In 2024, Cooper's parents passed away. Their house, valued at $750,000 last year, may need to be sold to pay off a loan from the bank, which has ballooned from $42,500 to close to $500,000. This situation may result in most of the inheritance going to the bank instead of Cooper and his sister. Although the bank claims it advised customers to seek independent financial guidance before taking out the loan, the Coopers and numerous other families have been negatively impacted by shared appreciation mortgages (Sams). These mortgages, offered for a limited time between 1996 and 1998 by Bank of Scotland and Barclays, allowed older homeowners to access a portion of their home's value without making regular payments. Instead, borrowers were required to repay the original loan amount plus a share of any increase in their home's value when the home was sold or the mortgage was repaid. Due to soaring house prices, borrowers now face substantial repayments or, in the case of Cooper, a significant financial burden for their children.
