Lifetime Mortgage Gateway is aimed at older homeowners who have a lease that has 75 years or less remaining
A new service that allows homeowners to extend their lease through a lifetime mortgage has launched today.
Lifetime Mortgage Gateway (LMG) is aimed at older homeowners who have a lease that has 75 years or less remaining.
The process created by LMG Logistics involves the firm paying for a lease extension through a short term loan, which is then paid off using a lifetime mortgage. It also deals with all of the administration involved in the extension.
This, LMG says, will counter the rapid value destruction a mid-term lease introduces.
This is the first such service launched in England and Wales.
LMG Logistics director Guy de Jersey says: The government estimates there are 4.8m leasehold properties in the UK and about 500,000 of those are held on sub 75-year leases, against which leaseholders cannot access equity release. This is a major issue, and practical assistance and options for these unserved people is long overdue.
Too many leaseholders end up caught in this ‘mid-term lease trap’ and are left with little option but to sell their home or sit on an asset losing value, de Jersey says.
We are delighted to be working with a coalition of distinguished partners at the forefront of the market in terms of credibility, integrity and scale to ensure we deliver this new and innovative service to the many thousands of people needing it, he says.
And Key Group business development director Jason Ruse adds: Extending a lease can be a significant financial burden at any age but it is particularly worrying if you are retired and forced to watch the value of your home – and your family’s inheritance – gradually decrease.