The equity release market is booming. Living longer but struggling to save for retirement or running short of money after taking too much out of pensions too early mean more people than ever want to cash in on the value of their house in later life. Equity-release plan providers lent £3.94bn last year, says the Equity Release Council, up 29% on 2017. The size of the market has doubled within a four-year period.
Equity release plans are deceptively simple. Over-55s can borrow against the value of their property typically up to 50% to generate a pot of cash. You can use this money as you like and there are no repayments due. The loan, plus interest, is repaid after your death from the proceeds of the sale of your house, or earlier if you need to sell to move into long-term care.
Equity release can be an attractive proposition for homeowners in need of cash and sitting on a valuable asset, particularly those who are unable or unwilling to free up capital by downsizing to a smaller property. However, there are some big downsides. In particular, equity release plans can prove very expensive.
Subscribe to MoneyWeek
Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE
Sign up to Money Morning
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
In part this is because lenders' rates are not as competitive as on standard mortgages, typically priced at 5%-6% a year, according to personal finance data provider Moneyfacts. But the key problem is that since you're not making any repayments, the charges mount up, exposing you to the perils of compound interest. Borrow £50,000 at the age of 60 at rate of 5.1% and what you owe doubles roughly every 14 years.
So any inheritance you were hoping to leave to children can be wiped out. Equity Release Council members all guarantee no negative equity your debt will never be greater than the value of your property but your heirs may get nothing.
If you’d like to find out how much equity you could release from your home, or to find out more about equity release in general, visit our partners, UK Experts Online, for a free report.
-
Who is the richest person in the world?The top five richest people in the world have a combined net worth of $825 billion. Who takes the crown for the richest person in the world?
-
Top 10 stocks with highest growth over past decade - from Nvidia, Microsoft to Netflix, which companies made you the most money?
We reveal the 10 global companies with the biggest returns since 2013. One firm has posted an astonishing 9,870% return, meaning a £1,000 investment would now be worth almost £82,000.
