Retirement/releasing equity

[Dragonsbe]

Hi, I have a mortgage free house. This seems a waste as I have no one to leave it to. Obviously I like the security, but at some point would it be a good idea to release equity or take a reverse mortgage so that I can retire or just enjoy more holidays? I don't think I want to downsize (it's not a big house). I'm 55.

I’m not an expert but in your position I would either do that or sell and rent a large flat in an over 55s building, but as you don’t want to downsize I would definitely go with your option and enjoy some holidays.

I can certainly see the attraction, but investigate the costs and T&C very carefully. Particularly at your age there's a long time for
interest to compound, and some schemes have lock in clauses/early repayment penalties. It's easy to end up in a situation 20 years down the line where you want to release cash for necessities rather than luxuries, and there's none left. Or find you're unable to sell when you need to move to a more manageable place or a care home.

I suppose it makes sense to hold onto it until much later - timing it right seems impossible, I imagine I'll either die early without releasing equity, or if I still have it it will be taken as an asset to pay for a care home...

If you do want to consider Equity Release, I’d recommend speaking to the Financial Solutions team at StepChange Debt Charity. +448081686719. You don’t have to be in debt etc to use them, but they are independent and don’t work on commission and they’re free to use. They search the whole market to find the best deal. We used them when we were looking to get our first mortgage and they were fantastic.

Thank you all. Would love to hear from others my age and in my position.