Although normally the longer your Equity Release plan has been in place before it was apparent you/your spouse/partner needed care, the less likely the local authority will treat it in this way. Any lump sum you receive from Equity Release is free of any immediate taxes. It could, however, have an impact on any Inheritance Tax that may become payable on your death. Equity Release allows anyone over the age of 55, who owns their own home, to draw a lump sum or regular smaller sums from the value of their home while remaining living there.

Different lenders have different rules covering the largest LTV they are willing to offer. This money may be released as a single lump sum, or you can have a ‘drawdown’ facility open to you, allowing you to dip into that money as and when you need it. Equity release is a form of borrowing designed for borrowers over the age of 55 who want to tap into some of the equity they hold in their property without having to sell up and downsize.

My property on the market would fetch about £300,000, and my outstanding mortgage is £150,000 (but probably £130,000 when the fixed rate expires). Low monthly payments are important to the reader because they have little ambition to pay off the mortgage as there is no one to leave the property to. Equity release is a means of retaining use of a house or other asset which has capital value, while also obtaining a lump sum or a steady stream of income, using the value of the asset.

For an uncomplicated, fixed fee of £750, regardless of the size of the loan, you get the full benefit of our expert advice. Many providers will charge you a percentage of the loan, so it’s difficult to predict how much it will end up costing you. A higher loan means a higher fee, even though the standard of the advice remains the same.

Equity release may involve a lifetime mortgage or a home reversion plan, which is secured against your property. equity release wise that you will receive through the Radio Times equity release service will take into account plans from all equity release lenders so that the best plan for your individual circumstances can be found. If equity release isn’t the right solution for you, then Age Partnership have advisors and specialists who can discuss other later life lending options with you. With a Lifetime Mortgage, the loan and the rolled-up interest is repaid by your estate when you either die or move into long-term care. With some providers you can make a monthly repayment or an interest only payment.

It can be tempting to sit on your hands and take a passive approach to investments in low-interest-rate environments. In reality, however, you will find that there is lots of finance available at very attractive prices. Releasing equity even for a renovation or extension of your property may be worth considering, given the potential for an immediate uplift in capital value. For example, if you were to spend £100,000 on a renovation that resulted in a £200,000 uplift in the value of your property, this makes perfect investment sense. Rather than moving home, you can benefit from an instant return on capital invested.