Homes pay out more than £440 million to retirees in the capital
22 March 2017
- Pensioners in London cash in an average £143,000 from property wealth, Key Retirement analysis shows
- Over a quarter of retired homeowners use the cash to help family and friends
Property wealth is boosting the retirement standard of living in London by more than £440 million, according to new analysis from leading over-55s finance specialist www.keyadvice.co.uk
Its Equity Release Market Monitor shows London pensioners are pocketing more than £143,000 tax-free by releasing wealth from their homes.
Nearly one in three pensioners are using some or all of the money to clear debts including mortgages and credit cards.
But the detailed study found families are among the biggest beneficiaries with 27% of retired homeowners using some or all of the cash to help out relatives including providing deposits to buy their own home.
Retired home owners in London were more likely to use their property wealth to help family than go on holiday – just 15% used some or all of the money to treat themselves to trips away.
However the main motivation for releasing property wealth was to pay for home and garden improvements – over half (58%) of pensioners invested some or all of the cash on revamping their property.
Key’s data shows nearly 3,100 London pensioners used their homes to help boost their retirement funds in 2016, and they were responsible for a fifth of all property wealth released during the year.
Dean Mirfin, technical director at Key (www.keyadvice.com), said:
“Property wealth, particularly for those in London where house prices have grown strongly, is making a huge contribution to retirement planning, and that is demonstrated by the wide range of issues London pensioners can tackle.
“That enables retired Londoners to help out their family and more are doing that than spending money on holidays.
“The biggest use of property wealth is to pay for home and garden improvements underling how property wealth can help in retirement. Equity release is a real alternative for pensioners who are seeing traditional retirement income solutions squeezed by historically low interest rates.”
Anyone looking to release equity from their home can get Key’s independent guide to equity release by calling 0800 531 6027 or visiting www.keyadvice.co.uk/equity-release/request-a-free-guide