Family Building Society

Family Building Society is a UK building society that lends and takes savings under one name, with a single branch in Epsom, Surrey and most of its business done by post, phone and online. It is best known for mortgages in situations many mainstream lenders decline: borrowing with help from family, borrowing into retirement, expat borrowers, and buy to let. Its savings side offers easy access, notice and fixed rate accounts, plus a range of cash ISAs¹.

The society describes its approach to lending as "personal and common sense", and this shapes everything it sells. It does not credit score applications in the automated way most high street lenders do; instead manual underwriters review each case¹. It does not offer current accounts, insurance or investments, so a relationship with it is usually about one mortgage, one savings account or one ISA at a time. Its product pages carry today's rates and fees, which change frequently; this page explains how the products and charges work rather than quoting them.

Family Building Society mortgages

The society's mortgage range covers five areas: moving home and remortgaging, first time and family assisted buying, later life lending, expat borrowing, and buy to let¹. A guide to how mortgages work generally covers the mechanics; what follows is what is distinctive here.

Family assisted lending is the society's signature product. It offers "a number of family assisted mortgage products for those needing extra or family help to get onto the property ladder", including joint borrower sole proprietor arrangements, where a parent's income helps qualify for the loan without them going on the title deeds⁷. It has published research with the London School of Economics on how families lend to loved ones, and produces guides for families on the legal and financial considerations of informal family lending⁷. Its specialist options also cover second homes and holiday homes, self-employed customers, members of the Armed Forces, those in tied accommodation, and landlords including houses in multiple occupation⁸.

Later life lending covers borrowing into and during retirement, on both interest only and repayment bases. The society says it has provided mortgages to those aged 65 or over for many years, and offers repayment mortgages up to age 95 at the end of the term⁹. Expat mortgages are for UK nationals living abroad, including buy to let expat mortgages for properties in England or Wales and an expat offering for limited company landlords¹¹. Buy to let is available to individuals and limited companies, though certain tenancies, including diplomatic, university or college, housing association and council lets, are not considered¹².

Savings and cash ISAs

The savings range splits into easy access, notice and fixed rate accounts, plus cash ISAs. This is the standard shape of the UK savings market, where accounts trade access against terms: the general guide to savings accounts explains the differences. The society's easy access accounts allow withdrawals without notice, but withdrawals are not instant, and it does not offer instant access accounts at all¹³. Notice accounts require a set period of notice before money is released.

The cash ISA range includes a Flexible ISA, a 35 Day Notice Cash ISA, Fixed Rate Cash ISAs and a Market Tracker Cash ISA, plus a Junior Cash ISA¹⁴. Fixed rate cash ISAs run for terms such as two, three and five years, pay a rate fixed for the term, and do not permit withdrawals before maturity, though the account can be closed early subject to charges¹⁵. Most of its cash ISAs accept transfers in from other providers, subject to their specific terms¹⁸. The rules and allowances behind cash ISAs generally, including the annual subscription limit, are covered in the ISA guide.

How mortgage fees and charges work

Family Building Society mortgage charges come in three broad types: a product fee, a valuation fee and a mortgage exit fee. The product fee varies by product, and in its owner occupier moving home and remortgage range it is charged at different levels depending on the product chosen¹⁹. Some products carry no valuation fee, while for its buy to let products the valuation fee is payable¹⁹. A mortgage exit fee is payable when the mortgage is repaid, and appears in the society's representative examples²¹. Because fees vary by product and change over time, the figures to use are the ones on the society's own product pages for the deal being considered.

Fixed and discounted rate mortgages also carry early repayment charges during their deal period. For example, one of the society's discounted rate products charges a percentage of the loan in the first year and a smaller percentage in the second²¹. The exact percentages and years are set out in each product's terms.

On the savings side, the society publishes a tariff of savings charges. Charges are triggered by specific events rather than being ongoing: they include a cheque paid in that is later returned unpaid, a same day transfer of funds to your bank account by CHAPS or Telegraphic Transfer, and a lost passbook for the second and subsequent times²². Everyday withdrawals and account operation are free; the current amounts are on the society's tariff.

Early Access Charges on fixed rate savings and ISAs

Fixed rate savings and fixed rate cash ISAs lock money away for the term, and getting it out early costs. On the society's fixed rate cash ISAs, withdrawals are not permitted before maturity, but the account can be closed before maturity, and an Early Access Charge applies¹⁸. The charge is worked out using the closing balance and the interest rate at the time the account is closed¹⁸. That means the charge is not a fixed amount: it depends on how much is in the account and the rate being paid when the closure happens.

This is standard behaviour for fixed rate savings. Which?, the consumer association, notes that fixed rate cash ISAs "require you to keep your money in the account for a certain period of time, so you may face a penalty if you access the money early"²³. In the worst case a charge can eat into the money deposited, so any sum placed in a fixed term account should be money that will not be needed before maturity.

