Equity release plans explained
For older homeowners, there’s often a lot of money tied up in the value of their property. Taking out an equity release plan could be the way to tap into that. If you own a property worth at least £70,000 and are aged 55 or over, the option could be there for you.
Equity release is a complex product and may not be right for everybody, we'll explain the benefits, drawbacks and costs of equity release to help you make an informed decision.
A lifetime mortgage is one type of equity release which is a loan that’s secured against the value of your home. With a lifetime mortgage there are typically no monthly repayments to make as the loan, plus roll up interest, is repaid when the plan comes to an end. Typically that's through the sale of your property when you or the last remaining borrower passes away, or moves into long-term residential care.
You can download our free guide to learn more about how equity release plans work.
Make the most of the value in your home
By choosing The Equity Release Experts, we will compare an extensive range of equity release plans from different providers across the market. We offer:
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Expert, impartial and fully qualified equity release advice
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Features to personalise your plan based on what is suitable for your requirements
In addition, all the equity release plans we recommend meet the Equity Release Council’s standards. With this, you get the peace of mind knowing that you’re protected by a ‘no negative equity’ guarantee – so no debt can be passed on to your family through equity release once the plan ends.
However, it’s important to remember that a lifetime mortgage may leave you with limited or no property equity remaining, and it’ll reduce your financial options in the future.
Get an equity release plan that’s right for you
At The Equity Release Experts, we treat everyone as an individual. It means we understand that your needs are different to someone else’s. And that allows us to tailor your plan so that it works for you and helps you make the most of the value in your home.
Lifetime mortgage or home reversion
With two main types of equity release plans, the choice is yours. A lifetime mortgage enables you to borrow money that’s secured against your home whilst still remaining the owner.
Lifetime mortgage benefits:
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You can unlock cash from your home, tax-free, to help meet your needs in later life
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You’ll always retain full ownership of your home and can stay in it for as long as you wish
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You can choose to make reduced or no monthly repayments to suit your circumstances
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You’ll never owe more than your home’s worth
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You may be able to remortgage your plan in the future to release further funds or secure a better interest rate, although this isn’t guaranteed and may be subject to early repayment charges
Lifetime mortgage drawbacks:
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A lifetime mortgage is a loan secured against your home and subject to compound interest, meaning the amount you owe can grow quickly
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Equity release will reduce your financial options in the future
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Equity release will reduce the value of your estate and may affect your entitlement to means-tested benefits
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Equity release may leave you with limited or no property equity remaining
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A lifetime mortgage is a long-term financial product and is not designed to be fully repaid until the death or entry into long-term care of the last remaining borrower, otherwise early repayment charges may apply
A home reversion plan, meanwhile, is where you sell part or all of your home to a home reversion provider in return for a cash lump sum. You need to be aged a minimum of 65 to be eligible.
Home reversion benefits:
- Releasing equity from your home is tax-free
- You can live in your home until you pass away or move into permanent care
- There’s no interest to pay (this isn't a loan)
- You’ll benefit from property value increases on your unsold percentage
- You can protect a portion of your property for inheritance, as long as you don't sell 100% of your home
Home reversion drawbacks:
- You'll receive less than the market value when selling your property to the home reversion provider
- It's expensive to cancel the plan early as you'd buy your property back at the full market value
- You won't be the legal owner of the property
- It'll reduce your financial options in the future
- Depending on the percentage of your property you sell, you may be left with limited or no property equity remaining
Lump sum or drawdown
Do you want to receive all your tax-free money in one go or draw down what you need, when you need it? With a lifetime mortgage, you can decide between a lump sum or drawdown
release. With a home reversion, a lump sum will be received equating to the percentage of the property value sold to the reversion provider.
Downsizing protection
If you take out a lifetime mortgage plan and decide to move, the lender must first be happy with your new home. Subject to lender criteria, it is possible to move home and take your lifetime mortgage plan with you. If you wish to downsize in the future some plans offer 'downsizing protection' which means that there won't be any early repayment charges after a qualifying period if your new property doesn't meet the lenders criteria.
Inheritance protection
No matter how much interest accrues, you can guarantee a percentage of your home’s future value can be passed on to your estate if your lifetime mortgage plan includes inheritance protection (subject to criteria). With a home reversion, a clearly defined percentage of your home remains yours for potential future use or as inheritance, unless you have sold the full value of your home.
Monthly repayments?
There are typically no monthly repayments to make on a lifetime mortgage. But with some plans you can make voluntary partial repayments on the initial amount you borrow, without incurring early repayment charges (subject to criteria) if you want to reduce how much interest is charged. There are no monthly repayments with a home reversion.
Are you eligible to unlock funds from your home?
Equity release plans aren’t right for everyone – and not everyone is going to be eligible. But the good news is that it could be much simpler than you think. If you’re a homeowner aged 55 or over with a property value of at least £70,000, you might be able to unlock some of the value in your property.
To see if you are eligible or how much you could release, use our free equity release calculator.
The importance of getting advice you can trust
The one thing that you must do before taking out equity release is to speak to a qualified equity release adviser. This is a regulatory requirement and your application won’t be accepted if you don’t.
Like all financial products, equity release is a major decision and isn’t without its risks. That’s why you should talk to The Equity Release Experts.
Our expert advisers never recommend a plan unless they’re sure it’s suitable for you. They’ll go through all the options available to you – considering all the different types of equity release plans, as well as the features that may benefit you. And unless you decide to go ahead, your initial appointment to find out more is completely free - our fixed advice fee of £1,799 is only payable on completion of a plan.
What are my other options?
As part of our advice process, we’ll consider whether retirement interest-only (RIOs) and other mortgages may be suitable and can arrange advice on these if appropriate. Advice fee will vary.
An expert adviser can discuss your needs over the phone, face to face or via video appointment and explain more about equity release. They’ll always tell you if equity release isn’t right for you and there’s absolutely no obligation to go ahead.
Before deciding on equity release, it's important you're aware of some of your other later life finance options, which may include:
Is equity release right for you?
If you're considering unlocking funds from your home, we recommend that you make sure equity release is right for you. Helping you understand equity release and finding out whether it is right for you is our primary role. Both you and your expert equity release adviser must be sure it is before going ahead.
If you want you find out more about equity release, use our free calculator or download our free guide to find out more.
Take the next step towards a brighter tomorrow
There’s no time like the present if you’d like to discover the range of equity release plans that could help you boost your finances in later life. Call us on 0800 188 4812 or fill in our callback form to speak to one of our dedicated, fully qualified equity release advisers. Lines are open Monday-Friday 9am-5.30pm.
Not ready to take that step just yet? No problem. You can see how much you could release with our free equity release calculator. Or you can get our free guide to uncover the potential of an equity release plan – and what it could mean for you and your family’s future.
