I have been recommending More2Life lifetime mortgages for years - in fact, they are our most frequently recommended lender. Once you have read this review, you will likely see why!
More2Life offers the most popular type of equity release, a lifetime mortgage. All More2Life lifetime mortgages meet the Equity Release Council standards, which afford you their protections. More2Life are one of the largest equity release lenders, offering the broadest range of lifetime mortgages in the market.
Let's review:
What interest rates does More2Life offer? And how do they stack up against the competition?
* More2Life's Flexi Choice and some other lenders offer variable live pricing. Please request your personalised illustration for your best rate.
How much money can More2Life provide on their lifetime mortgages? Use our calculator to find out, plus see how they stack up to the wider market.
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More2Life joined the equity release market in 2008 and have grown into a leading specialist equity release provider.
More2Life offers the most popular type of equity release plan, the lifetime mortgage, and also offers a hybrid Payment Term Lifetime Mortgage. Let's explore some criteria and features in greater detail:
- Can apply if aged 55-84
- Minimum property value £125,000
- Minimum loan £10,000
- Add a cash reserve to access money later
- Optional payments of up to 10% each year
- Free valuation on initial advance
- Personalised rate based on loan amount, age, property value, property type and location
- Downsizing protection
- Significant life event waiver
- Can apply if aged 55-85
- Minimum property value £70,000
- Loans of £10,000 to £800,000
- Add a cash reserve to access money later
- Optional payments of up to 10% each year
- Free valuation on initial advance
- Medical enhancements available offering higher release amounts
- Get up to 5% extra cashback on top of your loan
- Significant life event waiver
- Can apply if aged 55-95
- Property value £70,000 to £5,000,000
- Loans of £10,000 to £1,500,000
- Add a cash reserve to access money later
- Optional payments of up to 10% each year
- Free valuation on initial advance
- Downsizing protection
- Significant life event waiver
- Can apply if aged 55-89
- Minimum property value £120,000; £150,000 for ex-public sector houses and bungalows
- Loans of £10,000 to £2,000,000
- Add a cash reserve to access money later
- Optional payments of up to 12% each year
- Free valuation on initial advance
- Personalised rate based on loan amount, age, property value, property type and location
- Downsizing protection
- Significant life event waiver
- Can apply if aged 55-85
- Minimum property value £100,000; £150,000 for ex-public sector houses and bungalows
- Loans of £10,000 to £600,000
- Optional payments of up to 10% each year
- Free valuation on initial advance
- Downsizing protection
- Significant life event waiver
- Can apply if aged 55-85
- Minimum property value £100,000 (£150,000 for ex-public sector houses and bungalows)
- Maximum property value £2,000,000 (£3,000,000 in London and the South East)
- Minimum loan £10,000
- Lump-Sum only
- Optional payments of up to 10% each year
- Free valuation on initial advance
- Fixed ERC's for only 4 years
- Downsizing protection
- Significant life event waiver
- Can apply if aged 55-62
- Minimum property value £125,000 (£150,000 if the house/bungalow is ex-local authority)
- Maximum property value £2,000,000 in England,or £1,000,000 in Wales and mainland Scotland
- Lump-Sum only
- Optional payments of up to 10% each year
- Free valuation on initial advance
- Personalised rate based on loan amount, age, property value, property type and location
- Loan amount is affordability assessed
- Mandatory monthly payments
- Downsizing protection
- Significant life event waiver
Free valuations: All More2Life equity release plans offer free valuations on initial borrowing, regardless of the property's value.
I love this feature because it takes all the risk away from you. If there are any unforeseen issues with the survey, you will not have to pay anything upfront, and you will not be liable for paying a penny should you decide not to proceed.
Wide range of products: More2Life have SEVEN different equity release products.
Largest equity release lender: More2Life is our largest equity release lender with a strong reputation and a long trading history.
This can provide you with great peace of mind when taking a plan that could last the rest of your life!
Medically underwritten plans: More2Life will consider your medical history on their Tailored lifetime mortgages, allowing you to access higher release amounts.
Useful features offered by More2Life
Significant life event waiver: For joint applications with all More2Life lifetime mortgages, if you repay the lifetime mortgage following the first borrower passing away or moving into long-term care, an Early Repayment Charge (ERC) is not applied.
Downsizing protection: With selected More2Life lifetime mortgages, if you move to a new property which More2Life will not lend on and cannot port your lifetime mortgage, an Early Repayment Charge (ERC) is not applied.
This waiver includes moving into an age-restricted property or a home built of non-standard construction.
Partial repayments: You can repay up to 10% of the loan amount each year without penalty on all More2Life lifetime mortgages; However, with Maximum Choice you can repay up to 12%. Your annual allowance is renewed on the anniversary of the date the borrowing completes. Any unused balance does not roll over into the following year.
Short ERCs: On More2Life's Apex lifetime mortgage, they will only levy an Early Repayment Charge for the first four years: – 8% in year 1, 7% in year 2, 6% in year 3, 5% in year 4 and 0% from year 5 onwards. These are the shortest fixed ERCs in the equity release market!
More2Life's equity release underwriting
More2Life lends on most standard-built properties. However, there are some parts of their underwriting which are particularly strong compared to most equity release lenders:
Poor credit: On specific plans, More2Life does not assess any CCJs, defaults, arrears or missed credit payments with an application. You can choose to repay any outstanding CCJs, arrears and missed credit payments, but you are not obliged to. However, you cannot apply if you are currently subject to an IVA.