Who can get a mortgage: age limits, income and manual underwriting

The society's eligibility rules are unusually wide at the older end of the age range. Applicants must be 18 or over²⁰. At the other end, it can lend up to age 95 at the end of the mortgage term across its standard repayment mortgage range⁹, and its owner occupier interest only mortgages are available up to a maximum age of 89 when the loan commences⁹. Expat lending is for UK nationals aged over 18 working abroad whose families remain in the UK, subject to conditions¹¹. The maximum term available depends on the applicant's age²⁴.

The defining feature is underwriting. The society states plainly: "We do not credit score at Family Building Society. Instead we have manual underwriters which review each case and look at everyone's individual circumstances."⁶ An electronic credit check is still carried out on all applicants²⁵, but a credit file that an automated system would reject can be considered on its merits. This is why the society attracts self-employed applicants, older borrowers and unusual income cases.

Income assessment needs exact figures. Before a telephone assessment with a mortgage adviser, the society requires full details of all income received, with exact figures, plus projected pension income where the term continues past retirement, and monthly or annual council tax, credit commitment and life insurance payments²⁴. For buy to let expat mortgages there is a minimum loan amount of £100,000¹².

Documents you need to apply for a mortgage

Identity is confirmed with a government issued document. The society accepts a valid, signed, in date passport; a valid, in date UK photocard or old style paper driving licence; a firearms or shotgun licence; an HMRC tax notification (excluding Self Assessment); or recent evidence of entitlement to a state or local authority benefit²⁶. If an electronic ID check fails, certified copies are needed, and the certification rules are strict: the copy must be certified by a solicitor or lawyer, an accountant, a bank or building society official, an independent financial advisor, a mortgage broker or a medical doctor, dated within the last 12 months, and marked "Certified to be a true copy of the original" with the certifier's name, job title, signature and contact details. Family members, the applicant themselves, teachers and university tutors cannot certify²⁶.

Proof of income depends on how the applicant is paid. Employed applicants provide three months' payslips and the most recent P60. Self-employed applicants provide two years of the most recent accounts, or two years of SA302s or tax calculations, or an accountant's certificate, with the accountant's details on the application form²⁷. Applicants who are retired, or whose term runs beyond retirement or age 70, provide the most recent pension statement or a letter from the Department for Work and Pensions²⁷. Existing landlords provide evidence of rent coming in and the mortgage going out, and for further advance applications on a let property, a copy of the existing or proposed tenancy agreement²⁷.

Documents can be uploaded through the Online Service, sent by secure document upload on the society's website, posted, or handed in at the Epsom branch. The society advises against sending original documents by post; anything sent is returned once identity is confirmed, except paying-in slips and cancelled cheques, which are securely destroyed²⁶.

Opening a savings account or transferring an ISA to Family Building Society

Savings accounts are opened on paper. An application form is requested by phone or from the Epsom branch, completed and returned by post to FREEPOST, FAMILY BUILDING SOCIETY, or handed in at the branch; the opening deposit is made by cheque or by transfer from another savings account with the society, and an opening certificate is issued once the first payment is made²⁸. Customers registered for the Online Service can open some accounts by logging in, and National Counties Building Society customers use the same Online Service²⁹.

ISA transfers in work differently from most providers. The society is not part of the electronic ISA transfer database, so any transfer to or from it is processed by cheque, and the current provider must be able to send and receive cheques for the transfer to take place¹⁸. An ISA Transfer Form must be completed alongside the application, and only full transfers of the current tax year are allowed¹⁴. The society does not charge for transferring funds into its ISA, but the outgoing provider may¹⁸. Most of its cash ISAs accept transfers in: the Flexible ISA, Market Tracker Cash ISA, Junior Cash ISA, and its fixed rate and notice cash ISAs¹⁸.

Because the money moves by cheque, an ISA transfer can take longer than the electronic transfers most providers manage, and interest can be lost while the money is in transit. Never withdraw the money yourself: an ISA must be transferred between providers to keep its tax-free status, a rule explained in the ISA guide.

Switching your mortgage product when your deal ends

Existing borrowers can switch to a new product with the society when their deal ends, and the society operates what it calls a Product Switch Promise. It sends a list of its current mortgage products three months before the existing product ends, and it must receive the new request no later than 14 days before the existing product ends³⁰. If the product range changes between the borrower returning the completed Acceptance Form and the existing product ending, the borrower can choose an appropriate alternative product from the new range³¹. Even if the current mortgage product has already expired, the borrower can still switch to a new owner occupier or buy to let product with the society³¹.

Product switches are cheaper than a new application: the society charges no application fee for product switches, compared with the fee payable on new lending¹⁹. Switching to a new deal with the same lender avoids the valuation and legal work a remortgage needs, though it also means only that lender's range is on offer. The general trade-offs are covered in the mortgages guide.

