Equity Release Advice Somerset

We treat every client as our only client and in this instance, we count your family as our clients too.

We understand equity release is a big decision, not only for you but your family too. Our experienced mortgage advisers offer face-to face visits with you and your family to truly understand your equity release requirements and tailor a recommendation specific to your circumstances.

Before arranging any equity release mortgage for you, our mortgage advisers will present you with a letter detailing our recommendation. We want to be sure you have the opportunity to discuss this with your family as we aim to build long-lasting, trusted relationships with you. There is no rush, we want you to take your time and ask as many questions as you need to.

Download our Equity Release Brochure now

What is Equity Release?

Equity Release is simply the process of turning the equity in your home into cash and is designed to help qualifying clients who either own their home outright or have a relatively small mortgage outstanding. You can either borrow against the value of your home, or sell all or part of it in return for a lump sum or a regular monthly income (or both in some instances). The loan will be repaid at a later date when the property is eventually sold.

Types of Scheme

There are two main types of scheme, both of which are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

Lifetime Mortgage

With this type of equity release scheme, the lender agrees to give you a lump sum or a monthly income (or both) based on the value of your home up to a defined limit. The amount that can be released is typically dependent on your age and the value of the property.

The amount borrowed plus any interest accrued, is typically repaid from the proceeds of the property once it has sold. Generally, this is when you pass away or move into a care home. If you are living with your partner, repayment of the loan will not be made until the last survivor passes away or moves into long term care.

A lifetime mortgage doesn’t involve selling any legal ownership of your property and allows you to remain living in the property for the rest of your life. As no ownership of the property is lost, the property is sold when required by you or your family, the debt is paid off and any balance retained by you or your personal representatives.

With some plans, monthly interest payments can be made preventing the interest from rolling up. You can later choose to stop making these payments and allow the debt to roll up if you so wish.

Home Reversion Plans

With this type of equity release scheme you sell part or all of your property to an equity release provider in return for either a lump sum or income and a lifetime right to remain living in your property rent-free. The percentage of your home that you retain will remain the same, irrespective of what happens to property values over time.

Your home, or the part of it you sell, will then belong to the reversion company, but you are allowed to carry on living in it until you die or move out and you or your estate will retain the value of any share not sold.

We don’t forget that you may need further advice when releasing capital from your home. During the process, we ensure you have full access to tax and inheritance specialists in Cooper Associates Wealth Management and Cooper Associates Accountants.

What could I release?

Use our calculator to have a quick look at how much money you could release. You can apply whether you’ve paid off your mortgage or not - but any outstanding mortgage will need to be paid off with the money you release. Remember, you need to be 55+ with a home worth at least £75,000 to be eligible.

I am years old and my property value is £

It’s important to understand the features, costs and risks of a lifetime mortgage – it’ll reduce the amount of inheritance you can leave, and may affect your tax position and access to welfare benefits.

Result

The approximate amount you can borrow is £

Your next steps

Talk to us

Let our equity release specialists help you consider all of those options available to you.

Think it Over

Equity Release is a big decision. Your adviser will present all of your options before any application is made. Take as much time as you need and ask as many questions as possible. We are here to help.

Apply

Once you have made a decision, we will manage the whole application process for you, along with your solicitor.

Frequently Asked Questions

How old do I need to be?

For a lifetime mortgage, the youngest borrower will need to be aged 55 or over. For a home reversion plan, you will need to be at least 60.

Is there a minimum value my property needs to be to qualify for equity release?

Typically providers will specify a minimum property value of £75,000.

Why are the interest rates on equity release schemes higher than normal mortgages?

Equity release schemes differ greatly from a standard residential mortgage. With a standard residential mortgage that a homeowner is typically used to, a defined amount of money will be borrowed over a defined number of years, agreed at the beginning of the contract. The lender will also receive regular monthly payments, comprising of capital and interest, or interest-only.

With an equity release scheme, the lender may not be receiving any regularly monthly payments if debt is being rolled up. Significantly, the provider also has no guarantee as to when the borrowing will be repaid, this being dependent on the age of the borrower passing away or moving into long term care. Additionally, there are further costs for an equity release provider to consider, such as a no negative equity guarantee. Therefore, the costs involved with an equity release scheme are higher than that of a standard mortgage provider and they therefore charge higher interest rates.

Is equity release right for me?

Choosing equity release will affect you over the long term. You need to be happy with the arrangements and be confident that it suits your circumstances, both now and in the future. It is imperative you seek impartial mortgage advice from a qualified equity release specialist.

Before using an equity release scheme, you should consider all other options available to you. If you have investments or savings, you may wish to use these before considering a scheme. If you need to release equity but would consider living in a smaller house, downsizing could be an option. We live in an aging population and if you take out an equity release plan too early in life, you may not have enough value left in your home to move to another property later.

If you are looking to consolidate any debts you may have you should in the first instance take specialist advice or talk to your local Citizens Advice Bureau before entering into an equity release scheme.

Using the equity in your home will affect the amount you are able to leave as an inheritance so we strongly recommend that you discuss this with your family and/or the beneficiaries of your estate. It is also a good idea to make sure your Will reflects your decision to take out an equity release product.

Any lump sum or income you receive as a result of an equity release mortgage, may have an effect on any state benefits you receive. You should also remember that the rules on benefits could change in the future.

With a lifetime mortgage, you can usually repay the amount you owe at any time, although the lender may charge an early repayment fee. These can be expensive as equity release schemes are designed to be long term plans. If you have a home reversion plan, you may need to sell your share of the property in order to pay off the amount you owe to the equity release provider. Depending on the amount to be repaid, you may have little to no money left over.