CCJs and lifetime mortgages

Homeowners with a County Court Judgment (CCJ), or a debt by diligence as it’s referred to in Scotland, may believe they have no loan options, especially if they are retired and don’t have a regular income. In the later life lending market, CCJs are assessed differently, with lenders reviewing them as part of an overall risk profile.

Debt is a natural part of personal finances, and in 2025 we recorded that 13% of initial lifetime mortgage loans were taken out primarily to repay existing debts.

In this article, we’ll explore how CCJs can impact lifetime mortgage applications with Pure Retirement, and what you need to be aware of when supporting your clients. For the quickest way to check which CCJs we can lend on, you can use our lending criteria lookup tool.

CCJs and lending criteria considerations

Your clients may be used to loans that focus on repayments, whereas lifetime mortgages are property-led, meaning credit issues can be viewed differently.

As a lender, we’ll review the following factors* of a CCJ:

• CCJ cause and context: As lender we need to be satisfied that the CCJs are not indicative of habitual financial mismanagement.

• Satisfied CCJs: A paid CCJ is acceptable across our lifetime mortgages and is subject to individual product criteria and provided the cause and context is satisfactory. We list all CCJ lending criteria in the next section of this blog. 

• Unsatisfied CCJs: Outstanding CCJs can be considered subject to all unsatisfied CCJs being settled upon completion of the loan.

• CCJ value: The total financial value of the judgement is a consideration which varies across our lifetime mortgages. For some it needs to be less than or equal to £3,000, for others CCJs up to £10,000 can be acceptable. The full overview is listed below and is available in our product documents.

• Amount of CCJs: Some of our lifetime mortgages have a set limit of CCJs that are acceptable. Explore the overview below for full detail.

* Please note, our CCJ lending criteria is subject to change and this article serves as a helpful overview but shouldn’t be used as a lending guarantee. Always refer to our lending criteria documentation and the details of an active KFI. This article is correct as of time of writing.

How CCJs impact lifetime mortgage applications at Pure Retirement

This product-by-product overview goes into full detail as to which CCJs are acceptable, which are not acceptable, and which can be referred for each of our lifetime mortgages.

CCJs with Classic Lifetime Mortgages

CCJs are acceptable under the following rules:

• Satisfied CCJs – Acceptable.

• Unsatisfied CCJs – No more than 3 unsatisfied CCJs with a combined total of £3,000. The customer must be willing to settle the CCJs by or upon completion of the loan.

The financial adviser and lender must be satisfied that the CCJs are not indicative of habitual financial mismanagement, and the product is suitable for the customer.

Explore Classic’s full lending criteria documentation>  

CCJs with Sovereign Lifetime Mortgages

• CCJs are acceptable, subject to being paid on completion.

• Lifetime mortgage applicants who have been discharged from bankruptcy are acceptable.

Review Sovereign’s full lending criteria documentation>  

CCJs with Emerald Lifetime Mortgages

CCJs are acceptable under the following rules:

• No more than 3 satisfied CCJs with a combined total of less than or equal to £3,000 and registered within the last 4 years.

• No unsatisfied CCJs are acceptable.

Refer to Emerald’s full lending criteria documentation>

CCJs with Heritage Lifetime Mortgages

The following CCJs are acceptable for Heritage applicants:

• Active CCJ's at £10,000 or less (subject to funder approval), provided there are no more than 5 satisfied CCJ's.

• Unsatisfied CCJ's of less than £10,000 can be referred to the funder for consideration on a case-by-case basis and subject to being repaid on completion.

Compare other lending criteria considerations using Heritage’s full lending criteria documentation>

CCJs can cause complications with lifetime mortgage applications if they are very recent, if there are multiple unsatisfied judgments, or if there’s evidence of ongoing financial difficulty.  As a lender, we aim to find the best outcome for your clients and are here to support you as their adviser.

Not sure how to support your clients with registered CCJs? We’re here to help.

A CCJ doesn’t automatically rule a client out for later life borrowing; however, it does highlight the importance of your expert advice.

While this article is a useful overview, if you have specific questions about CCJs, your Intermediary Sales team is on hand to help. You can get in touch via our online contact form or message your regional team directly. Use our ‘Find my BDM’ map to find your team’s contact details.