Son taking over mortgage?

Noggin_1

I am asking advice for my friend.
She owns a large house with around 38k left to pay on the mortgage, she is 62 and is a care support worker possibly facing redundancy at the end of the year. She is very worried about how she will pay off her mortgage and is struggling due to a divorce payout forced her to re-mortgage her home.
She takes in lodgers but they are unreliable at times but her 30 year old son still lives with her. Many of her friends have suggested selling up and buying something smaller and more manageable without a mortgage but she loves her home.
Would she be able to put her son on the mortgage for 25 years to ease the pressure on her?

kingstreet

Probably not, no.

The length of a mortgage is determined by the age of the oldest applicant. If she is 62, the longest possible term, if she can provide evidence of income in retirement to service the mortgage, is 13 years until she is 75.

For him to be able to become party to the mortgage, he would also become party to the ownership of the property, which means she is giving him some control over the property.

Needs careful thought.

dunstonh

If she is facing redundancy, there is the possibility of a lump sum. Also, they may allow earlier access to her pension and that can provide a lump sum. Could she use those?

Senior_Paper_Monitor

There are lenders who would ignore her age/income (if she is self supporting) so at the levels of borrowing concerned this would appear doable (subject to the usual detail).

The warnings about tax, various liabilities and ownership implications are all valid - by on the information provided a good broker should romp this.

amnblog

If her son is agreeable and his income can support the mortgage on it's own - she should have some options.

Some lenders will work on the age of the youngest applicant in these circumstances.

kingstreet

I (perhaps wrongly) assumed the plan was to have the son added to the existing mortgage and extend it, rather than to remortgage elsewhere.

If a remortgage is the desired option, there are lenders who will go past retirement age, but careful consideration needs to be given to income to service mortgage payments in retirement and to other issue mentioned, ownership of property.

Noggin_1

Thank you for all of your replies. I will pass on the information to her to help her make an informed choice.

You have all been very helpful.