If you are approaching retirement age and have a need for more capital one option is to look at the value held in your home as a way to release money to spend now. We’re living longer and what is available in your pension and savings pot may not meet your lifestyle expectations in retirement.
Equity release is a way to unlock, what is for many of us, our most significant asset and turn it into a cash lump sum to enjoy retirement or help adult children access their inheritance sooner to get on the property ladder themselves.
A lifetime mortgage, as it’s called, is a type of equity release that can only be sold with advice and the industry has been radically reformed over the last 25 years to safeguard consumers.
Important to know:
- You and your partner retain ownership of your home and you both have the right to live there as long as you want until the last survivor dies or goes into long-term care. At this point, the home is then sold and the money from the sale is used to pay off the loan.
- You won’t pay back more than the sale proceeds; this ‘no negative equity guarantee’ means the loan can never exceed the value of your home, protecting your family from any debt when you’re gone
- You can take the money you release in one lump sum, in several smaller amounts on which you'll pay interest, or as a combination of both
- You can protect part of the value of your home for inheritance
- You can move home
- You can make partial repayments to reduce the amount of interest that will accumulate over the term of your lifetime mortgage
Is a lifetime mortgage right for you?
For those considering equity release, our financial advisers will help you to understand which product is right for your needs, taking into consideration your personal circumstances and the potential tax and inheritance implications. A lifetime mortgage won’t be for everyone.
As a starting point we’ll need to see you qualify for a lifetime mortgage:
- I am aged 55+
- I am living in (or buying) my own home with a small or no mortgage
- I want to borrow a minimum of £10,000
- I am living in England, Wales or mainland Scotland.
- My house is worth a minimum of £100,000 or £150,000 for ex-council, ex housing association or ex Ministry of Defence properties.
There is now more product choice than ever before when it comes to lifetime mortgages and we can help you find what’s right for you.