52 years - the length of a mortgage, say experts
House buyers are choosing to take as long as 52 years to pay off their mortgage in order to make their monthly repayments more affordable, a financial body has stated.
A 25-year term had been considered the standard length for homeowners, but figures from Moneyfacts.co.uk have indicated that only 20 per cent of borrowers are taking out plans of this length, compared to 27 per cent taking out 40-year deals.
Furthermore, the number of people taking a 52-year deal stands at over four per cent, it added.
And Julia Harris, an analyst with the company, has claimed that lenders are simply choosing to manage repayments by extending the time they have to pay off the loan.
"By spreading the mortgage over a longer period of time, monthly repayments can be reduced to a more affordable level," she said.
Meanwhile, money charity Credit Action has reported that the average amount of debt owed by people in the UK, including mortgages, is £27,445.
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