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Extend your mortgage term

You can extend your mortgage term to reduce your monthly payments. If you can keep your mortgage to its original term you should do so as a term extension will increase the amount of interest you have to repay overall.

The Mortgage Charter allows you to change back to your original term within 6 months without an affordability check or affecting your credit file. You can only take the option once.

Am I eligible?

To be eligible to extend your mortgage term you must:

  • Be a UK residential mortgage customer
  • Not have any arrears (this means you’ve missed mortgage payments and have payments overdue) on your mortgage
  • Not be looking to extend beyond the retirement age of 70 (or your expected retirement age if this is lower than 70)
  • Not be looking to take out additional borrowing in the short term (within 6 months of entering into a term extension)
  • The term extension must not go beyond our maximum term of 40 years past the age of 80
What happens if I am not eligible?

We’re committed to helping our customers and if the Mortgage Charter options aren’t right for you, there may be different options depending on your situation. Please call us on 0345 702 3083, with lines open 9am - 6pm, Monday to Thursday, and from 9am - 5pm on Friday.

What is a mortgage term extension?

Your mortgage term is the total number of years it'll take to repay the full amount of your mortgage, both capital and interest - often 25 or 30 years. Extending your term means you'll be paying less every month, but you'll be paying it for longer.

How will this affect my payments?

Extending your mortgage term means you'll pay less each month, as you'll have a longer period in which to repay your balance. However, because you'll be paying off your mortgage for longer, you'll pay more interest over the full term of the mortgage and so end up paying more overall. Please note that this option will not affect your credit file.

What happens after 6 months?

Should you decide to go ahead with a term extension, we’ll write to you during the final month of your arrangement to give you the option to return to your original mortgage term. If anything changes before the review date and you would like to reverse your new term, you’ll need to contact us. Any request to reduce the term outside of the 6 months will require an appointment with our Mortgage Advice Team and an affordability assessment will be required.

Extend my mortgage term online

To request to extend your mortgage term you will need to complete the Mortgage Charter form. We will write to you to provide an illustration for you to review the impacts to your mortgage payments for you to make an informed decision. You will then need to let us know should you wish to continue with this Mortgage Charter option.

We won’t provide advice on individual suitability needs or carry out any affordability assessments as this is non-advised. Please be advised you will not be protected under the Financial Conduct Authority’s rules of assessing suitability and you will not be eligible to claim for compensation under the mortgage advice element of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. You may wish to seek independent mortgage advice prior to submitting a request for the Mortgage Charter support measures.

Request mortgage extension

Are you already struggling to meet your mortgage payments?

Visit our Mortgage payment difficulties page to find out how we can help.

Mortgage Charter FAQs

What has changed?

Newcastle Building Society already offers a wide range of options to anyone struggling with their mortgage payments. On top of this, the Society has now agreed to additional measures to support customers as part of the new Mortgage Charter. Details of the commitment can be seen on the Government’s website.

Who can benefit from the Mortgage Charter?

Support under the Charter is available for customers with residential mortgages and to borrowers who are up to date with their payments. However, there is support available for all mortgage customers of the Society outside of the new measures announced in the Charter. 

To qualify for the measures of support within the Mortgage Charter you must be up to date with your mortgage payments, have a UK residential mortgage and have more than 12 months remaining on your mortgage term.

Who is excluded from the Mortgage Charter?

Customer currently in arrears (this means you’ve missed mortgage payments and have payments overdue), Buy-to-let, bridging loans, second charge loans, Gibraltar & Jersey accounts, customers with less than 12 months remaining on term and equity release are excluded from the Charter. Customers in arrears or in financial difficulty, please speak to our specialist team with Mortgage Support. Please call us on 0345 702 3083, with lines open 9am - 6pm, Monday to Thursday, and from 9am - 5pm on Friday. Alternatively if you are already in financial difficulty please refer to our mortgage payment difficulties page.

What options are available under the Mortgage Charter?

Temporary Interest Only, term extension and/or arranging a new deal 6 months* before your current deal ends.

*We implemented our Mortgage Charter changes on 1 August 2023. From this point, we began contacting customers up to 6 months before the maturity of their mortgage deal. Prior to this, customers were contacted 3 months before maturity.

What is a term extension?

Term extension means extending the term of your mortgage so you pay less each month, but over a longer period of time. Because it’ll take longer to pay off your mortgage, you'll pay more interest, meaning the total cost will be more.

How long can I extend my mortgage for?

You can only request a maximum term of either the oldest borrower’s expected retirement age (max 70 years old) or a maximum of 40 years from when you originally took out your mortgage; whichever is earliest. You can also reverse the extension as long as you ask for it within 6 months of it being actioned, without the need for an affordability assessment. Any request to reduce the term outside of the 6 months will require an appointment with our Mortgage Advice Team and an affordability assessment.

What other help is available?

We’re committed to helping our customers and if the Mortgage Charter options aren’t right for you, there may be different options depending on your situation. Please call us on 0345 702 3083, with lines open 9am - 6pm, Monday to Thursday, and from 9am - 5pm on Friday. 

Alternatively if you are already in financial difficulty please refer to our mortgage payment difficulties page.

Helping Hand, our partnership with Citizens Advice Gateshead can also help you access confidential and expert support if you are facing financial difficulties.

If I miss a payment, will my home be repossessed?

The Society never wants to repossess someone’s home, and repossession is only done as either a last resort or when it is in the financial interests of the borrower. For this reason, the Society has an extensive range of measures that we use for customers facing difficulties.

In addition, from 26 June 2023, you will not be forced to leave your home without your consent unless in exceptional circumstances, in less than 12 months from your first missed payment.

What are exceptional circumstances?

Exceptional circumstances may include:

  • When the property is vacant, the customer is deceased or the customer voluntarily seeks to proceed with repossession. 
  • Where there is detriment to the borrower in remaining in the property
  • Vulnerabilities such as domestic or financial abuse, threat to life, or severe health. Severe health is assessed on a case-by-case basis. 
What if my home is already in the process of being repossessed?

Repossession will always be a last resort when all other tailored support options have been exhausted.

We are able to issue a formal demand, to make you aware of the money you owe and inform you that the case will go to repossession proceedings.  It is important that you get in touch with us to discuss your options. We will seek to resolve the case through alternative means, including informing you about voluntary means and rehousing options.

We can proceed with repossession, including for empty properties or where you want the repossession to go ahead if it has been 12 months since your first missed payment. We can begin court action, including obtaining a repossession order from the courts. However, from 26 June 2023, will not seek to enforce this , in less than a year from your first missed payment.

Do you want to talk to us about Mortgage Charter?

We’re available Monday to Friday from 8am – 6pm

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