David Hollingworth, of brokerage London and Country Mortgages, said Halifax’s move comes as banks show caution around the risks of lending into retirement.
He said: “More and more people will be saying they fully intend to work until they are 70, so lenders are, rightly, adapting their criteria to fit with the fact people are working longer.
“But equally post-financial crisis lending into retirement and the ongoing affordability is a key focus for regulators since the financial crisis.”
When it comes to those looking for mortgages which run into their 70s, Halifax “might be looking to rein in the risk a little bit, without removing themselves from that market altogether”, Mr Hollingworth added.
It also represents a “sanity check” to make sure borrowers’ working plans are realistic, particularly if they are in physically demanding jobs which could become tougher into their eighth decade.
There are already growing signs of strain in the mortgage market.
The proportion of loans in arrears has risen to its highest since 2016, according to the Bank of England, with 1.23pc of all loans by value behind on repayments in the final quarter of 2023.
This amounts to £20.3bn-worth of outstanding mortgages, an increase of just over 50pc on the year.
New figures suggest the housing market recovery is stalling as lenders put the brakes on mortgage rate cuts.
Estate agents reported a rise in agreed sales for the first time in nearly two years in January but sales fell again in February, according to a closely-watched industry survey by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics). Agents also scaled back their expectations for prices and sales over the next three months.
This followed a small rise in mortgage rates since the end of January, which is squeezing affordability. The average rate on a two-year fix is now 5.78pc, up from a low of 5.55pc in late January, according to Moneyfacts.
