Nearly half (47%) think lenders should base decisions on borrowers’ ability to pay, while almost a third (63%) said they would welcome the ability to borrow.
Dave Harris, managing director at more 2 life, said: “Regulators have quite rightly focused on the need to stop irresponsible lending but that is having a chilling effect on lending to responsible borrowers and even those in their 40s as recent FOS rulings have shown.
“Pensioners and those in the run-up to retirement need flexibility and are entirely capable of making informed and sensible decisions as long as there are lenders willing to lend.
“Retirement lending will be a growth area in the future as innovation in retirement income planning develops and it is one that the industry as a whole should be looking at now – one of the drivers for that growth will be the huge number of interest-only mortgages due to mature over the next 15 years or so where the borrower has no means of fully repaying their debt.”
more 2 life has commissioned a report into the growing issue of retirement lending – Lending in Retirement: The way ahead for customers and advisers.
