AIBU to wonder why a pensioner struggling financially would not use housing equity?

Not sure if this is just in Scotland but my parents got a stairlift, a toilet rail and a bath chair fitted free and they had two private pensions and two state pensions, were home owners and had around £200k savings!

You can get council funding for accessibility adaptions if you are below a certain income.

It’s not so much the size, it’s about accessibility, mobility and security. Like many older homeowners, we don’t have a large house, but the only bathroom is upstairs, and there’s no room for one on the ground floor. DH (80) has a health condition where the frequency of using a loo is increasing, along with other long term illness. If he has to go into hospital he may not be released, due to unsuitable housing. It’s one of the main reasons for elderly people bed blocking.

Selling their (often) only modest asset to fund rent for their last few years, without claiming benefits, saving taxpayers money, seems reasonable to me.

There is hope for you yet. I'll keep a seat warm on the Colour Free sceptics bench 😉

Oh dear. I’m a bit worried about myself! 😉

We are in agreement again 😂

A cheaper area usually means less access to amenities like shops, a GP surgery, dentist and cafes. All the things you need to be near if you become unable to drive. Flats usually involve stairs which aren’t great as you age. Future proofing isn’t cheap.

umm a smaller house? a cheaper area? A normal flat?

What other alternatives for downsizing?

Yes and where have I said that? I don’t know how we got to such selfishness in the UK but it’s awful to see the greed that goes with it.

Haha - yes that’s what gets me- a lot have lost all sense of reality and it’s not just houses- many have a Ton of cash squirrelled away too - I do think the care situation is partly to blame - that’s why I think we need to do what Germany does - 3.4% of income is paid towards state funded nursing care of decent quality - my view is it should kick in at 40 and a maximum of £75k of assets can be used towards it-after that insurance kicks in - my father in law is86 and always trying to give us and our son lump sums and I’ve had to explain at his age and should he need care it could be seen as deprivation of assets , so we couldn’t comfortably spend it without it being asked for back . I think a bit of surety would help many older people feel comfortable about passing money down to younger family earlier.

That is a pretty appallingly written article, retirement flats or bungalows are not the only downsizing options

The tax issue - well yes stamp duty is a pain, it is a pain for all house buyers, particularly first time buyers. At least downsizers will probably have some equity they can use to pay it, unlike first time buyers who have to raid their deposits.

I am a big fan of reforming stamp duty, it does as currently structured, have some pretty perverse outcomes.

These examples are appalling. At least I know we won’t be putting anyone in the position of being responsible for monthly charges when we’re gone, we can’t afford McCarthy and Stone’s prices!

Many homeowners would love to downsize, us included. But we couldn’t cope with the insecurity of private renting now, and few social landlords will consider us. Our LA would rather house a healthy 55 year old renter into older people’s accommodation than a frail 80+ year old who owns their own home. They may have had similar levels of income, but made different spending choices, and for that one is considered more deserving than the other.

My kids are 55+, working and don’t think of themselves as old, who does even at 60 nowadays? Equity release wouldn’t give us the kind of one level accommodation we need, any suggestions from those who think our generation has it all?

Apologies it’s on an example the OP posted with a £2m house bought for £125,000 and £9k a year charge

Just come back to this thread and I am idly wondering if all those so keen to get their older relatives to release equity in their homes would be so keen if they were just a few years away from retirement?
They will say that they will be fine with it. They won't.

What example?

I own a house. I am retired but too young to get the state pension. I will not be taking loans out on my home.

At least you won’t be turfed out on the street by a landlord, and have some control over your housing and future. Don’t underestimate the impact of renting and mo security.

Rubbish- what it’s saying is you will have roughly £120k ( and that is if you needed to do equity release to pay for it - it’s very high rate too as it’s multi million house in the example given ) you still have equity of £1.8 million plus -

Britain’s downsizing crisis is only getting worse

This thread basically says there is zero point in paying a mortgage for 30 years because the house will never be yours anyway.

Or a charge could be put on the property and paid once it is sold or inherited. I get that they didn't expect their house to increase in value and it is all academic until they sell it or die, but it has and I am sure they or their beneficiaries won't be reticent about trousering the unearned equity.

It might incentivise people to downsize earlier and we won't have so many elderly people rattling around in large houses they cannot afford to maintain or heat.

I’m with the commenter ! They can easily draw down on it to pay the land tax /council tax . Just have a flexible overdraft equity release - even after 10 years it would still take out only around £135k . It’s not an ‘earned ‘ asset increase, like say a business - ( which would then involve CgT if sold) it’s the luck of the market . Will reduce their IHT too.

Why would Global Equity companies suddenly start buying £2m houses?