Home Finance – In the news
| Older borrowers are increasingly taking out ultra-long mortgages, with a 156% rise in the last five years | Half of UK homes saw price increases in 2024, there’s a clear north-south divide in property values | Rent costs for tenants under 45 hit a record £56.2bn due to rising mortgage rates |
Retiring with a mortgage
With a rise in ultra-long mortgage terms and deals taken out later in life, the number of people who will be paying a mortgage into their seventies has grown rapidly. Data1 reveals a 156% increase in older borrowers taking out longer loan terms in the last five years.
Regional divide in house prices
Half2 of the UK’s 30 million homes increased in value by 1% or more in 2024, while a third recorded a price decline of 1% or more. The split followed a clear north-south divide, with fewer homes recording price gains in Southern England. Coastal towns in Kent and East Sussex were least likely to see values rise.
Record rent rises
Rents paid by tenants aged under 45 rose by £3.5bn last year, a new survey3 has revealed, pushing their combined rental costs to a record high of £56.2bn. “Higher mortgage rates have clipped the wings of many young aspiring homeowners,” commented Aneisha Beveridge of Hamptons.
1Financial Conduct Authority, 2025, 2Zoopla, 2025, 3Hamptons, 2025
As a mortgage is secured against your home or property, it could be repossessed if you do not keep up mortgage repayments.