With yesterday's callers anyway I don't think the overriding thing was 'greedy children' looking for an inheritance. The original caller was the elderly lady herself and I think it was clear she wanted to have something left to leave. In the other cases yes it was the adult children ringing but one parent was already dead and other was in 90s I think so clearly unlikely to ring in. I think it's kind of ingrained in older people to be leaving something after them and many do scrimp during their own lives to do so. I really don't think greedy children as such are the drivers behind this, I think the people themselves needed/wanted the money for whatever reason and went ahead with a bit of a 'la la la' attitude even when explained to them.
I processed mortgages for many years, I'm reluctant to say I sold them as I never went out looking for anyone to encourage to take out a mortgage, they came to me! No one wants a mortgage, no one gets up in the morning and thinks do you know what I'll got and get me a mortgage today, they want a house or the want the money for whatever reason, the mortgage is just a means to an end. For that reason most people really don't look at the details, in all my years processing mortgages one customer only ever actually read the back page of t&cs before signing on the dotted line despite everyone of them being invited to do so first.