KENT Reliance Building Society has launched a 25-year fixed rate mortgage.

The Chatham-based society, recently judged Best Regional Lender in a magazine poll, offers two interest rates according to the percentage of loan to value.

The rate is 4.98 per cent (5.2 per cent APR) for anyone borrowing up to 75 per cent of the property’s value. For borrowers taking out a 95 per cent loan, the rate is 5.5 per cent (5.9 per cent APR).

A £60 administration fee applies to each, with an administration fee of £435 added to the 75 per cent loan, and £535 to the 95 per cent loan.

Over-payments of up to £500 in any one month are allowed without penalty but all other early repayments are charged at three per cent of the amount repaid.

The mortgage, which is portable and available to first time buyers, home movers and people wanting to re-mortgage, is also available on shared ownership lending.

Mike Lazenby, chief executive of Kent Reliance, the UK’s fastest-growing society and the 19th biggest, said mortgage repayments were a big part of most people’s budget.

"This new long term fix is great for anyone wanting to plan with certainty their mortgage payments over the next 25 years. We expect demand to be very high."