What is equity release?
The concept explained:
With house prices having risen considerably over the past few decades, UK's over-55 homeowners are finding themselves sitting on a large amount of equity. Traditionally, the only way to make use of this equity was to sell your home and downsize.
But what if you want to stay in your current home, and still make use of your property wealth? If this is the case, releasing equity could be the thing for you.
What is equity ?
Simply put, the equity that you have in your home is the value of your home minus any loans secured against it. For most homeowners this will be any outstanding mortgage amount.
As an example, if your home was worth £200,000 with a £50,000 mortgage secured against it, you would hold £150,000 equity.
How could you release equity?
There are several ways that you could access the equity tied up in your home. As mentioned, you could sell and downsize to a different property. Increasingly though, homeowners over the age of 55 would prefer to stay in their home, rather than to move to a new property.
For those homeowners, they could release equity with a Lifetime Mortgage or home reversion plan. At Responsible Equity Release we will only advise on Lifetime Mortgages, as only with this product do you retain complete ownership of your home.
Why release equity?
When you decide to release equity, there are many ways that you might decide to use your tax-free cash lump sum. If you are looking for a little inspiration however, we have detailed some of the most common reasons for releasing equity here.
Clear your existing mortgage
Contrary to popular belief, having an existing mortgage does not stop you from releasing equity. It is possible, provided that the mortgage is cleared upon completion of the equity release process. Many people decide to use their tax-free sum to achieve this.
Gift an early inheritance
For some of our customers, nothing beats the ability to advance an inheritance to their loved ones. Gifting an early inheritance now not only allows you to see the joy it brings within your lifetime.
Boost your disposable income
Not all of our customers wish to release equity for grand plans. You might simply wish to make life a little more comfortable by releasing a portion of your equity over time, allowing you to boost your disposable income.
Good things to know
By taking equity out of your home today, there will be less available to your estate in the future. If you're in receipt of any means-tested benefits, then a tax-free sum could affect your entitlement to them. It is also essential that you do not commit to any spending relating to a Lifetime Mortgage before the money is in your account.
Is equity release right for you?
Here at Responsible Equity Release, we understand that equity release is not a small decision. As such, we are pleased to offer you an initial no-obligation consultation phone call with a member of our Information Team. This is not a sales call, instead it is used to determine your eligibility and answer any pressing questions that you might have.
Our friendly Information Team are:
- Based in our Head Office in Plymouth.
- Completely free and available to help you.
- Unable to sell you anything.
- Only there to answer your questions.
- Able to provide an estimate of how much you could release from your home.
- Able to arrange a no-obligation telephone call with a fully qualified equity release adviser in your local area when you are ready.
Equity release advice
Responsible Equity Release will also offer you a no-obligation appointment with a fully qualified equity release adviser that is local to you. They will be able to assess your personal circumstances and advise on whether equity release is the right option for you.
To find out if you could be eligible for equity release or to arrange an appointment, why not book in a call with our Information Team today?
Schedule a CallbackIs equity release safe?
As a member of the Equity Release Council, the trade body for our industry, Responsible will only offer advice on products with the following customer-focused safeguards:
- A no-negative-equity guarantee, ensuring that you never owe more than the value of your home.
- Guaranteed portability, so that you can move home with your equity release plan in the future, subject to the lender's criteria.
- The guaranteed right to remain in your home until the last homeowner has passed away or entered permanent long-term care.
Are you interested in learning more?
To learn more about equity release and whether it could be right for you, call our friendly UK-based Information Team today. They can help you to discover if you are eligible, as well as arrange an appointment with one of our advisers should you be ready.
You can contact them today on 0800 048 5384.
Opening Hours:
Monday to Friday 9am to 8pm and Saturday 9am to 5pm