Equity release being used to pay off mortgages

Most popular reasons for equity release

The research was carried out by equity release lender, Canada Life. They asked 1,000 people why they had released equity from their home with an over 55 equity release scheme. The top reasons were: 

• 46% to pay off an existing mortgage
• 41% home improvements
• 28% to go on holiday 
• 18% to help with everyday living expenses 

Pension or property to fund retirement 

The survey also asked respondents about their attitudes to funding their retirement. 

• 52% said they thought their pension pot was worth a lot less than their property 
• But 52% also said they would rely on their pension to finance their retirement, rather than their property 
• 28% said they expected to rely on a combination of both their pension and equity from their property to finance their retirement

What the survey means

“We’ve long talked about equity release being a means of realising your retirement dreams, for example carrying out home improvements or going on a dream holiday, but this new survey from Canada Life shows that people are increasingly thinking of the equity in their home in a broader sense for their retirement planning,” commented Jan Johnson, director of 55+ Equity Release. ​“With nearly half of respondents using at least some of the money to pay off an existing mortgage, equity release is becoming an increasingly important tool for people to ensure they can stay in the home they love when they are too old for a conventional mortgage.” 

If you’d like to find out more about how equity release can be used to pay off your existing mortgage, our expert advisers would be happy to have an initial, no-obligation chat with you.