Here comes the 50-year mortgage

MIDDLE-CLASS families are turning to ultra-long mortgage deals to lower their monthly repayments as they face a living standards crisis.

Some homeowners are seeing mortgage bills triple as lenders hike deals amid fears that the Bank of England may raise interest rates to 6 per cent next year.

Brokers are fielding more inquiries about loans of 40 to 50 years which could leave some borrowers in debt well into their retirement.

Chris Sykes, of Private Finance, said: ‘Many middle-income families have become used to a certain amount of excess money – which they may have used to send their kids to private school.

‘Now they’re having to make decisions about where and how they cut back.

‘People are talking about extending their loan terms which seems like a good idea now but they might think differently when they’re 60.’

And David Hollingworth, of London and Country mortgages, said: ‘Even before this week we were seeing a trend of borrowers going for loans as long as 30 and 40 years.’