Managing accounts with a Power of Attorney, Deputy or Third Party Mandate

The society supports three arrangements, and what each one can do differs sharply. An Attorney or Court-appointed Deputy can open a new account, discuss and manage an existing account, manage an account online, give ISA and bond maturity instructions, make withdrawals and close an account²⁸. A Third Party Mandate, which is a simpler instruction giving someone else access to your bank or building society account³², is more limited at this society: the holder can discuss an existing account, but cannot open, manage, withdraw from or close one²⁸.

New customers registering a Power of Attorney or Deputyship request an account application form plus a Power of Attorney form, return both with the original or certified copies of the document, pass an electronic identity check, and verify their personal bank account with at least one cheque drawn against it for anti-money laundering purposes before making the opening deposit²⁸. Attorneys and Deputies cannot open accounts online, though they can register for the Online Service and operate an existing account there, including paying money in and making withdrawals, provided funds go to the beneficiary's nominated bank account²⁸. Queries about accounts that already have one of these arrangements go to the society's Family Service Team³.

What happens to accounts and mortgages when a customer dies

The society asks to be notified of a death first; once notified, it puts a note on the account or accounts and stops marketing material³³. After the death certificate is received, it writes to the Personal Representative or next of kin about next steps, including the identification needed to verify them before the deceased's accounts are closed³³.

The rules then differ by account type. For a sole savings account, the society does not charge penalties or withhold interest for early closure after a death³⁴. For a sole mortgage, no further payments are collected once the death certificate is received, but interest continues to be added to the account³⁴. For a joint mortgage, the terms and conditions stay the same and the mortgage must still be paid, even where one borrower has passed away³⁴.

The society also offers planning help before the event. It provides a document for recording all financial details so a family can resolve an estate, encourages customers to write a will, and has a Later Life Planning Team for questions about preparing for later life for yourself or an elderly family member³⁵. Guidance on the wider money issues after a bereavement is in the life events guide.

Missed mortgage payments and the Mortgage Charter

If a mortgage payment is missed, the account falls into arrears, which could affect the borrower's credit rating⁸. The standard warning applies to every mortgage the society sells: the mortgage is secured on the home, and the home may be repossessed if repayments are not kept up²⁴.

The society has signed the Government's Mortgage Charter, alongside many other UK lenders³⁰. The charter commitments include one that matters to anyone in difficulty: the society has "agreed not to force any of our customers to leave their homes without their consent within 12 months of missing their first payment"³⁰. That breathing space does not stop arrears building or interest accruing, so the practical step is to contact the society as soon as a payment looks unaffordable. Free, independent help with problem debt is available from debt advice charities, and the options are set out in the debt guide.

Contacting Family Building Society

The society lists separate numbers for new and existing customers. For new savings enquiries it lists 03330 140141, and for existing savings customers 03330 140144³⁶. For new mortgage enquiries it lists 03330 140140, though some of its pages also show 03330 140146, so the contact page of its website is the reliable place to confirm the current number³⁶. Its head office is Ebbisham House, 30 Church Street, Epsom, Surrey KT17 4NL, and savings queries can be emailed to savings.service@familybsoc.co.uk⁴. The single branch is in Epsom³.

There is one branch and no app-based banking in the high street bank sense, so most customers manage accounts by phone, post and the Online Service. Fixed rate ISA instructions, for example, can be given via the Online Service, by phone, by post or at the Epsom branch¹⁵. Complaints go through the society's own complaints process in the first instance; if a complaint is not resolved to the customer's satisfaction, a UK financial business must tell the customer of their right to take it to the Financial Ombudsman Service, the free independent adjudicator, which is described in the consumer protection guide.

FSCS protection: one limit shared with National Counties

Savings with Family Building Society are protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. FSCS automatically compensates up to £120,000 per eligible person, per bank, building society or credit union, for failures from 1 December 2025⁵. The society's own information sheet confirms that account statements state whether deposits are eligible⁴.

The critical detail is that Family Building Society is a trading name of National Counties Building Society². The FCA Register lists National Counties Building Society with the trading names NCBS and Family Building Society, holding permissions to enter into regulated mortgage contracts as lender and to accept deposits³⁸, and the firm appears on the Bank of England's list of UK building societies³⁹. Because both names sit on one licence, money in a Family Building Society account and money in a National Counties account count together towards the same £120,000 limit, not £120,000 each. A saver holding deposits under both names should treat them as one pot when checking protection. FSCS provides a check on its website for firms that are hard to find in its list⁴⁰.

Mortgages are not covered by FSCS in the way savings are: FSCS protects deposits, and mortgage borrowers are creditors of the society rather than depositors. What protects a borrower whose lender fails is that the mortgage continues on its existing terms, a point covered in the consumer protection guide.