The eight changes have been influenced by the mutual’s broker partners and apply to residential and specialist mortgage cases.
Leek Building Society has revised its income criteria to now consider child benefit, Pension Credit, Carer’s Allowance and Disability Living Allowance in full.
Further, contractors on short-term contracts between six and 12 months will be considered as long as they can demonstrate a continuous two-year track record within their industry.
The mutual has also removed the requirement for employer references and P60s when verifying shift allowances and bonus income, and has scrapped the need for company accounts from directors applying for a limited company buy-to-let (BTL) mortgage.
The mutual has also increased the maximum age for earned income to 75 on all products, including interest-only.
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Additionally, the minimum lease term has been reduced from 75 years to 50 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term, and prescriptive ground rent caps have been removed, with lease terms considered.
Leek Building Society has also expanded the panel of acceptable new-build warranty providers.
The mutual said the updated criteria would give brokers more certainty at the outset of an application and allow more borrowers to be assessed on their full circumstances.
The changes are immediately effective and will be applied to all new decision in principle (DIP) submissions.
Nikki Warren-Dean, head of intermediaries at Leek Building Society, said: “We place real value around listening to feedback from our broker partners to understand where the real friction points lie in today’s market. These criteria changes are directly aimed at making life easier for intermediaries and opening up viable mortgage solutions for their clients.
“Whether it’s offering realistic options for borrowers extending into later life, or streamlining income verification to accelerate time to offer, these updates reinforce our commitment to providing specialist lending solutions that fit today’s ever-evolving mortgage market.”
