotland and the North of England, and responds to growing broker demand for lenders willing to take a broader view of affordability. Particularly for clients with assets, pensions or accumulated wealth that earned income doesn’t reflect.
The Society’s pension-backed lending is designed for cases where traditional income measures do not tell the full story. It considers a customer’s wider financial position, including assets, pensions and accumulated wealth, creating further options for later-life and affluent borrowers who fall outside mainstream affordability models.
Its Retirement Interest Only mortgages provide another route for later-life borrowers, with lending available up to five times income and assessed against sustainable retirement income and individual circumstances rather than a fixed formula.
For clients paid in non-sterling currencies, the Society can factor foreign income into affordability assessments, giving brokers a route for internationally mobile professionals whose earnings do not fit standard UK lending models.
Alongside the expansion into England and Wales, the Society has also launched a professional mortgage offering of up to six times income for eligible applicants.
The product is particularly relevant in London and the South of England, where high property values and demanding affordability tests can leave professional borrowers short of the lending they need.
“Entering the England and Wales market is a significant step for the Society and reflects growing demand for more flexible mortgage options that help borrowers access the right product for their circumstances.
Clients do not always fit the boxes lenders build for them. We have built our proposition around giving brokers more choice, backed by nearly two centuries of mutual heritage and mortgage underwriting experience and a market-leading approach to technology through MSO originations software.
Chris Hunter, chief operating officer at Scottish Building Society
“Assets, pensions and accumulated wealth can tell a fuller story about a client’s financial strength than income alone, and that is the gap our specialist lending is designed to fill.
By taking a more individual view of affordability, we can help brokers support more clients whose circumstances are strong but do not fit a standard lending model.”
Stephen Brown, Mortgage Channels & Platforms Lead
