Peer-to-peer a growing option, broker says

Angela Stevens, 76, and husband Richard wanted to buy a house in Waimate but were turned down because of their age.

“I get a letter every year from the bank, telling me how valuable I am, and then they turned around and told me they wouldn’t lend me any money because I was too old,” said Angela, a retired sheep and cattle farmer.

The couple wanted to move from the West Coast to Waimate to be closer to family.

“We had a property on the coast that we thought we had sold. And then it turned to custard and the sale fell through, which left us in the position where we couldn’t finalise the purchase of the property [near Waimate],” Angela said.