News Tag: equity release
January 28, 2010
The UK's equity release market held steady in the final quarter of 2009, taking into account seasonal factors.
According to industry body, Safe Home Income Plans (SHIP), volumes declined by 1.9% on the previous three months while the value of the average advance showed a 4% increase.
With more homeowners seeking flexible deals, the number of drawdown mortgages sold rose by 5% to 3,057, or 54% of the ...
Equity release holding steady
by Gill Montia
November 25, 2009
Prudential has announced that it is withdrawing from the equity release market in the first quarter of 2010.
The insurer, which has been selling lifetime mortgages since 2005 and is listed among the UK's top three providers, has reassured existing customers that their contracts are unaffected.
Pru's exit is being seen as a blow to the equity release market as a whole, ...
Prudential withdraws from lifetime mortgage market
by Gill Montia
October 14, 2009
The latest Equity Release Market Monitor from Key Retirement Solutions (KRS) has revealed a rise in equity release take-up in the July to September period.
Equity release sales were up 19% during the period compared to the April to June period, said KRS.
Equity release allows homeowners to release cash from the value of their property - the trend became very popular ...
Equity release sales up 19% in Q3
by Kay Murchie
July 31, 2009
Financial services provider Just Retirement this week posted record fourth quarter sales of £234.9 million, up 20% on the previous record.
Chief executive Mike Fuller said the result for the three months ending 30th June 2009 was "very pleasing".
"We have also improved our capital position whilst maintaining our rigorous focus on profitability", Fuller said.
"Accordingly, I look forward to this coming financial year with ...
Just Retirement posts record sales
by David Masters
July 23, 2009
Which? has been investigating equity release advisers only to find that two-thirds failed to pass benchmarks for good advice.
Researchers working for the consumer group visited 40 advisers, 12 of whom specialised in equity release.
A disappointing five from this group passed the Which? test, compared with eight of the 28 independent financial advisers surveyed.
Overall, 23 advisers failed to complete a fact-find and ...
Advisers fail Which? equity release test
by Gill Montia
July 19, 2009
The number of homeowners opting for equity release rose by 5% during the second quarter of 2009, compared with the previous three months.
However, on an annual basis volumes were down 22% at 5,328.
Safe Home Income Plans (SHIP) the body that represents the UK's equity release providers, has also reported a 14% increase in the sale of drawdown plans, which have been proving ...
Equity release sales increase 5%
by Gill Montia
July 10, 2009
Key Retirement Solutions has updated the equity release market with its latest monitor, showing that volumes are down for the second consecutive quarter.
In the three months to the end of June, the number of new plans sold fell an annual 24% to 5,143.
Furthermore, the property market downturn meant that the value of new lending plummeted 41%, from £319 million in the second ...
Equity release values plummet 41%
by Gill Montia
April 16, 2009
Despite high hopes for the equity release market during the fallout from the credit crisis, the first quarter of 2009 has produced disappointing results.
The Key Retirement Solutions (KRS) Equity Release Market Monitor shows a decline in take-up compared to a year ago, with the number of plans sold down 7% during the first three months of the year.
Actual equity release lending for the ...
Equity release lending plummets
by Gill Montia
February 18, 2009
Equity release provider, Stonehaven, has launched, Interest Select, which it claims is an innovation in the lifetime mortgage market.
The new product allows customers to choose the amount of interest they pay each month.
The option has been introduced because Stonehaven believes many homeowners who are interested in equity release become anxious at the idea of the size of their loan ...
Stonehaven storms equity release market with Interest Select
by Gill Montia
February 4, 2009
Rising life expectancy in the UK is likely to prove of interest to equity release providers, who are already optimistic that 2009 will be a year of strong growth for the sector.
According to the Office for National Statistics, life expectancy for a UK male has increased by 26% in the past 20 years. For females, the rise stands ...
Life expectancy and equity release interest on the rise
by Gill Montia
January 27, 2009
Safe Home Income Plans (SHIP), the body that represents 90% of UK equity release providers, has reported that lending fell by 9% in value and 4% in volume in 2008.
New equity release plans for the year totalled almost £1.096 billion, in terms of value.
SHIP points out that the decrease is far less than that seen in the mainstream mortgage market, ...
UK equity release market shrinks by 9%
by Gill Montia
January 20, 2009
LV= (formerly Liverpool Victoria) has been working on its range of lifetime mortgages and introduced age-banded interest rates.
The mutual is confident that the changes will provide its lifetime mortgage customers with a more competitive product.
Interest rates start from 6.29% for a flexible lifetime mortgage for a homeowner aged between 60 and 65, increasing to 7% for those aged 86 ...
LV= offers new rates on lifetime mortgages
by Gill Montia
January 7, 2009
As interest rates fall, more homeowners could turn to equity release to fund post-retirement living costs.
This is the prediction of Safe Home Income Plans (SHIP), the body that represents 90% of the UK's equity release providers.
According to SHIP, nine out of 10 equity release firms expect new business volumes to increase during 2009, expanding the market by £200 million in total, ...
Equity release providers confident of growth
by Gill Montia
October 6, 2008
Retired homeowners who have opted for equity release as a means of boosting their incomes are being advised to review the deal offered by their provider, and consider remortgaging.
According to Key Retirement Solutions, a firm of independent financial advisers specialising in equity release, retirees who have raised cash from their homes over the last five years or more may be able to ...
Equity releasers should consider remortgaging
by Gill Montia
September 23, 2008
The British Bankers' Association (BBA) has reported a 64% annual decline in mortgage approvals for house purchases, in August.
In all, 21,086 new home loans were sanctioned during the month, compared with 58,564 in August 2007.
The figure is 5% down on July 2008 and at its lowest since BBA records began in 1997.
August approvals for remortgaging were 27.8% down year-on-year, at 47,765 ...
Approvals for new mortgages plunge 64%
by Gill Montia
July 21, 2008
Safe Home Income Plans (SHIP), the body that fosters good practice in the UK's equity release market, has reported a rise in demand for such loans during the second quarter of this year.
According to SHIP, homeowners availed themselves of £257.7 million in the three months to the end of June, representing a 14% rise on the amount withdrawn during the pervious three ...
Equity release approvals rise 14%
by Gill Montia
