The move follows the lender’s launch into the lifetime market through six intermediary partners in August.
The firm has had a phased launch to date as it rolls out its portfolio of products. These included a lump sum and lump sum plus; regular cash release; flexible cash release; interest only, and a ‘build-your-own’ product.
Stonehaven has hailed its build-your-own product as particularly innovative in the equity release market, as it allows brokers to create bespoke products for their clients by combining a number of the product options. The firm is also to offer an additional protected equity option, offering clients the chance to protect a percentage of the eventual sale of their home.
Confirming the market extension plans, Jayne Almond, chief executive officer at Stonehaven, said: “We will be bringing on more specialist equity release intermediaries in October, and will then be rolling out our proposition to a wider audience.”
The next phase of the lender’s roll-out will coincide with the 3 October meeting of Safe Home Income Plan (SHIP) members. Despite speculation that Stonehaven is seeking approval to join SHIP, Almond refused to be drawn on details of the application. However, the firm has been working to create plans that adhere to the SHIP code of practice. She said: “We believe our products to be SHIP-compliant.”
Duncan Young, managing director at Retirement Plus, said: “Any new entrant to the equity release market is most definitely welcome and as Stonehaven is offering a different style of product to traditional equity release plans, it will be interesting to see how it fares. I am certainly intrigued to see how Stonehaven finds the 60-80 year-old age group, as that is an area that many lenders have not experimented with.”