High flood risk: On specific plans, More2Life accepts properties in high flood-risk areas, provided that the property has not flooded due to environmental causes in the past 15 years.
Near commercial: Some More2Life plans are flexible for properties that are near commercial premises; providing a surveyor does not feel your properties location will negatively impact future saleability.
With seven different plans, More2Life usually has an option available for most of our clients.
More2Life is one of the largest specialist equity release lender with seven different product lines, each with their own benefits and drawbacks, making them a very flexible equity release provider.
However, More2Life do not lend their own money; instead they raise the money for their loans from different funders. While this isn't an issue in itself, it does mean that they cannot be as flexible as other lenders who are lending their own money.
If your property is unique or difficult to value, we can find that other lenders, including Aviva and Legal & General, can be more flexible as they are lending their own money.
Furthermore, More2Life don't offer the same discounts that other lenders do for servicing part or all of the interest. If you are looking to make voluntary monthly payments to service the interest, we often find other lenders offering discounts more cost-effective.
As part of our equity release advice service, we will consider plans from More2Life and compare them to those of other equity release lenders.
Please speak with one of our equity release advisors for your personalised illustration.
More2Life is one of the most popular equity release lenders, and for several years have been our most frequently recommended lender. Benefits of their plans include:
- Downsizing protection
- Significant life event waiver
- Reserve facilities, and
- Wide funding options with low interest rates and large maximum releases.
However, we don't recommended More2Life to every client, and depending on your circumstances, another lender maybe more suitable.
When you are ready, you can book an appointment with one of our equity release advisors, who can show you how More2Life compares to other lenders for your specific needs.
If you have an existing equity release plan with More2Life, we can help you assess the best way to borrow additional funds.
Where you have a reserve facility in place (from a drawdown plan), you can contact More2Life directly on 03454 150 150 to request additional funds.
However, I always suggest that you compare additional borrowing with More2Life to the cost of moving to a different lender.
We will require your authority to discuss your existing plan with More2Life. Please complete the form below so that we can send you a Letter of Authority to complete, sign, and return so that we may speak with More2Life.
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What a typical client looks like
As covered above, More2Life's equity release plans fit the masses. However, there are certain types of clients who, from my experience, I am more likely to recommend a More2Life equity release plan. Let's run through some examples of prime More2Life clients:
Example 1
John and Jane live in a typical two-up two-down terraced house. They are happily retired and would like to take some equity out of their property to help better their standard of living.
They have a need for some money now to pay for a holiday to Spain, but would also like additional money in the future to help support their retirement.
More2Life's Flexi Choice lifetime mortgage is recommended. It offers them the lowest interest rates in the market for their holiday and gives them enough money to help support them for the next 10 years.
If they need more money after 10 years, Flexi allows them to request additional borrowing without being 'tied' to a specific lending tier. Plus, Flexi provides them with both downsizing protection and the significant life event waiver.
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Example 2
John is 65 years old and needs to repay his interest-only mortgage. He still has five years left to repay, but has found the increase in interest rates making it difficult to afford his monthly payments.
John hopes that interest rates may decrease at some point in the future, and would like to have the option to switch to a lower interest rate plan in a few years if it were cost-effective. He is also happy to make voluntary payments of £150 per month.
With More2Life's Apex lifetime mortgage, he can raise the money he needs to clear his mortgage, taking away his worries of how he will afford next month's payment.
Apex only levy Early Repayment Charges for the first four years (the shortest in the market) and give the option to make penalty free voluntary payments of up to 10% of the amount borrowed per year.
John hopes that after making £100 per month payments for the next four years, he can switch to a lower interest rate plan.
Example 3
Jane is a 55-year-old divorced nurse from Shropshire. She has an outstanding mortgage of £78,000, which she wishes to repay.
Jane had tried to take equity release but found that she could not raise enough money to meet her needs. Plus, the interest rates on maximum release plans were higher than she was hoping to achieve.
With a Flexi payment term lifetime mortgage, she can release enough to repay her mortgage. The shortfall compared to a traditional equity release is bridged by her committing to making mandatory monthly payments of £203 until she turns 66. This is affordable while she is working and provides her with a lower interest rate too.
Why don't I just go to More2Life directly?
Of course, you can go to More2Life directly to request their lifetime mortgages. However, you still require financial advice before taking one of their plans, and they do not currently have any directly employed advisors. Instead More2Life will put you in touch with a financial advisor who will only advise on More2Life equity release plans.
If you choose to work with an advisor who works with other lenders, you could be able to access a more suitable lifetime mortgage from another provider.
But won't I get a better deal by going direct?
The interest rates charged, and the amounts of money you can release will be the same regardless of if you go direct, or through another advice firm.
In closing
I hope that I have provided you with an understanding of More2Life's equity release product offering. And hopefully, you have an idea whether you could be a More2Life equity release client. If you have further questions surrounding More2Life's equity release plans or would like to see if More2Life is the plan I would recommend for you, contact us on 0207 158 0881.
Remember we compare plans from other equity release lenders too, so we can save you time shopping around, and find the most suitable plans for you. You can also use our equity release calculator to compare the lowest rate plans.
If you have further questions, why not speak with one of our qualified advisors?
Call us on 0207 158 0881 or use our online form to book your FREE consultation.
While a qualified equity release advisor has written this guide, it is not intended to be used as financial nor legal advice and should not be relied upon.
To understand the full features and risks of an Equity Release plan, ask for a personalised illustration.
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