The Intermediary – December 2025 - Flipbook - Page 58
L AT E R L I F E L E N D I N G
Opinion
How lending trends
reflect societal
patterns
PAUL CARTER
is CEO at Pure Retirement
As an industry we must ensure we effectively use data to identify changing needs
A
s we look back over
2025 and forward to
2026, it’s important
to reflect on the
changing nature
of the later life
customer, and how that reflects on
the picture for the current over-55 in
Britain today.
It’s no secret that for many the last
few years have become increasingly
tough, with ongoing cost-of-living
increases and above-average inflation
reducing people’s spending power,
and rendering existing pension
provisions unable to solely sustain
both individuals and couples
throughout retirement.
That’s assuming that those
provisions are even le untouched.
The Financial Conduct Authority
(FCA) released data earlier this year
reporting record levels of pensions
withdrawals.
Q3 demographic shifts
We’ve noted a significant increase
in the proportion of new lifetime
mortgages being taken out on a ‘joint
lives’ basis, which surged to account
for 62% of new business in Q3 2025,
representing an annual upli of 10%.
Plan preference has also shied, with
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The Intermediary | December 2025
64% of new lifetime mortgages taken
out on a lump sum basis in Q3 2025,
increasing from 49% in Q3 2024 and
55% in Q2 2025 – an increase of 15%
annually and 9% quarterly.
Among single life applicants, while
men continue to, at 42%, represent
a minority compared to women,
they’ve nonetheless seen a 12% annual
increase, and a 6% increase quarterly
upli compared to Q2 2025.
These figures go deeper than simply
a lifetime mortgage trend, and point
towards wider societal shis and how
people from across the demographic
spectrum are facing challenges in
meeting their retirement goals.
Men and women
The changes in gender paerns among
single applicants were particularly
noteworthy, and led us to explore this
data set more closely.
We found men were more likely to
use released funds to repay debts and
mortgages than women, with 38% of
new business in Q3 from men listing
this is as the primary reason for taking
out a lifetime mortgage, compared to
30% of women.
Home improvements were also
a more popular reason among
men, accounting for 21% of new
business, compared to 18% of women.
Conversely, women were more than
twice as likely to release funds for
giing to family and friends, with
this use of funds being listed as the
primary reason among 13% of women,
and 6% of men.
We also found that men were more
likely to release funds to purchase
a car (10% in Q3 – a reason which
didn’t factor in the top five among
women), while women were more like
to take out a lifetime mortgage for a
holiday (5%, while it didn’t factor in
the top five reason for men). We also
noted that around 10% of both men
and women released funds for the
purpose of starting a contingency or
emergency fund.
While the proportion of business
among low to mid-value homes
remained very similar among men
and women, the gulf increased as
house values went up. At the more
affluent end of the scale, 13% of new
business from single men in Q3 came
from owners of homes worth at least
£700,000 – compared to 3% among
single women. Men are also far more
likely to take out a lifetime mortgage
on a lump sum basis, accounting for
72% of single male activity, compared
to 58% of new plans for single women.
Constant evolution
Later life lending undoubtedly
continues to play an important part
in financial planning among those
approaching – or experiencing –
retirement in the modern landscape.
However, with customer profiles
constantly evolving, it’s important
that we, as an industry, collectively
ensure we effectively use data to
identify changing needs, and in turn
evolve our offering to continue to
meet them. ●
