How it Works Click here to download S.H.I.P.’s Lifetime Mortgages at a glance   Lifetime Mortgage Simply put the amount you can borrow depends on your age and the value of the house. There are no monthly repayments on the mortgage. The interest is added to the loan each month. Minimum Age Borrower(s) must be aged 55 or over. Please note that in the case of couples, both applicants must be aged 55 or over. Repayment The loan is repaid on the death of the mortgagors or where a property is left vacant for 12 months or more (for example, in the case of long-term nursing care). At this stage the family or estate have the first option to repay the loan or, alternatively, the property is sold to repay the loan with the remaining funds going to the estate. Interest Rate Options We provide two Lifetime Mortgage options. Fixed for Life – Lifetime Mortgage (1) Our most popular option is an interest rate that is “fixed for life”. This gives you certainty as the interest rate is guaranteed never to change for life. Therefore regardless of whether interest rates generally rise over the life of the loan, this interest rate will never change giving you financial peace of mind. The interest rate on this product is 7.25% APR. Variable with Ceiling - Lifetime Mortgage (2) We also provide a Lifetime Mortgage with a variable interest rate with a ceiling. This is more suitable if you want to have the option of paying the loan off early, for example after seven or eight years. The interest rate on this product is 6.70% APR and it can never rise higher than 8.70% APR. See: Consumer Credit Act Notices. Loan Amount The amount that you can borrow depends upon your age and in the case of couples or other joint applications the age of the younger applicant and the open market value of your home as set out below. * Any outstanding mortgage or charges on the property must be repaid. The minimum amount you may borrow is €25,000. With regard to the Lifetime Mortgage where the interest rate is variable with a ceiling, the percentages you can borrow are 5 percentage points lower in all cases. In other words it is possible to borrow a higher amount on the Lifetime Mortgage where the interest rate is fixed for life. For example, if your property is valued at €500,000 and you are 65 years of age, then the maximum you can borrow on the Lifetime Mortgage (1) is 20% of that value or €100,000. If you opt for the Lifetime Mortgage (2) the maximum is 15% of that value or €75,000.